We wanted to call this "The Secret Life of the Electron: The Story of e", but figured that it wouldn't look so good on your transcript...

Come learn about:
How to direct electronic warfare techniques toward peaceful uses: to disable your neighbors annoying radio
Why Thomas Edison was electrocuting dogs in New York.
What the second most purchased appliance was in 1900 and why your grandparents would never admit they had one.
The history, personalities and development of modern electronic technology
Find out:
How electronic devices and systems such as Lasers, Fiberoptics, Cellphones, Telegraph (the Internet of the Victorian Age), Radio, Radar, Television, Computers, Semiconductor Microchips, CD Players, the Internet and more work and have changed our lives forever.

This course while accessible to the non-specialist should be of great interest to engineering students as well, giving an introduction to the background of the profession and topics relevant to being an inventor. The material will be presented by Lecture, Demonstrations and Video.

See Demonstrated live:

The 300,000 volt generator in action- a "Hair Raising" experience
The mysteries of Electricity and Magnetism
Static electric motors made from common office supplies
A radio you can build without batteries, transistor or tubes
Radio Transmission by Sparks
Magnetic Guns- A path to low earth orbit?
A Tesla Coil in action, Source of free energy, or potential beam weapon?
The Jacobs ladder, every mad scientist has one
A human powered flashlight and how it was designed
Electronic warfare techniques you can use them for peace at home
A post-mortum on a Furby (sacrificed for science)

and much more!

Credit hours: 5

This course is intended to provide basic knowledge of electricity and "how things work." as well as an appreciation of how technology evolves, its impact on society, and history. It is intended to provide basic technical literacy for the non-specialist. Additionally this course provides a broad overview of the professional aspects of engineering and an early introduction and overview of basic systems and components, which will be useful for engineering majors as well. Topics covered will include Electrical power, Radio, Television, Radar, Computers, Robots, Telecommunications and the Internet.

Prerequisites:
None. high school physics a plus.

Lectures are supplemented with demonstrations of basic electromagnetic phenomena, electronic instruments and dismantling electronic toys and equipment, to "see how they work" The assumption we are proceeding upon is that an understanding of how technology works is accessible to the general student without the rigorous course of study necessary to become a proficient designer. Videos will be used throughout to present the development of this exciting technology.

Course outline: What we'll be learning about and for about how long:

Electricity and Magnetism (1.5 week)

What were those Greeks doing with the stuff? The compass: invented by the Chinese or the Italians, should we care? Did Ben Franklin really do something as crazy as to fly a kite in thunderstorm? Who was Michael Farady and what do we owe him?

Early communications and sound, Telegraph, Telephone, Phonograph (1 week)

Telegraph - the Victorian Internet, why was this an even bigger deal than our own recent internet revolution? How the biggest telecommunications company missed out on the telephone revolution.

Electric Light and Power (1 week)

How does our electrical system work, how did get this way, and why Thomas Edison was electrocuting dogs. Investigate the transformations in society brought about by electrification and the impact, particularly, on the lives of women.

Wireless and Electronic Radio (1 week)

Heavy duty magic when you think about it. Learn to build one from a rusty razor blade, tinfoil and a bit of wire.

RADAR and Electronic Warfare (1 week)

The atom bomb might have ended WWII but RADAR was arguably the invention that won it! Find out what else its good for and how a melted chocolate bar brought us the microwave oven. More seriously we will inquire into the history and realtionship between the military and technology.

Television (1 week)

How it drove Professor Armstrong to jump out a window and why its inventor didn't watch it.

Transistors, Semiconductors, Integrated Circuits (1 week)

The invention that enabled the microelectronics revolution, how it was invented, how they are made, and how it led to the birth of the innovation capital of the world-Silicon Valley. Learn to make semiconductors in your home oven.

Digital electronics, Computers and Robotics (1 week)

The Digital Revolution, Machines that Think?!?, When will I have a Robot that will cook and clean?

Audio electronics, lasers, fiber optic communications, and (1 week)
topics of special interest to the class

Cool stuff, and where things are going. The future that never happened.

MWF 9:30-10:40 Baskin Engineering Room 152

Ken Pedrotti
253C Jack Baskin Engineering Building
Phone: (831) 459-1229
E-mail: pedrotti@soe.ucsc.edu

Office hours: Weds. 10:40-11:40 and Fri. 10:40-11:40

Textbooks and Other Course Materials:

"Engineering Uncovered" 2nd edition by Dick White and Roger Doering

This has great descriptions of how elementary electronics works, the descriptions are based on analogies to water flow through pipes, valves etc.. Don't worry, we'll be leaving out most of the boring parts.

Course Reader: Selected readings mostly interesting historical stories, and a bit of how things work.

A number of Videos will be used in the course among them:

Sparks and Shocks:Current Events in 18th Century Electricity
Transatlantic Cable 2500 Miles of Copper
Tesla Master of Lightening
Radio:Out of Thin Air
Modern Marvels:Radar History Channel
The Secret War Vol. 1 Electronic Warfare BBC
Transistorized- the development of the transistor
Big Dream, Small Screen-Television
Triumph of the Nerds-Development of the PC and rise of Silicon Valley
Silicon Run -How are those Microchips made anyway?

Tentative Schedule

A more detailed version will be coming later
 

Date	Lect.	Topic	Reading Assignment	Homework
4/2	1	Static Electricity - Sparks and Shocks	Franklin, the Modern Prometheus pp. 3-7 An Electrical Generator p. 75 Electrostatics Demonstration p. 76
4/4	2	More Static Electricity-Van De Graf-Much Bigger Sparks Magnetism Batteries-Current-Electromagnetism	From Compass to Computer W. A. Atherton83-98 (stop at Laws of Conduction)
4/7	3	Electric Current/Ohms LawPower	Electrical Engineering Uncovered p115-131 Direct Current Fundamentals From Compass to Computer W. A. Atherton pp. 98-101
4/9	4	Electromagnetism Farady-Maxwell	From Compass to Computer W. A. Atherton101-111 Electromagnetic Fields p. 79
4/11	5	Telegraph	Victorian Internet - By Tom Standage pp. 137-178
4/14	6	Telegraph-2500 miles of Copper	Fax: The Preist and the Pendulum pp. 29-32
4/16	7	Telephone/Phonograph
4/18	8	Electric Light and Power
	9	Electric Power - Tesla Master of Lightning
	10	Appliances
	11	Early Radio
	12	Electronic Radio
	13	Electronic Radio-Broadcasting
	14	Midterm
	15	Radar
	16	Radar/Microwaves
	17	Electronic Warfare
	18	TV
	19	TV
	20	TV
	21	Transistors
	22	Integrated Circuits
	23	Integrated Circuits
	24	Digital Electronics
	25	Computers-The Dark Ages
	26	Computers-The PC Revolution
	27	Internet and Digital Communications
	28	Audio Electronics
	29	Lasers and Fiber Optics
	30	????

Homework Assignments

There will probably be around 5-6 homework assignments based on the readings and in-class material.

Additionally I'm thinking of having you write a paper on an aspect of electronic history that you find interesting or on how some system or device works, this part is still a bit fuzzy at this time...

Grading Method

Ken Pedrotti

Last updated: 2/5/2002