About

Joseph C. Nadeau is a Professor of the Practice in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Duke University. His primary research focuses on theoretical and applied mechanics, micromechanics, composite materials, and probabilistic methods. Dr. Nadeau earned his B.S. in Civil Engineering from Lehigh University in 1989, followed by an M.Sc. in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1991. He completed his Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley in 1996. Throughout his career, Dr. Nadeau has been recognized with numerous awards, including the Earl I. Brown II Outstanding Civil Engineering Faculty Award multiple times, the Klein Family Distinguished Teaching Award, and the James M. Robbins Excellence in Teaching Award. He has taught courses such as Mechanics of Solids, Integrated Structural Design, Metallic Structures, and Concrete and Composite Structures. His scholarly work includes research on the effective properties of heterogeneous materials, microstructural optimization, and the behavior of composite materials, contributing significantly to the fields of civil and environmental engineering.

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Artificial Intelligence
• Psychology
• Engineering management
• Engineering
• Mathematics education
• World Wide Web
• Epistemology
• Cognitive science

Selected publications

• Evidence for the Effectiveness of a Grand Challenge-based Framework for Contextual Learning

  2020 · 3 citations

  • Computer Science
  • Computer Science
  • Mathematics education

  Abstract Evidence for the Effectiveness of a Grand Challenge-based Framework for Contextual LearningStudent motivation – and associated educational outcomes – can be influenced by the degree towhich course material connects to recognizable societal problems. The National Academy forEngineering has established the “Engineering Grand Challenges”, a set of 14 fundamentalproblems whose solution will require integrated contributions from engineers, scientists, andpolicy-makers. The current work builds the Engineering Grand Challenges (EGC) into apedagogical framework integrated into courses in several engineering disciplines, assessingwhether this framework increased student motivation and, if so, what sorts of students benefitfrom this approach.The EGC framework, as implemented here, follows a series of six stages that progress fromstatement of the problem, through exercises that teach a foundational concept using an EGCexample, to reflection on the role of engineering in addressing the problem. The framework wasimplemented in three diverse courses: a computational methods course taken by all first-yearengineering students, an upper-level signal-processing elective in electrical engineering, and adesign course for upper-level students in environmental engineering. Instructors for each of thesecourses implemented the EGC framework in a manner appropriate for their course. For example,students in the signal processing course investigated the EGC of “Reverse-Engineering theBrain”, which included a lecture/discussion led by a neuroscientist who uses signal processing,followed by a project assignment that applied spectral analysis and filter design to publiclyavailable data from a brain-computer interface contest. For all courses, baseline data werecollected from the same classes taught by the same instructors in the previous year.Results from the first year of implementation indicated significant benefits for the EGCframework, as well as differences in effectiveness across settings. Each student provided datathat included self-reported ratings of ABET criteria and standard psychological measures ofmotivation, and those measures were included in structural equation models that predicted inter-student differences in grades. The EGC framework was associated with significantly higher self-reported class effectiveness, as indexed by ABET criteria. Furthermore, in advanced classes theEGC framework enhanced a key measure of student motivation (i.e., situational interest), whichin turn was a positive predictor of student grades. This effect was not present in the introductoryclass examined. No differences between EGC and baseline groups were found in other measuresof self-reported motivation (e.g., perceived competence). Collectively, these results providestrong initial evidence that framing course activities around large-scale, societally relevantchallenges can have salutary effects upon students’ motivation and course performance. Ongoingwork examines these effects across multiple semesters of the same courses as well as acrossadditional courses from throughout engineering curricula.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• A Grand Challenge-based Framework for Contextual Learning in Engineering

  2020 · 8 citations

  • Computer Science
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Computer Science

  As part of his experience, Dr. Schaad has: designed waste water treatment systems to address industrial and domestic waste streams; developed designs of storm water control structures and strategies to address water quality and quantity; designed fluid transport systems to replace water supplies impacted by anthropogenic sources; designed fuel transport and delivery systems; developed designs for commercial and residential development; prepared land use plans; developed designs to protect against potential flood hazards; designed and developed plans and specifications for fluid handling systems, waste mitigation alternatives and remedial actions for RCRA and CERCLA sites including active industrial facilities and inactive disposal sites (including NPL sites); conducted feasibility studies by evaluating and analyzing the economic and engineering considerations of multiple design alternatives; obtained extensive

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• A Grand Challenge-based Framework for Contextual Learning in Engineering: Impact on Student Outcomes and Motivation

