Melanie Blohm
Hometown: Coral Springs, Florida
Major: Biology/Chemistry
Graduation year: '09
Why she wants to live in the house:
"My goal is to see Duke moving towards sustainability and I think that the Smart Home is a great start. I want to help make the Smart Home run as efficiently as possible. By gaining experience on a small scale in the house, I could then help make the appropriate implementations at Duke on a larger scale."
Katie Beck
Hometown: Houston, Texas
Major: International Comparative Studies/Political Science
Graduation year: '09
Why she wants to live in the house:
"I want to live in a house that is good for the environment and is a demonstration/development vehicle for new technologies. I also want to spend time with interesting and dynamic people and foster real community."
Adam Dixon
Hometown: Bartlesville, Oklahoma
Major: Biomedical Engineering
Graduation year: '09
Why he wants to live in the house:
Why he wants to live in the house: "I want to live in the Smart Home because it's an exciting opportunity to be at the forefront of America's newfound interest in green technologies. The Smart Home incorporates several technologies that are not only environmentally friendly, but are also economically efficient."
Mark Gu
Hometown: Greendale, Wisconsin
Major: Electrical and Computer Engineering/Economics
Graduation year: '09
Why he wants to live in the house:
"I am not sure what exact projects we will all do in the Smart Home, or how the intangibles of a living-learning community will play out. However, I do know that I want to be fully engaged in this great experiment. The potential of the Smart Home facility as a real-life educational platform is nothing short of revolutionary."
Tim Gu
Hometown: Greendale, Wisconsin
Major: Electrical and Computer Engineering/Economics
Graduation year: '09
Why he wants to live in the house:
"The coolest and most exciting things will be the collaborative student, faculty, and/or industry projects that can now be implemented into a building that is designed to be 'taken apart,' fitted with new projects, and monitored. As a resident, I will get to play, test, and tinker with these projects and work with the project teams to improve their designs."
Vedrana Novosel
Hometown: Cary, North Carolina
Major: Electrical and Computer Engineering
Graduation year: '09
Why she wants to live in the house:
"I would like to gain more practical experience with innovation and design, engineering, leadership, teamwork and real-world business practices. Ever since I heard about the Smart Home, I have imagined how exciting it would be to live in and work on a 'smart' house at the same time."
Lee Pearson
Hometown: Spokane, Washington
Major: Civil & Environmental Engineering/Biomedical Engineering
Graduation year: '08
Why he wants to live in the house:
"The Smart Home will provide the perfect venue to bridge class and home, such that engineers [and others] are engaging each other in a laid back social atmosphere about pertinent engineering issues. Hopefully, this won't involve problem sets, but rather engineers thinking about their role in the 21st century and how they can impact national and international policy."
Jeff Schwane
Hometown: Mansfield, Connecticut
Major: Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Graduation year: '08
Why he wants to live in the house:
"I am excited to learn about ways in
which we can live more sustainably within the home. I think it's a great way to lead through action, and I am anticipating demonstrating to the public how they can lead more environmentally sustainable lives with current technology, and without sacrificing comfort."
Scott Steinberg
Hometown: Westfield, New Jersey
Major: Biomedical Engineering/Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Graduation year: '09
Why he wants to live in the house:
"I'm very familiar with all of the systems and have been learning about the construction process. I would like to act as a liaison for students, ensuring that their innovative ideas become implemented into the house. I hope to serve as the 'go-to guy' who can work out problems with teams considering projects for the home and help them reach solutions."
Claire Vinson
Hometown: Cullman, Alabama
Major: Biomedical Engineering/Chemistry
Graduation year: '09
Why she wants to live in the house:
"I wish to charter a group that would focus on the completion of projects to a marketable status. I want to work with making the projects already in progress more aesthetically pleasing and, more importantly, more user friendly."