Engineer helps craft Barbie's latest image
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Computer Engineer Barbie
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Late one January afternoon, Erin Fitzgerald opened an e-mail from the National Academy of Engineering seeking her input on a design project.
It wasn't an unusual request considering that Dr. Fitzgerald, 30, is a trained electrical and computer engineer who earned her undergraduate degree from Carnegie Mellon University and is a research fellow at the U.S. Department of Defense in Arlington, Va.
But the engineering academy wasn't after her technical expertise.
On behalf of Mattel, the academy wanted suggestions -- by 9 a.m. the next morning -- on how to dress and accessorize a computer engineer Barbie doll that will hit store shelves this fall.
Among her first reactions to the assignment: Don't make Barbie wear a white lab coat, please.
"That's not just typical attire," said Dr. Fitzgerald, who considers T-shirt and jeans to be standard wardrobe for professionals in her field.
Then she tackled the project the way computer-savvy workers do: She sent an e-mail blast to classmates from CMU and Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore where she earned her master's degree and Ph.D., also in electrical and computer engineering.
"I took advantage of crowd-sourcing," said Dr. Fitzgerald, who spent that evening wading through responses that ranged from outfitting Barbie with circuit-board design jewelry to equipping her with a handheld device so she could tweet messages.
Though an early idea from Mattel included the white lab coat, Dr. Fitzgerald and others discouraged it, she said, because it's more representative of scientists who work in wet labs surrounded by chemicals and potential spills.
In Mattel's final version, Barbie sports a white vest with a blue collar and pink stitching.
"Maybe the little vest was inspired by a lab coat but it is a little more trendy," said Dr. Fitzgerald.
Mattel also went with a T-shirt -- with a colorful binary code design -- and black leggings.
First Published September 23, 2010 12:00 am
