There’s got to be a better way to do this, and if there is, an engineering student is likely the person who will figure it out. Armed with their laptop, a lifetime subscription to Chegg, and their MIT hoodie, there’s no telling what they can accomplish.
At Stoggles, we support the (woefully undervalued) engineering feats of these students. Without them, we wouldn’t have the beer helmet or umbrella hats. We also wouldn’t have lithium-ion batteries or GPS.
Because we know you’ll be buried in books and PowerPoint presentations for the foreseeable future, we’ve compiled a list of must-have items to take with you to campus. Consider this your cheat sheet for surviving your first semester.
Five Items To Take to School
Once the acceptance letter has been received, you’re full speed ahead, dreaming of what you’ll do with your engineering degree.
Before you head to the quad, pack these items with you:
1. A High-Quality Laptop
If your laptop currently runs as fast as dial-up, it’s time for an upgrade. Slow computers will drive you insane while you’re attempting to run Matlab and figure out complex problems.
Look for a minimum of 16 GB of ram and a processor of i5-class or later. Ample storage for reports is key (but don’t worry about pictures because you won’t have time for a social life). Two hundred fifty-six gigs of storage should be plenty.
2. A Scientific Calculator
Sure, you haven’t used one since tenth grade, and you might never use one again in your computer engineering degree. Still, you’re going to need one for higher levels of trigonometry and statistical science courses. Don’t worry; we’re sure if you change out the batteries in your old one, it will be good to go.
3. Caffeine
Seriously. The coffee on campus is probably a joke, and you’ll need the ability to stay awake for hours and hours solving the world’s most difficult engineering problems. Your mileage may vary on this one but trust us: You need a ready supply of go-juice to plow through all your work.
4. A Subscription to IEEE Spectrum
Forget Popular Mechanics; that’s kid’s stuff. You’ll want the industry news written for and by industry insiders, and IEEE Spectrum fits the bill. Here, you’ll find the latest and most important news about AI, space physics, internet infrastructure, and other engineering topics of interest.
If you can’t read it, don’t worry. Merely having it in your bag will give you the street cred you need to be noticed by your professors and accepted by upperclassmen.
5. Safety Eyewear That Doesn’t Look Like Safety Eyewear
Let’s be real. Protective eyewear may never make it to Fashion Week, but that doesn’t mean you should feel like a social pariah by wearing it.
Every engineering student needs protective eyewear for labs and computer use. You’ll be spending a lot of time in these specs, so it’s important they have some basic features that can keep you safe without shaking your confidence.
Eyewear That Gets an A+
Stoggles is made up of engineers just like you. We saw a need and created a solution. The need? Protective eyewear that didn’t feel or look like standard middle school science lab issue. That’s why we created Stoggles, the first hybrid eyewear that looks as good as it protects.
We know you love data, so here are the specs you’ll find on every pair of Stoggles.
1. Streamlined Comfort and Style
No wraparound designs, no uncomfortable fits. Our side and top shield design and lightweight polycarbonate frames are designed to fit comfortably and weightlessly. You’ll be wearing protective eyewear for hours, so we designed our Stoggles to be as effortlessly comfortable as possible.
Conventional safety eyewear has a hyper-masculine look to them and was initially designed not even considering women. We believe that is prehistoric thinking and believe we live in a world where products should be designed regardless of gender. Hence, Stoggles ensure that everyone has something stylish yet protective to wear as well.
Keeping up appearances might not be as important as keeping up your grades, but we’d argue that when you feel good about yourself, you work better and study better. That’s why we offer Stoggles in an array of stylish frames and numerous colors so you can match them to your school’s colors or your pocket protectors. No judgment from us.
2. Impact Resistance
Flying objects are no bueno for your eyesight. That’s why every pair of Stoggles comes with the ANSI Z87.1-2020 certification. ANSI regulates the safety standards across tons of different occupations to ensure eyewear will be as protective as possible.
The ANSI Z87.1-2020 standard means your eyewear has undergone the high-velocity test.
- High-velocity test. The same eyewear is then strapped to a headform while a ball bearing is fired directly at the lens at a specified speed.
To earn the coveted ANSI certification, the eyewear must not shatter or crack under pressure, kind of like how you’ll earn your diploma.
3. Anti-Fog Lenses
You already know the scientific process by which condensation forms on a cool surface and creates fog. What you might not know is that not all safety eyewear fogs. Stoggles, for instance, have lenses that have been pretreated with an anti-fog solution.
This solution changes the surface tension and causes the condensation to form microscopic droplets that form a fine, barely visible mist on your glasses instead of large droplets that are characteristic of foggy frames.
Don’t sleep on this feature. Removing your glasses to wipe them down not only puts your eyes at immediate risk but it also takes you off task — something you can’t afford in a lab setting. We spent nine months creating our one-of-a-kind dip formula to surpass the weaker and uneven spray models. Basically, we spent the amount of time you’ll spend in the library until summer break lets you leave.
4. Blue Light-Blocking Lenses
You’re going to be on the computer more than you realize or under LED light bulbs in the lab or in class. You’re prepared for eye strain and tension headaches with a giant bottle of aspirin, but have you considered how you’ll protect your retinas from blue light? We didn’t think so.
The retina is the structure located in the back of the eye where vision happens. Retinal cells change light to electrical signals and send those signals to the brain via the optic nerve. The brain then interprets the signals as vision.
Intrusive blue light is emitted from the sun but also from your computer, tablet, smartphone, and LED devices and bulbs. Our exposure to blue light is continual, which means we need to take precautions to protect our eyes from the light as much as possible.
Blue light-blocking eyewear filters out blue light and keeps your eyes safe. Wouldn’t you know it, every pair of Stoggles is crafted with blue light-blocking lenses, so you never have to worry about your retinas getting weary after hours online. We can’t, however, say the same for your attention span.
5. UV Protection
You don’t need UV protection from the sun — you won’t be going outdoors much, silly! But certain machines used in engineering labs give off UV radiation, and you’ll need to protect your eyes from these rays.
Because Stoggles are made from polycarbonate material, they are naturally UV-blocking, without the need for any tinting.
Now that you’ve got the specs, let’s take a look at what could happen if you choose not to wear safety eyewear while you’re at school.
6. Prescription Friendly
Already wearing corrective lenses? If so, there’s no reason to stuff them under safety goggles or safety glasses that are too big for your face. Instead, just upload your prescription to our website, and we’ll customize a pair of Stoggles for you so you can see clearly with four eyes, not six.
If you wear contact lenses, you can easily wear Stoggles with them, no prescription necessary.
Eye Injuries: The Real Deal
You’re the type of person who isn’t convinced unless you see the statistics, and it just so happens; we’ve got them for you. If you think an eye injury is uncommon, think again. Each day, more than 2,000 workers sustain eye-related injuries. Of those workers, about one-third of them end up taking a trip to the emergency room.
A trip to the emergency room means missing that important study session, final exam, or partaking in the next big prank war between Harvey Mudd and CalTech.
Study Up, the Stoggles Way
You’ve got a lot of studying to do, and the right tools will help you maximize your potential. As you begin your engineering degree, make sure you are protecting some of your most valuable assets (your eyes). Stoggles make it easy to study, stay fresh in the lab, and protect your vision by giving you eyewear that is safe and stylish.
Sources:
Engineering Computer Requirements & Recommendations | University of Indianapolis