RobiNZ CAD Blog

TypePad Micro, could it be your free personal blog?

TypePad recently released a new product that is worth considering if you’d like to blog, but don’t want to deal with a full featured blog. TypePad Micro is a simple way to share text, web links, images and video powered by the TypePad Community platform. You can post from any web enabled device (even via email) and it will update your existing Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Thinking about blogging? Want to share media or images on Twitter, have more to say than 140 characters will allow? Consider TypePad Micro:

Introducing TypePad Micro - www.typepad.com/micro

• Easily post anything you want, anywhere you are.
• Keep your friends in the know with instant updates to Facebook, Twitter, and TypePad.
• Discover and connect with others who share your passions in the TypePad network.

Or is it LAX?

I hope Savage Chickens Arrivals isn’t a sign of things to come…

 

Technorati Tags: #AU2009

Autodesk University Prep 1.09 – My Schedule*

This is my Autodesk University schedule. If you see the black shirt with a silver RCB Logo on your travels say hello!

• Sunday,
  • Arrive, register, work out which way is up!
• Monday,
  • Shaan’s Shutterbug photo trek and Blogger Social
• Tuesday, December 1, 2009
  • 08:00am - 09:30am Advanced Design Integration for Radical Energy Efficiency AU104-6
  • 10:00am - 11:30am AU Keynote and Welcome Address with Carl Bass
  • 01:00pm - 02:30pm Experience Design for Architects, and Product, Automotive, Package, Interior, and Interactive Designers DL114-2
  • 03:00pm - 04:30pm BIM 4 Contractors: From 2D Conversions to 3D Manipulations CR118-1
  • 05:00pm Industry Keynote: AutoCAD® and Media & Entertainment Keynote and Mixer KN122-1
• Wednesday, December 2, 2009
  • 08:00am - 09:30am Multi-Discipline Project Coordination With Autodesk® Revit® AB204-1
  • 10:00am - 11:30am Industry Keynote: Architecture, Engineering, and Construction KN208-1
  • 01:00pm - 02:30pm Industry Keynote: Manufacturing KN214-1
  • 03:00pm - 04:30pm  Autodesk® Revit® for Conceptual Floor Plans AB218-1
  • 07:00pm - 07:10pm Tweetup (AUGI)
• Thursday, December 3, 2009
  • 08:00am - 09:30am Autodesk® Revit® for Film and Stage AB304-1
  • 10:00am - 11:30am BIM Bids Only! How to Get Your Subcontractors to Bid an Autodesk® Revit® Project CR308-1
  • 01:00pm - 02:30pm The Real Engineer's Workflow: MEP Massing for Pre-Design Analysis   MP314-3
  • 03:00pm - 04:30pm Next Generation AEC Collaboration  AB318-1
  • 05:00pm Integrated Architecture and Interior Design Documentation with Autodesk® Revit® AB322-3
• Friday:
  • Depart (early evening)

* I reserve the right to change this schedule without notice or reason!

Technorati Tags: #AU2009

I’m a hard to use PC?

Instructions from a website to set desktop background?*

To set web image as desktop background;

Instructions for PC

1. Click on a link to open the full size version of the image. It will open in a new window.
2. Right click on the full size image, choose ‘Set as Wallpaper’ or ‘Set as Background’.

Instructions for Mac

1. Click on a link to open the full size version of the image. It will open in a new window.
2. Holding Ctrl and clicking the image simultaneously, choose ‘Download Image to Disk’.
3. Save the image to your hard drive, preferably in Library | Desktop Pictures
4. From the “Finder” menu choose ‘Preferences’.
5. In the ‘Preferences’ window, click ‘Select Picture’ and navigate, using the file window that opens for you, to your wallpaper image.
6. Click ‘Choose’ to confirm your choice.

* I hope there is an easier way on the Mac but not sure as I'm a PC

Driving with Shaan?

TomTom recently upgraded their iPhone GPS application to “speak” road names rather than just generic instructions like “Turn Left, One Hundred Metres”. It uses a human voice combined with “computerised reading” to pronounce the street names.

I tried it tonight on the way home from work and discovered TomTom seems to think a world famous AutoCAD Blogger is my driver.

New Zealand has a “State Highway” system (there being no “inter” for an interstate highway!) and part of my commute includes State Highway One.

