Team Effort

"As we read online reviews, we noticed common complaints: [It] wasn't secure, did not stay in place on the body, and the bottle could not stay in an acceptable feeding position for some parents," says Amok. "We took these complaints to the drawing board…and looked at images of organic shapes to find something that would be comfortable for both the baby and an adult." The exhibition traditionally caps the "Introduction to Engineering" course and teams with innovative prototypes that demonstrate best overall performance earn the Phillip R. Jackson Award. Fall term winners— Emma Kallman '22, Mia Giallorenzi '23, Emily Lukas '23, and Ella Marden '23, with teaching assistant Gretchen Carpenter '23—developed Core Check, safety device that checks ropes for internal damage. Users slide a rope through the device to watch for any catching, stopping, or skipping that might indicate rope damage. "Team Core Check created many prototypes, finally settling on a simple but elegant prototype that consistently detects internal damage in climbing ropes," says Professor Vicki May. "They came up with a creative way to assess the accuracy of their device and solicited and incorporated user feedback throughout the term."