Eight engineers strutted their stuff for a panel of judges Monday (Feb. 9) night in "Mr. Engineer" 2009. The annual mock beauty pageant, which is sponsored by the Society of Women Engineers, benefits the Penn State Dance Marathon. This year's event brought in $892.94 for the kids.
Contestants included: Camilo Arenas, mechanical engineering sophomore; Steve Bates, mechanical engineering freshman; Steve Brown, mechanical engineering senior; Kevin Cherry, bioengineering fifth-year senior; Michael Ducker, mechanical engineering senior; Alex Giovanelli, industrial engineering senior; Luke Hagen, mechanical engineering junior; and Christopher Justin, chemical engineering senior.
Poking fun at engineering stereotypes, the contestants donned bifocals, suspenders and tube socks for the "engineer wear" portion of the pageant.
The highlights of the talent round included Bates's version of the Evolution of Dance; a karate demonstration by Cherry, who is a black belt; and a spicy Colombian dance by Alvarez.
Ducker elicited a chorus of 'ohs and ahs' from the audience when he dedicated his performance, a sign language version of the love song "I'll Be" by Edwin McCain, to his girlfriend.
During intermission, None of the Above, Penn State's oldest co-ed a capella group, performed a range of pop favorites, from Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" to Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun."
In the second half of the pageant, the men modeled business attire before the judges narrowed it down to the final four. Alvarez was named most photogenic, Brown received the award for best engineer wear, Ducker was named best dressed in the category of business attire and Bates was voted most talented.
After an intense question-and-answer session with the final four, the judges crowned Bates "Mr. Engineer 2009." He won by a single point.
When asked how it feels to be Mr. Engineer 2009, Bates beamed.
"It feels so good. I guess F = ma [force = mass times acceleration] does really work," he said, referring to his response in the question-and-answer round. The judges asked Bates what his favorite equation was.
For photos of the event, go to http://live.psu.edu/stilllife/1967