This gets abbreviated to SH1 which TomTom pronounces “SsssHhhhOne” resulting in commands like:

• “Keep left Shaan”
• “Continue Two Point Seven Kilometres Shaan”
• “Take this exit Shaan”

While I’m thinking it’s not Shaan driving, it’s Robin! *

* And,see you next week Shaan, when you will be driving because I will end up on the wrong side of the road :)

The iPhone is a… ?

I laughed when I saw Jeff’s post because I’m the same. I got my first iPhone mobile bill. The phone has had something like 15 hours of use over the past month, 8 minutes as a phone…

The iPhone is a phone? Who knew? Um... who cares? - softwareblogs.intel.com

I spent hours messing around, installing programs, surfing the web, gloating over my new iPhone online, and regularly having to plug it in because of the drain I was putting on the battery.

Then the craziest thing happened… it rang!

I didn't even know how to answer it at first…

My lock page has prompted a few comments too…

(If you noticed a few changes in this post that’s because I mistakenly posted a very rough draft, then tidied it up live!)

Autodesk University Prep 1.08 - Post my AU Blog Banner (Done!)

The new banner isn't from AU 2009 because I don't have a time machine. Way back in 2006 I was heading back to the hotel (AU2006 was at the Venetian but I stayed at The Flamingo) late on a cold night. It was the sort of weather that even makes a city sparkle so I walked a bit further down the strip and headed up the Paris Tower. It was windy up there and very cold (like about 0°c). Hand holding a little IXUS camera was quite difficult but the resulting photos were worth the effort.

In the distance you can just see Mandalay Bay, AU 2009 venue, and in the foreground a site, and a sight, that I suspect looks rather different today. City Center was just a big hole in the ground back then so it will be interesting to see how this view has changed as it is due to open in December.

Burj Dubai in Photosynth

Geek in Disguise have a post on the new “overhead” view in Microsoft Photosynth. It’s amazing technology which aggregates 2D images into a pseudo 3D world (below).

Photosynth Overhead View from Microsoft Photosynth on Vimeo.

The overhead view makes the “model” more understandable but it was the subject of GID’s Photosynth that got my attention. It’s a unique way to see the Burj Dubai

Photosynth Overhead View launched - Geek In Disguise

Autodesk University Prep 1.07 – This is for everyone

If you can’t get to Vegas Autodesk University is coming to you. In addition to the all on-line AU Virtual there is Autodesk University Extension (AUe?). It combines AU Vegas Instructors and classes supported by local instructors at an Autodesk Training Centre near you (including New Zealand!). Even better, it is free! See the details in Kate’s post below:

One more way to get to AU – LT Unlimited

There are now THREE ways to see AU 2009 content and events (and that's not even counting all the stuff that's already available at AU Online).

1. AU in Vegas : Of course there's the live event. You get in-person classes, networking, the AUGI Beer Bust, etc.
2. AUv (Virtual): There's also AU Virtual, which is a way to see live classes and events over the web. No security lines to get to this one, and it's free. (Or $99 for a Premier Pass.)
3. AU Extension: Last but not least, there's AU Extension, which combines expert-led class content from AU in Las Vegas with face-to-face interaction with local instructors. With over 90 Authorized Training Centers participating, in 35 countries, chances are pretty good there's one near you. Even better, AU Extension is free, and comes with the option to purchase additional training at a discount.

I hope one of the 3 AU options works for you!

Technorati Tags: #Au2009

Autodesk University Prep 1.06 - Eureka!

Captured this thought, on SketchBook Mobile iPhone, during last nights Auckland Revit User Group meeting. Had been thinking about it for the past few days then, while watching Jason using Revit MEP 2010, the circuits between my "little grey cells" connected. Will have to get organised before departure (for me that's Sunday week). #AU2009

Excel to CAD/BIM, in ASCII

I haven’t used this product, other DotSoft stuff I’ve tried has been great, but it gets a mention due to the lovely ascii art diagram* that featured in the plain text email that announced it. Who needs Visio…

DotSoft Excel2DWG 5.1

DotSoft has developed a revolutionary new way to solve the old problem of placing Excel spreadsheets into CAD applications.  The result is Excel2DWG.  We moved all the processing code inside Microsoft Excel, directly creating a DWG file of areas.  You simply select your area of interest and click an icon to create the DWG file.  The best part is that as changes are made, the DWG files are updated when the spreadsheet closes.

