Windpower!
Riley Hitchcock ’09 and John Melind ’10 test the wind generator they made in the Alternative Energy class taught by chemistry Professor Ann Taylor and physics Professor Martin Madsen.
Hitchcock and Melind make some adjustments to their generator to improve it's electrical output. The Alternative Energy class, a new model for science classes for non-majors, is taught in a combined question/answer and lab format, giving students the chance to "do science" and learn in many different modes.
Josh Harris ’08, Zach Webb ’08, and John Grashoff ’10 finish construction of their generator.
Harris, Dan Masterson ’09, and Professor Ann Taylor discuss the results of the wind experiment. Later in the semester under Professor Taylor's supervision, the students will make bio-diesel.
Generators were tested using electric fans before being taken outside for "real world" tests in the wind.
Seniors Jeremy Burton and Jason Gray try to find some wind for their generator on the Wabash mall.
Gray gives his wind generator a little help.
Steve Egan ’09 finds his generator needs a little assistance, too.
Professor Madsen watches as Jonathon Edwards ’09 and Jeremy Morris ’09 test their generator.
Chad Finley spins the generator for an open circuit test.
Tom Hanewald ’09 and Chad Finley ’08 try to free up the magnets on their generator as they wait for a gust of wind.
Results in the "real world" are often very different from those in the lab, as students testing their generators in variable winds and below-freezing cold found out Thursday. Here Tom Hanewald and Professor Madsen discuss the results.