Min-Yeong Moon, post-doctoral research scholar in the Center for Computer-Aided Design, has been accepted into the Rising Stars in Mechanical Engineering Workshop at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, October 25-26, 2018.
The workshop is aimed at women graduate students and postdocs considering careers in academia. Thirty of the top junior academic women in mechanical engineering from around the US will gain career skills, connect with a cohort of peers, and engage with mentors.
We caught up with Dr. Moon to talk about the award and learn more about her.
Q: What does this award mean to you?
A: It is a great honor. It gives me confidence that I am on the right track in my research and career. I also feel the responsibility of being a representative for top junior academic women in mechanical engineering. This is an amazing opportunity to communicate with leading researchers from other institutions and learn about their work.
Q: What do you do at the University?
A: I am developing confidence-based reliability assessment and model verification and validation under a sub-contract from RAMDO Solutions, LLC, supported by the U.S. Army Small Business Innovation Research Sequential Phase II.
Q: What do you enjoy most about your work?
A: It is exciting to contribute to improving the reliability and performance of real-word physical systems used by millions of people.
Q: What achievements are you most proud of?
A: I am proud that my work is in the process of technology transfer and real-world application. It has received considerable attention from automotive industries, and their representatives have contacted me regarding implementation of my work. Due to the prohibitive expense of full-scale product testing, industries need to predict the reliability of a product before it is deployed in the field. Recent developments in the confidence-based reliability assessment and model validation approach can provide reliability prediction with confidence even with a lack of testing. They can also assess both qualitative and quantitative validation, which measures the accuracy of a simulation tool and the confidence of model prediction.
Q: What are your goals for the future?
A: I would like be involved in mechanical engineering by accumulating academic experience, carrying out successful research, and influencing the engineering research community and industrial sectors. I would like my developments and achievements to help to make the world a better and safer place. In addition, I would like to be an academic leader in the field of mechanical engineering and serve as a mentor and advisor who can foster the next generation of engineers (especially women engineers) and help them develop long-term goals for their careers.
Q: What do you like best about Iowa City?
A: As a college town, Iowa city has a peaceful atmosphere unlike big cities. I like to watch the clear sky and beautiful clouds and enjoy the beautiful sunsets.
Q: What do you like to do in your free time?
A: Sometimes I play piano in the piano practice room in the Voxman Music Building. I also play tennis.