We found that many groups use a mixture of products in completion of projects.  Now those groups can reference a single file across the entire project, regardless of the application!

  Details: http://www.dotsoft.com/excel2dwg.htm

Notice of Revit User Group Auckland November Meeting

Details of the next Revit User Group - Auckland (RUGAKL) meeting:

Final meeting for 2009 - Wednesday 18 November 2009 - from 5.30pm
 
This weeks meeting proudly supported by Mercer Products
 
Location: Jasmax Offices, 2 Marston Street, Parnell
 
Join us from 5.30 for Drinks & Networking
 
6pm Meeting Opens - Kerry Thompson 
  
Presentation 1 - Mercer & Reginox Revit Content
Jason Howden Show casing how to use this content within a Revit file

Presentation 2 - WACOM Cintiq 21UX
Interactive Pen Display - for working directly on your screen - Marcel
van Oosterom 

7.00pm - 2009 WRAP UP - Kerry Thompson
Tips, Tricks & Open Forum
 
Please RSVP by Wednesday 19th, 12pm for catering numbers

Please RSVP via the link on  the website - http://www.rugakl.org/ - by Midday Wedesday prior to the meeting  (for catering  purposes)

Autodesk University Prep 1.05 – Snap, Business Cards to iPhone

It’s a digital age but after Autodesk University, and other conferences, I invariably end up with a stack of business cards. I keep the originals but it’s not much fun copying contact details into Outlook (which is synced with my phone). When I saw Shape Services Business Card Reader on an iPhone blog it looked like a possible solution. Take a photo of the card with the phone, let the software scan the image and OCR it into into a digital contact.

The reality can be a little trickier as I got about about 1 in 10 cards that weren’t read correctly and several that required reshooting – good lighting and a steady hand help! However even on the “misses” correcting a few mistakes is quicker than entering everything from scratch. The scanning can be foiled by lack of contrast (but why have a grey card with silver ink?) or very “artistic” cards with unusual layouts.

In the example below the “Cap” in “Capital” had to be added, lost in the logo behind it, but other details were captured into the correct fields. The 0800 number was not seen as a phone number, probably due to no prefix and formatting, but was captured. If needed a “text only” screen showing all the captured details makes manual corrections painless or you can edit the “New Contact” fields before saving. I have tried reverse colour cards (white text on blue) and some with incredibly small text which were read correctly.

The application leads you through the process but I have found a couple of tips to improve results:

• Photograph Readable Text Up: The shooting screen has an orientation guide with “This Side Up” but it’s best interpreted as “Top of readable text”. On “portrait” cards, where the text runs across the short side, shooting them with “readable text side up” can give better results even though the card image will be smaller
• Snap then Scan: You can save the images and reload them from the library for scanning but I don’t recommend this. My experiments found that scanning the image immediately gave much better results than the same saved image. I don’t know why but wonder if image compression on save reduces the quality of the retrieved image?

Some nice refinements include a LinkedIn look up and ability to merge the capture details with an existing contact. Although not perfect Business Card Reader is a slick application and I think it’s faster, & much more fun, than copying cards by hand.

Via: 50 in 50 Day 14 – Business Card Reader | iPhone MVP

An admission, it’s not really Plagiarism but…

Plagiarism has been in the news in New Zealand but I didn’t think it would be an issue on my blog.

Ideas for posts arise from a variety of sources. Sometimes I get stuck at work and blog about the solution, often found with the help of other blogs. Maybe I just stumble upon something cool while browsing or have a process I think may help others. When I refer to other blogs it’s generally with a link, short quote and my spin on the topic. I try to be fair about attribution but recently published a post very similar to another with no attribution at all.

Last week I was searching for an old blog post to resolve a technical problem. When reading blogs I capture links I think may be useful in MindManager map, and I blogged about that. Because I often “write ahead”, setting posts to publish days/weeks ahead, you saw it appear on Monday (09 November 2009):

Remember that post about… ? Map it, find it!

Last night I was researching an upcoming talk about social media. Over the years I’ve filed quite a few blogging/business related posts in the Weblogs Category here. Scrolling down the list I found a post from way back in October 2007 that seemed quite familiar:

Remember that great blog post? Can you find it again? MindManager to the rescue...

