Theme: "Energy Diversity"
As an essential energy technology resource and a leading advocate for technically sound energy policies, ASME advances the dialogue for engineers who are meeting the world's growing demands for energy consumption. Increased pressures to balance cost, availability, and environmental priorities require a diverse portfolio of energy resources to better accommodate a more sustainable supply.

Speaker: Thomas L. Friedman
Foreign Affairs Columnist, The New York Times • Author, The World is Flat; That Used to Be Us

Covering many of the monumental stories of recent decades, he has won three Pulitzer Prizes. According to Foreign Policy magazine, "Friedman doesn't just report on events; he helps shape them." Vanity Fair called him "the country's best newspaper columnist." His new book, co-written with Michael Mandelbaum, is That Used to Be Us: How America Fell Behind in the World It Invented and How We Can Come Back. According to The Christian Science Monitor, "Anyone who cares about America's future - anyone planning to vote in 2012 - ought to read this book and hear the authors' compelling case." That Used to Be Us debuted at #2 on The New York Times bestsellers list.

His previous book, Hot, Flat and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution - and How It Can Renew America, was a #1 New York Times bestseller. Friedman's The World is Flat has sold more than four million copies; Kirkus Reviews called it "simply the best book written on globalization." His other bestsellers include Longitudes and Attitudes: The World in the Age of Terrorism, The Lexus and the Olive Tree and From Beirut to Jerusalem, which serves as a basic text on the Middle East in colleges and universities nationwide and won the National Book Award.

Ranked #2 on The Wall Street Journal's list of "influential business thinkers," named to the 2011 Thinkers50, and considered one of "America's Best Leaders" by U.S. News & World Report, Friedman is a frequent guest on programs such as Meet The Press, Morning Joe and Charlie Rose. His TV documentaries, Searching for the Roots of 9/11, The Other Side of Outsourcing and Addicted to Oil, have aired on the Discovery Channel. In awarding Friedman his third Pulitzer Prize (the 2002 award for Distinguished Commentary), the Pulitzer Board cited his "clarity of vision, based on extensive reporting, in commenting on the worldwide impact of the terrorist threat."

Featured Presentation: Democratizing Innovation - The DARPA FANG Challenges
Nathan Wiedenman, Lieutenant Colonel, (LTC), Program Manager, Adaptive Vehicle Make (AVM), Tactical Technology Office, DARPA

A native of Anaheim, California, LTC Wiedenman received his commission in 1993 as a second lieutenant in Armor after earning a Bachelor's Degree in Engineering. He earned a Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California at Berkeley in 2003 and a doctorate in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2008. His military education includes Airborne School, The Armor Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, the Acquisition Basic Course, the Command and General Staff College.

LTC Wiedenman is currently assigned as a Program Manager in the Tactical Technology Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. He is serving as the Program Manager for the Adaptive Vehicle Make (AVM) portfolio of programs. The three constituent programs of AVM, META, iFAB (Instant Foundry Adaptable through Bits), and FANG (Fast Adaptable Next Generation vehicle) are focused on enabling an order of magnitude reduction in the cost and time required to develop and field complex military systems (e.g., an infantry fighting vehicle).

He served as the Science and Technology Advisor for Regional Command East and Combined Joint Task Force 82 in Bagram, Afghanistan and as the Deputy to the Chief Scientist at the Army's Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC)and has taught mechanical engineering at the U.S. Military Academy at Westpoint. His awards and decorations include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Army Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Ribbon, NATO Medal, United Nations Medal, and the Parachutist Badge.

Featured Presentation: How Fundamental Scientific Research is Powering New Technological Developments in the Energy Sector
Rustom K. Mody, P.E., VP of Technology (Completions and Production), Baker Hughes Inc.

Rustom Mody holds Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Business Administration in Finance, and he is a Registered Professional Engineer in the State of Texas. USA.

The author of numerous technical publications, he holds 15 patents and has won numerous Meritorious Award for Engineering Innovation. In all, he has more than 30 years of experience in drilling and completion. Rustom is an active member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, American Association of Drilling Engineers and International Association of Drilling Engineers serving on sub-committees of all three organizations.

Featured Presentation: State of the Johnson Space Center
Michael Coats, Director, Johnson Space Center

The Johnson Space Center, home to the NASA Astronaut Corps, has managed the nation's human space flight program for 50 years. What is the current state of the center and why are the technologies and research originally developed for space flight more relevant than ever?

Director of the Johnson Space Center since 2005, Michael Coats, a Navy pilot and flight instructor, logged 315 combat missions in Vietnam and has more than 5,000 hours flying time in 28 different types of aircraft. Coats became a NASA astronaut in August 1979; a veteran of three space flights, he has logged more than 463 hours in space. He retired from the U.S. Navy and the Astronaut Office in August, 1991 and after several leadership positions at Loral Space Information Systems and Lockheed Martin, returned to NASA to serve as the 10th director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Coats received a Bachelor of Science degree from the United States Naval Academy in 1968, a Master of Science in Administration of Science and Technology from George Washington University in 1977, and Master of Science in Aeronautical Engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in 1979.