Hi,ENGINEERZ

It is known that, the objectives of the engineering education
are to train students being able to handle engineering
problems in the analysis, design and fabrication of a real
thing. Accordingly, the objectives of the aerospace
engineering are to teach students familiar with aerospace
systems in analysis, design and manufacture of flight
vehicles. In order to keep in pace with the fast changing
world, the engineering education needs frequent reviewed,
and urges schools to make necessary improvement or reform
on the educational programs. In the past four decades, there
ever had three education reforms due to the striking of
satellite Sputnik to start the space competition since 1957,
the impact of energy crisis in 1970‘s, and the great
achievements of computer and space communication
technology in 1980’s. Due to the technology progress of
this shrinking world, it is clear that, the space-utilization
industry and the information technology will be the major
enterprises in the 21st Century. In other words, the matter
that aerospace industry is one of the major industries in the
near future, should awake engineering professors to reevaluate
the existing education programs they give to the
students.
Aerospace engineering is characterized in its high
technology, which is resulting in the requisites to produce
most safe, fast, robotic and comfort systems, and which
systems can also operate successfully in very critical
conditions and in severe environments. Therefore, known
by its high-technology senses, aerospace industry is taken as
the driving force to push and to upgrade other branches of
industry. The world is one, and its resources are so limited
and distributed all over the Earth. Each Country possesses
only some specific resources that other Countries does not
have. Peoples in the world should cooperate and help one
another to improve their living. Therefore, the sharing of
resources and the transferring of technologies among
Countries under mutual interests are the working model for
the world toward bright future. International cooperation and
partnership are the best way to help the developing
Countries to become developed. Well developed hightechnology
companies should provide the research and
education activities and interact with university and
industry. The cooperation among government-industryuniversity
should be linked tightly together to promote the
technology level and students‘ abilities. It is noted that,
well engineering education and a high-technology society are
closely related, and an intensive interaction between
education and technology would come up to a wealthy
society and a peaceful world.
Due to the fast developing and highly competing
aerospace technologies, aerospace industry nowadays is
urged to produce an advanced vehicle with low life-cyclecost,
implemented with new technology, to meet high
environment standard, and, of course, to operate the vehicle
in automation, robotics and safety. As summarized by Prof.
K. Y. Lin of the University of Washington at Seattle, there
are four critical technologies for the present and near future
development in aerospace industry. These critical
technologies are: the information technologies to manage an
autonomous and smart vehicle; the development of
composite materials and structure configuration to optimize
vehicle performance; the technologies associated with the
systems issues of life-cycle-cost, operation, and maintenance,
are a driving force in the design of new aerospace systems;
the technologies relating to environmental factors, such as
the control of pollution and reduction of noise, will play an
important role in future aerospace vehicles and systems.
Definitely, though most of the key technologies would be
solved eventually, and the aerospace field will continue to
flourish, but still there are some major and important
changes occurring. Thus, today’s and tomorrow’s aerospace
engineers must be well prepared to adapt to the field as it
changes.