The topic was the same, with similar screenshots and content even though both were created independently. Even worse the wonderful Linkwithin, “You might also like”, widget found it too, adding a link back from the newer post.

It’s not really Plagiarism when you copy your own work, maybe it’s just Alzheimer's!

Notice of Revit User Group Wellington November Meeting

Details of the next Revit User Group - Wellington (RUGWELL) meeting:

RUGWELL, 25th November 2009

This upcoming RUGWELL is a special occasion. 

We are going to have a.... Best Of RUGWELL 2008-09

Take 30secs to pick your choices from our Survey, the Top 5 will be presented.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=NCTu7Q3wWIYsrJh1NVpcGA_3d_3d

Location: Productspec HQ, 14 Holland St, Te Aro, Wellington (map)

Opening 5:30pm, Presentations from 6:00pm

 Now on LinkedIn and Facebook)

Autodesk University Preparation 1.04 – Update TweetDeck iPhone

Just in time for the Autodesk University TweetUp!

Took a bit of experimenting to work out some of the icons, why doesn’t the iPhone have tooltips?

Best features are #tags & @address picker, will save a lot of finger taps entering #au2009!

TweetDeck for iPhone - now with added Awesome

• Facebook integration
• Video uploading
• Landscape compose mode
• Trending Topics
• Tweets Nearby column
• Address Picker
• Tags
• Save Message Draft.
• Open in Safari
• bit.ly account support

Revit OpEd sorts Project Browser Sorting

Thanks to Steve for this tip! I have been mucking about with templates, with browser sorting using shared parameters, and had exactly the same problem.

Revit OpEd: Dept. of Subtle - Can't Get Rid of Parameter Value - Project Browser Sorting

”When I was asked about it my answer was, "A view is assigned/using it." The response was, "No we've fixed all the views already but it won't go away!". We checked again using a view list and sure enough the rogue value wasn't being used.

That's when it occurred to me…”

On the topic of Browser Views/Sorting here are some of my wishes;

• Schedules could be sorted/display in the same way as views?
• Database characteristics could be included in item names (where the [] terms were fields from the database) for things like;
  • [Option Set] [Option] View
  • [Option Set] [Option] Schedule Name
  • [Project No] Sheet No - Sheet Name
  • [Option Set] Sheet Name
• Consistent between Arch & MEP. Some things still differ in 2009/2010 view properties out of the box.
• Easier to change in 2010 (bring back the browser filter dropdown).
• Easier filtering, application and graphic indication of filters with item icons (per user too). MindManager is excellent at this (right) and it would be nice to see something like it’s power filters in the Revit browser.

These are just a few wishes, in fact I hope some of this is there already and I haven’t found it!

EKlectiCAD Blog

It is a pleasure to welcome Earl Kubaskie to the world of CAD blogs. His focus is on all things Civil 3D, some things not Civil 3D and whatever else takes his fancy. Eclectic + CAD equals…

EKlectiCAD? - eklecticad.typepad.com

What that means is that this "CAD" blog will sometimes have stuff non-CAD. I'm a Civil 3D guy, and a Map 3D guy, and involved with the vanilla CAD world some... and ESRI GIS, and lots of software tools, so you never know what you're gonna find here. Look up "eclectic" and you'll get the idea - I just sort of punned my initials with my methodology: whatever gets the job done.

I hope someday it helps YOU get the job done.

Remember that post about… ? Map it, find it!

Often I’ll read a blog post, or article, and think that’s special/cool/handy/not to be forgotten. But the fact is there are zillions of blogs, gazillions of posts and while a search engine can probably find it again it’s often hard to narrow down the results. There are services which will store a link or you could “favourite” the post in your browser/reader but that doesn’t help with context as often the post title is not enough.

To get around this I started aggregating “special” posts in a map as shown below. I have one map for each CAD platform, operating system and a few topic related (like BIM/IPD). Clicking the Send to Mindjet MindManager button in the browser will add the post topic and link to the map. I also open the post in MindManager and create a quick summary by dragging a few key lines/headings from the browser pane to the map as sub-topics which only takes a few seconds. It acts as a brief summary, memory jog and helps when the time comes to find that post again.

