CSU, CHICO'S MECHANICAL ENGINEERING TEAM bested 25 other teams to win a national high-gas-mileage contest. The Chico supermileage vehicle reached 640 mpg to take the top prize in the Society of Automotive Engineers Supermileage Competition in Michigan in June 2001.

The vehicle achieved the supermileage with an engine that was designed to be efficient at high speeds. Their competitors ran their cars at lower speeds and coasted.

“Our first time on the track we ran at 40 mph, and the other teams thought we were showing off. We didn’t know that the accepted strategy was to coast, and we benefited by not doing the same thing,” said team member Michael Meteer.

Adviser Dick Hsu said, “We knew we had a good chance to be in the top five because of the customizing we had done. We were thrilled to come in first. We have such talented students. Our students come with broad experiences and varied backgrounds—we had a former airline mechanic on our team!”

This was CSU, Chico’s first year participating in the supermileage competition. Seven seniors designed and built the vehicle.S

CHAMPION BRIDGE BUILDERS Civil engineering students placed first, for the fifth consecutive year, at the Mid-Pacific Region Steel Bridge Competition in April 2001, sponsored by the American Society of Civil Engineers and the American Institute of Steel Construction. The team won a trophy for the lightest bridge at the national competition in May.

COMPUTER ENGINEERING STUDENT Dustin Hess won first place in the regional Micromouse Competition in Sacramento in May 2001. A micromouse is a small, self-contained robot that can negotiate and learn a maze.

SOLAR FLARE Electrical and computer engineering and computer science students completely renovated the College of Engineering, Computer Science, and Technology’s computer systems. SUN Microsystems provided the students with $850,000 worth of computer equipment.

HEWLETT-PACKARD HIRED more ECT graduates in spring 2001 from CSU, Chico than from any other school from which they recruit.

CHICO'S GRADUATING ENGINEERING students scored 16 percentage points higher than engineering students from other CSUs on the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination in April 2001. The graduates scored 5 percentage points higher than students from all other California colleges and universities who took the examination. The examination is the first phase in the process of becoming a professional engineer in California.

THREE ENGINEERING STUDENTS won the 2001 Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Electromagnetic Compatibility Nationwide Design Competition. The students completed a design project, “EMC Compliance in PCB Design,” under the direction of Professor Hede Ma. They won $900 in cash and traveling expenses to the national conference.

Most of us feel thrifty when our cars get 20 or 30 miles per gallon. Imagine how you’d feel if your car coughed up 640 miles per gallon!