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Thayer School

OCTOBER 1966 Russ STEARNS '38
Article
Thayer School
OCTOBER 1966 Russ STEARNS '38

It is one of those well-remembered, foggy mornings in early September and the Fall Term is already upon us. By the time you read this in October, one-third of the first, trimester term will be over. However, as is the custom, this issue of the Alumni notes will, in large part, contain news of the late spring and summer.

The Thayer School Board of Overseers and the Executive Committee of the Dartmouth Society of Engineers met in Hanover in May to discuss with Dean Myron Tribus the state of the School and plans for the future. Students and faculty enjoyed informal talks with the visitors. The highlight of the two days was the annual dinner given by the D.S.E. for students and faculty. Sam Florman '46, D.S.E. president, presided at the dinner and introduced Gerry Saino '51, Rube Samuels '47, BillOlmstead '39, Tom Barr '50, and WaltCairns '51. In the athletic contests, socalled, the faculty split with the alumni thanks to Col. Des Canavan's win in golf, which offset the success of Sam Florman and Walt Cairns in tennis.

These members of the Board of Overseers were in Hanover for the meeting: James Wakelin Jr. D' 32, John Woodhouse D-21, Henry McCarthy D'31, David Lilly D' 39' Robert Barr '42, Charles Leader and ShawCole '31. Henry Beck '39 has become the new alumni member of the Board as of July 1, 1966 replacing Shaw Cole upon his retirement as an Overseer. Henry is president of the Henry C. Beck Co., Dallas, Texas, which is one of the larger construction companies in the United States. John Truxal D'45 was unable to be present at this meeting.

During the summer two courses and a conference were sponsored by Thayer School. The one-week computer course held during the last week of June was attended by eight students all of whom stated that it was most valuable to them and exciting. Some information about the individual alumni attendees will be included in later Thayer notes but it is of interest to note here that the classes represented covered the span from 1938 to 1959, and the CE, EE, ME and Tuck-Thayer curricula. A second introductory computer course is planned for the summer of 1967. Professors Carl Long and Russ Stearns '38 were in charge of this year's course.

Prof. Graham Wallis, who has been appointed Associate Professor of Engineering as of July 1, 1966, gave me these notes relative to his highly successful course this summer.

"Thirty-two engineers from industry and academia braved the airline strike to attend an intensive summer course on 'Two Phase Flow and Heat Transfer' from July 10 to July 22. The course was run by Prof. Graham B. Wallis of Thayer School and Mr. John G. Collier from the British Atomic Energy Authority. Five to six hours a day in the classroom proved an adequate challenge for both, the students and the teachers. When both sides had reached the saturation point they made good use of the local facilities for relaxation and recreation."

Finally, on September 7-9, Thayer School sponsored an engineering conference on "Bearings - A State of the Art Appraisal" with cooperation and financial support from Miniature Precision Bearings, Inc. of Keene, N. H. Prof. Joseph Ermenc was the chairman of the conference which attracted an attendance of 260. Clark Griffiths '58 gave a paper on "Retainer Dynamics and Instability in Ball Bearings." Dean Tribus and Prof. Jack Frankel gave talks.

As usual at this time, several changes in the faculty membership and residency can be reported. Prof. Bob Edgerton will spend 15 months on leave with I.B.M. in Rochester, Minn. He has been awarded a Ford Foundation Residency in Engineering Practice and will work with a senior engineer in the Advanced Systems Development Division. Profs. George Colligan and Robert pean have been appointed to the rank of full professor. Bob will continue on a part time basis while also carrying out the responsibilities of president of his firm Creare, in Hanover.

Bill Kimball '29 has been appointed Adjunct Professor and we are all pleased he will continue his long association with Thayer School in this capacity. As reported earlier, Bill has joined the ASCE headquarters staff in New York in the newly created post of Assistant Secretary for Education. Bill and Margaret will live in New York City and are looking forward to seeing their many friends there.

Prof. Sidney Lees has left the Thayer school to become Head of the Bio-Engineermg Department, Forsyth Dental Center in Boston. Three new members have joined the Thayer faculty. Professor of Engineering Jacob P. Frankel comes to Hanover from U.C.L.A. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, and his Ph.D. in Mechanical Properties of Solids from U.C.L.A. His activities and interests cover a wide range with a present major emphasis in industrial development in underdeveloped and emerging countries. Frederick J. Hooven, as a new Adjunct Professor, will bring to Thayer School a wide experience in professional engineering. He graduated from M.I.T. with the B.S. degree in 1927. Since then his remarkable career has taken him through many engineering responsibilities to his retirement this year from the position of Director, Research Planning, Ford Division, Ford Motor Company. He has over 50 patents to his credit, been a lecturer in engineering, and is a trustee of Antioch College and the Charles F. Kettering Foundation.

Dr. Pieter Hockstra will join the Thayer faculty as Visiting Lecturer in Soil Mechanics. He earned his Ph.D. in Soil Physics from Cornell University in 1963, and is now a Research Physicist at the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Lab. in Hanover.