After a while you’ll have map(s) with lots of topics which leads to the same old problem; finding the post. It’s here that MindManager Search comes to the rescue as it can quickly scan the map(s) for a key word returning enough context to enable me to find the correct post. Clicking on the search result will go to the map/topic. Often my “summary” is enough to jog the memory but, if required, the full post is only a click away.

 

RSS Bandit v1.9… is out

RSS Bandit, my favourite Feed Reader, has had an update. Apart from adding support for the Facebook news feed this release is mostly bug fixes and background work in preparation for a new Windows 7 version with a Fluent UI.

It is well worth the, free, download. I’ve tried a number of other readers, including on-line ones, but always come back to the Bandit. Although not perfect – and some of my annoyances have been sorted in this update – it handles my hefty 1241 item feed list nicely. I’d hoped the ribbon UX would arrive in this version but happy to see Windows 7, and features like jump-lists, will be supported.

One thing to note is an upgrade install will add some sample feeds to any existing feed list. I freaked a first, thinking my list had been corrupted in some way. I had a backup but found all the existing items had been preserved so just deleted them.

RSS Bandit v1.9.0.972 Release (with updated installer) : RSS Bandit

As part of spring cleaning to get ready for Windows 7, we are releasing version 1.9.0.972 of RSS Bandit…

Blogging around the world, to meet at Autodesk University

A few days ago Gregory Arkin celebrated post #800 on Revit 3D.com and included a visitor map (below left). It prompted a comment from this Kiwi blogger: “Hey, I have a problem with that map! Can you guess why?”. Today he totally redeemed himself with this post and accompanying map (below right).

 

Just to show this blog goodness and traffic goes both ways here are my readers by Country & Florida in detail. Although the US dominates there are only a few countries that don’t figure at all.

	Country/Territory
1	United States	37,753
2	United Kingdom	6,590
3	New Zealand	4,986
4	Canada	4,565
5	Australia	3,508
6	Germany	2,636
7	India	2,533
8	Netherlands	2,263
9	France	2,089
10	Italy	1,931

I’m going to meet Greg at Autodesk University, at the bloggers social and his class, and its somewhere between our worlds!

That’s what I like about blogging, a way to share info, connect with, even sometimes meet people around the world even when you live off the map!

* And before anyone comments on my map it appears Google Analytics doesn’t reach, or show, Antarctica!

** It’s sobering how much ocean you cross flying to the US from New Zealand. About 13.5 hours of the 14 hour flight!

Ferrari World, looks CGI but it’s real

This is off topic but I thought worth sharing. Looking at the image (right) of Ferrari World, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi it seems a bit “computer render” but this is a photograph. The shrine to all things Ferrari was recently closed in and certainly stood out in the coverage from last weekends inaugural  Abu Dhabi Formula 1 Grand Prix. It doesn’t fully open until 2010 but was used for some support events, concerts and the has the worlds largest Ferrari store.

I have been to Disney’s world but suspect Ferrari World will be more fun for big boys. Imagine GM Test Track done with Italian style and no budget limitations.

To give some idea of scale: the yellow prancing horse emblem on the roof is 66m (216ft) diameter and the structure encloses 200,000m² (2,152,782 ft²). I wouldn’t want the job of brushing the sand off that roof!

While it wouldn’t match a visit to the Maranello Factory for history it is the perfect stopover on the way to collect your new Ferrari for a European tour. So, what are the odds of winning Lotto?

From Ferrari World Abu Dhabi - www.ferrariworldabudhabi.com

The iconic sleek red roof directly inspired by the classic double curve side profile of the Ferrari GT body covers a surface area of 200,000m² and features the largest Scuderia Ferrari “prancing horse” emblem in the world, measuring 66m in diameter. 35,000 tonnes m³ of concrete, 12,370 tonnes of steel, 29,000m² of facade glazing and 165,000m² of roof cladding were used to create the park’s superstructure which was completed in 14 months.

Ferrari World Abu Dhabi will be an intense multi-sensory experience and a must-visit venue for enthusiasts, fans and families. It pays tribute to the passion, excellence, performance and technical innovation that Ferrari has established over the years and represents today.