  2015-07-08 · 7 citations

  articleOpen access

  Abstract A Grand Challenge-based Framework for Contextual Learning in Engineering: Impact on Student Outcomes and MotivationExposure to meaningful, societally relevant applications can increase student motivation andimprove learning outcomes. Here, we describe assessment results that evaluate a pedagogicalframework based on the NAE Grand Challenges, in which specific engineering concepts areembedded in a societal problem (e.g., "reverse-engineering the brain") that requires students todefine problems and apply course content to those problems. Assessment data were acquiredfrom 957 undergraduate engineering students, including students participating in the interventionin an introductory class (N = 564) and advanced classes (N = 56) and control students inintroductory (N = 273) and advanced classes (N = 64). Using a multivariate analysis of variance,we tested the hypotheses that the Engineering Grand Challenge Framework (EGCF) influencedstudents' self-assessments of specific student outcomes (ABET Criterion 3), particularly thoserelated to understanding engineering in a societal/contemporary context. We also evaluatedstudent motivation using well-validated scales drawn from the psychological literature and astructural equation model linking motivation to course outcomes.The initial multivariate analysis revealed a significant effect of intervention upon studentoutcome responses considered as a group [F(11, 943) = 13.302, p < .001], and a significantinteraction with class level [F(11, 943) = 3.240, p < .001]. Significant item-specific interactionswere observed for ABET criteria associated with societal context (ABET h), life-long learning(ABET i), and knowledge of contemporary issues (ABET j; all ps ≤ 0.01); in each case, theinteraction revealed a greater effect of the EGCF on upper-level students' self-assessments onthese criteria. Analysis of student motivation via structural equation modeling revealed apotential role for motivation in shaping course outcomes: for advanced students, the EGCF wasassociated with significant increases in situational interest (a measure of motivation) that in turnpredicted higher course grades.We conclude that EGCF – and, by extension, frameworks that connect engineering content tosocietal issues – holds promise for shaping student engagement with technical content in amanner directly relevant for national goals for engineering education (i.e., ABET criteria).Moreover, educational research can identify the circumstances in which a particular frameworkmay be most effective (e.g., upper-level courses) and thus guide the allocation of instructorpriorities and resources.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Isotropic Plane Elastostatics

  Lecture notes in physics. M, Monographs · 2008-09-10 · 1 citations

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Title: Bridge to Market: Assessment and Design of a Sustainable Mobility Plan for Moving Agricultural Products over a Rain Swollen River in the Bolivian Highlands

  2008-01-01

  articleSenior author
  Publisher

• Transcending the traditional: Using tablet PCs to enhance engineering and computer science instruction

  Proceedings/Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference · 2007-10-01 · 10 citations

  article

  Traditional instructional methods present many obstacles to effective teaching and learning in engineering and computer science courses. These include a reliance on text-based or static mediums to convey equation- and graphics-heavy concepts, a disconnect between theoretical lecture presentations and applied laboratory or homework exercises, and a difficulty in promoting collaborative activities that more accurately reflect an engineering approach to problem solving. Additionally, technical courses can suffer, like any other course, when students are not actively engaged in the learning and when instructors cannot gauge student understanding. This project has explored the utility of Tablet PCs for overcoming these challenges within a sample of courses in engineering and computer science. There were three primary questions: which knowledge domains benefit from the use of Tablet PCs; whether observed benefits are derived from Tablet PC-specific activities; and what problems limit the effectiveness of Tablet PCs in educational settings? The evaluation of assessment data using regression approaches demonstrated that Tablet-PC-specific activities had a consistent, meaningful, and positive impact upon engineering and computer science courses.

  PublisherDOI

• Effective thermal expansion of heterogeneous materials with application to low temperature environments

  Mechanics of Materials · 2003-03-25 · 17 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Bounds on Texture Coefficients

  Journal of Applied Mechanics · 2003-03-01 · 2 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding

  The orientation distribution function (ODF) is expanded in terms of generalized spherical harmonics and bounds on the resulting texture coefficients are derived. A necessary and sufficient condition for satisfaction of the normalization property of the ODF is also provided. These results are of significance in, for example, microstructural optimization of materials and predicting texture coefficients based on wave velocity measurements.

  PublisherDOI

• A multiscale model for effective moduli of concrete incorporating ITZ water–cement ratio gradients, aggregate size distributions, and entrapped voids

  Cement and Concrete Research · 2002-12-02 · 83 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Water–cement ratio gradients in mortars and corresponding effective elastic properties

  Cement and Concrete Research · 2002-03-01 · 41 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Lisa G. Huettel

  Zimmer Biomet (United States)

  10 shared

• David Schaad

  Duke University

  10 shared

• Michael Gustafson

  Duke University

  9 shared

• Lisa Linnenbrink‐Garcia

  Michigan State University

  9 shared

• Michael M. Barger

  University of Georgia

  9 shared

• Mauro Ferrari

  University of Pisa

  8 shared

• Maurizio Ferrari

  2 shared

• Mauro Ferrari

  Maniero Elettronica (Italy)

  2 shared

Awards & honors

• Earl I. Brown II Outstanding Civil Engineering Faculty Award…
• Earl I. Brown II Outstanding Civil Engineering Faculty Award…
• Earl I. Brown II Outstanding Civil Engineering Faculty Award…
• Earl I. Brown II Outstanding Civil Engineering Faculty Award…
• Klein Family Distinguished Teaching Award (2010)