Narrative Statement - Example 1

Jane Doe joined the faculty of Penn State University in the Fall of 1990 following five years in industry with the Acme All-Purpose Systems Company.  While at Acme, she performed research in computational analysis of power systems.  As part of an Acme-funded research program, the candidate initiated the Acme High-Speed Computing Effort, which grew to include 20 researchers in electric power and control systems analysis using massively parallel computers with an emphasis on computer graphics.

Doe’s research interests are in the related areas of power system dynamics, energy conversion, and power electronics.  Her work in each of these areas has primarily involved analysis and computer modeling along with some experimental investigations.  At Penn State, she initiated NSF-supported research in the first of these areas, focusing on system-level, model-order reduction, and development of a state-space method for determining harmonics in power systems which contain power electronic converters.  In addition to this power systems research, she is collaborating with faculty members in Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering on a three-year Department of Energy grant pertaining to intelligent distributed control of nuclear and fossil-fuel power plants.  The goal of this research is to apply new intelligent control methodologies to the subsystem and supervisory controls in a target nuclear power plant operated by Argonne National Laboratory and to a fossil fuel plant to be identified.  This work is of potential interest to both electric utilities and government agencies involved in power system design and analysis.

Since coming to Penn State, Doe has taught all of the courses in the control systems and power areas at both the undergraduate and graduate level.  She has developed and taught a new graduate course in Power System Networks and is currently developing a new undergraduate course in Computer Control of Power Systems.  From the high-technology classrooms in the new classroom and office building, Doe uses an advanced Unix color workstation at the podium (with high-resolution projection capability) to teach numerical methods for analysis and design of power and control systems.  She collaborated with the CBEL group at the CAC to develop a multi-media computer program for classroom instruction.  This program is used to demonstrate the interactive nature of design and the importance of trade-offs in the design process.

The candidate has led the development of computer facilities for both undergraduate and graduate students in the department.  These facilities include the latest X-terminals, Unix workstations, and microcomputers for the department.  In particular the candidate received a Department of Defense equipment grant that supported the acquisition of the only massively parallel computer of its kind on campus.  The peak speed of this machine is faster than any other computer on campus.  This computer is housed in the department for both instruction and research.