Ethan Lust  

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Why did you choose the USNA ME Department when you were job hunting?
From the moment the Junior Permanent Military Professor program was proposed I've wanted to be one. What more could I want in a career? I wear a uniform to work so there are no sartorial decisions about which tie goes with which shirt (think Inspector Gadget's closet), I work with really smart people who challenge me (think the Thunder Dome except for nerds), and I have the opportunity to mentor some of the sharpest most likable students you're likely to find anywhere (think the movie Annapolis). Plus, they have to wear their names on their shirts which is a bonus for me because I am terribly...uh...I forget.
Outside of the occupational benefits, what benefits are there to your engineering education?
Tough problems don't scare me. Part of an engineer's education teaches him or her to take a difficult or complicated problem and chop it up into simpler, more manageable pieces. This approach works for everything from engineering to pilot stuff to home repair (yes, I read the directions and all associated warnings very carefully prior to starting a project).
What do you do outside of the working day?
Work. Eat. Sleep. Eat. Repeat. As a full time instructor and a part-time student I have time for little else. On the rare occasion I do find myself with spare time, I like to run, read, and nap.
Ethan Lust, LCDR, InstructorWhat do you think makes the USNA ME Department unique?
You mean, other than the fact that there are no other ME Departments exactly like it?

With the exception of my own undergraduate and graduate school experiences, I have little depth of experience upon which to draw in answering this question. However, I can tell you what I like about our department. I don't know any other school, or any other department really, where the faculty spend so much time engaged with the students, be it on student research, extra-curricular activities, or extra instruction. It really is a cooperative effort. Also - and I think this is pretty rare - I really like everyone I work with. It's part of what I look forward to in coming to work every day.
What else do you have to share?
"...the aim [of education] must be the training of independently acting and thinking individuals who, however, see in the service of the community their highest life problem." - Albert Einstein
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