The Park will host over 20 state-of-the-art attractions, each designed to bring to life a different part of the Ferrari story. This includes the world’s fastest rollercoaster, travelling at speeds exceeding 200 km/h emulating the thrilling sensation of being in a Ferrari F1 car, the G-force experience that takes passengers on an adrenaline-pumping ride up over 62 m through the roof and back down again, as well as an aerial voyage over Italy, following a Ferrari. The unique experiences offered at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi will be complemented by a wide variety of Italian delicacies and unique shopping experiences…

Old Anti Gravity Cruisers of New Zealand

I must credit Franco Folini, from the NOVEDGE - Rhino News Digest, with finding this delightful Kiwi Invention. In spite of having visited Dunedin several times, and cycling around it a fair bit, I have never seen an Anti Gravity Cruiser. Perhaps I didn’t look up often enough! Click through for more of Chris Ebbert’s delightful work modelled in Rhino. Who said Kiwis can't fly!

Old Anti Gravity Cruisers of New Zealand - a set on Flickr

The Kiwis have been using anti gravity since the 19th century, thanks to its accidental discovery through Invercargill farmer Gary Wilson in 1863 who, originally intending to construct a slow-cooker for lamb stew inside a shed behind his house, built the first ketone fission device known to southern man. As we now know, the concept never took off commercially because of its inability to cross the equator, where ketone thrust inverts, leading to a sudden reversal of the vehicle's Z-coordinate orientation. An expedition is planned to recover Wilson and his vehicle who, sadly, disappeared in the sea off Japan in 1872 while on world anti gravity tour, accidentally making that other, tragic yet vital, discovery.

Autodesk Exchanged? I think it’s Travis! *

I was checking some changes on my blog this evening and the Autodesk Exchange sidebar component caught my eye. It says Shaan Hurley, but I think its Travis?

* This will probably only make sense to a few CAD bloggers, who were in San Francisco last February, and some guy called Travis who was attending another conference.

UPDATE 2009-11-05 from Twitter: RT @thecadgeek: @robincapper: @haubert @AU_Online Here's a blog post of mine that mentions the Travis story http://bit.ly/4wbkXc

PSU BIM Project Execution Planning Guide

The Computer Integrated Construction Research Program at Pennsylvania State University (phew!) have produced a comprehensive guide to implementing any scale BIM project. I found it last week, thanks to James Vandezande, and showed it at the last Revit User Group Auckland meeting.

The “total lifecycle” aspect of the guide interests to me as many BIM resources focus on the design stage even though it represents a small part of the process. Buildings are occupied for far longer than they are designed/constructed. The potential payback for operation, maintenance and renovation is greater than initial design & construction. The guide (itself 99 pages) is also supported with comprehensive templates for process diagrams and forms.

In addition to design projects the principles and process are applicable to BIM (or other information project) implementation within an organisation. I was going to write a more detailed description but this post on the BIMForum Discussion Group (reproduced below) says it all:

BIM Project Execution Planning Guide:

We recently released the BIM Project Execution Planning Guide. This guide provides a practical manual that can be used by project teams for designing their BIM strategy and developing a BIM Project Execution Plan at the early stages of a project. The Guide includes a four step structured procedure for creating a BIM Project Execution Plan:

1. Identify BIM Goals and Uses
2. Design BIM Project Execution Process
3. Develop Information Exchanges
4. Define Supporting Infrastructure to Support the BIM Process

The core process modeling and information exchange concepts are developed to complement the long term goals of the buildingSMART Alliance in the development of the National Building Information Modeling Standards.
We have also developed template documents which allow a project team to complete each step defined within the guide. The guide and the corresponding template documents are currently available for download at the following location:

http://www.engr.psu.edu/ae/cic/BIMEx/download.aspx

Please note that these products are still in draft format, and at this time we are continuing with the implementation and testing of the procedure on case study projects. If you have a case study project that you would like us to consider for assisting with the development of a BIM Project Execution Plan, please complete the form at:

http://www.engr.psu.edu/ae/cic/BIMEx/callforcasestudy.aspx

We would like to thank the Charles Pankow Foundation, the Construction Industry Institute (CII), the Penn State Office of Physical Plant, and the Penn State PACE organization for their generous support of this project.
We hope that you find the guide valuable, and we would appreciate any and all feedback that you may have related to the document and implementation templates.

Sincerely,
John I. Messner, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Architectural Engineering Director, Computer Integrated Construction Research Program The Pennsylvania State University