Engineers build bridges, computers and circuits. Starting Feb. 19, they will build castles out of soup cans.

National Engineers Week begins nationwide Sunday and ends on Saturday, Feb. 25. UD will host a number of unique events to spark interest in engineering fields.

According to a 2003 ACT study, the number of high school students interested in careers in engineering has decreased steadily since 1992.

Corporate sponsors, educators and engineers hope that National Engineers Week will attract students to pursue careers in engineering.

John Holchin, junior mechanical and aerospace engineering major, believes engineers are intrinsically valuable to society.

'Engineers are needed to create everything that is not created in nature,' Holchin said. 'Without engineers, nothing new can be created and we cannot continue the search for the best way to live. We will not be able to solve any of the new problems that we will have to face in the future.'

National Engineers Week began as a consortium in 1951 and has continued to grow nationwide since its inception.

In California, Colorado, Arizona, Florida and Virginia, girl scouts will participate in 'Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day.' The event was started in 2001 as a way to attract girls to the diverse career possibilities in engineering.

On Monday, UD engineering students will don pocket protectors, suspenders and glasses to compete in the 'nerdiest look' competition. This even will take place in KU lobby from 4-5 pm.

Holchin is excited about the 'enginerd' challenge. He believes he will blow away the competition.

'Well, I do have white socks, black pants, a white short-sleeve dress shirt, a skinny tie, a NASA pocket protector, a slide rule, a calculator that is more powerful than a Tangent and that 'I had too much caffeine today' look,' Holchin said.

Students will be challenged to make a device to prevent an egg from cracking after a three-story fall. On Tuesday, Feb. 21 at 3:30 p.m., they will launch these devices from the roof of Alumni Hall.

Frustrated students will have the opportunity to chuck a calculator at the south wall of Kettering Labs on Wednesday, Feb. 22. The person who causes the most damage will win a prize.

'The calculator toss sounds like fun, but I don't have an adversarial relationship with my calculator,' Holchin said. 'It helps me out of many difficult spots. My TI-89 has become a safety blanket when I take a test.'

On Thursday from 4-6 p.m. in Humanities Plaza, engineering students will erect structures out of soup cans. After the event, the cans will be donated to the Dayton-area soup kitchen, House of Bread.

An event will be held on Saturday, Feb. 25 for Dayton-area high school juniors and seniors. These high school students will participate in hands-on activities and talk to current UD engineering students.