Dev Palmer

Hello to all of the 3,400+ active members of the IEEE Eastern North Carolina Section! I’d like to introduce myself as your 2009 Chair, tell you a bit about the Section, and let you in on some of my plans for this year.

I've been part of the ENCS since first joining the IEEE as a Student Member in 1989. I finally stepped up my volunteer activity in 2002 when I joined the Executive Committee as Founding Chair of the local AP/CPMT/MTT/ED (ACME) chapter. After a few years of organizing meetings for the ACME chapter, it was time to jump into the Section leadership cycle, serving as Secretary in 2006 and 2007, and Vice-chair in 2008. So far it has been a very engaging and productive activity that has given me a broader view of technology in the Triangle, as well as opportunities to establish professional relationships that will last a lifetime.

In addition to the IEEE, I'm a member and volunteer in the US National Committee of the International Union of Radio Science (USNC/URSI), the Acoustical Society of America, the American Vacuum Society, the Materials Research Society, and Sigma Xi. I'm also a Professional Engineer registered in North Carolina and hold an Amateur Extra radio operator’s license (AI4WT – 73 to all my fellow hams in the section!)

The ENCS is one of North Carolina's largest associations of technical professionals, covering North Carolina from Greensboro to the coast. The members and volunteers are the "eigenstates" of the organization, and your involvement determines its direction, activities, and vitality. The Section holds technical meetings on the third Thursday of the month on a topic of broad interest to the ENCS membership. The Section meetings often are held jointly with the local Chapters, who also offer more tightly focused technical meetings on a regular basis. The section also hosts "family-friendly" social events including our flagship summer picnic. One of my goals for this year is to uphold the high level of activity and excellent technical quality of our meetings and events, although with the momentum established by my predecessors I imagine I’d be hard pressed to slow it down!

I encourage you to keep current by using our excellent web site  (tip o' the brim to our indefatigable webmaster Lee Haas!) that serves as the section's corporate memory, with officer bios and contact information, a comprehensive calendar of events, and links to member resources including Jim Ray’s how-to on the process of applying for elevation to Senior Member.