B UL L E T IN
Fall/Winter 2011
A Common Bond, Multiple Missions C E L E BR AT I NG HMC CHE MI ST S
INSIDE
See page 16
10 MDW VIII: Innovation and Entrepreneurship
26 Bulletin Readership Sur vey Results
35 Mind Muddler, Chemistr y Elements
37 SPECIAL INSERT 2010–2011 Annual Report
IMPRESSIONS
Unimania
When Jenni Rinker ’11 (wearing “Amazing” T-shirt, seated, center) met world champion unicyclist Max Schulze this past summer, she told him of HMC’s passion for the one-wheeled sport. That conversation spurred an event that brought Schulze (on unicycle) and a team of world-class unicyclists to HMC Oct. 7 for Unicycle Unimania. Schulze’s honors include 2010 Trials World Champion, 2010 High Jump Champion and 2011 U.S. Trials, Street and High Jump Champion. He is also the vice president of the Unicycling Society of America. Hosted by Gonzo Unicycle Madness, HMC’s unicycling club, the event included a demonstration of award-winning tricks and a workshop where Schulze and elite unicyclists Cody Williams, Spencer Hochberg and Jarin Erickson (the brave threesome on the ground) helped beginning and advanced enthusiasts hone their riding skills.
No QR code reader? Go to bit.ly/unimania
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE FALL/WINTER 2011 Volume 11, No. 1 The HMC Bulletin is produced three times per year by the Office of Communications
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HMC Grads Prepared to React
rom epoxy skateboard wheels to construction materials that make up our teaching and learning building, chemistry affects every aspect of our lives. We place our trust in chemists and other scientists to find solutions to some of the most pressing challenges of the world—security, energy, water, population and food. We trust that they will make thoughtful and strategic responses to these societal needs. HMC graduates are equipped to contribute to solutions in these important areas because the College has prepared them well. In this issue, we celebrate the International Year of Chemistry and highlight a few of our 1,023 chemistry graduates who are using their liberal arts sensibilities and science knowledge to improve nearly every aspect of society. We are proud of all our alumni and of our current students who are gaining the knowledge and experience they will need to join with others to build a better world. We celebrate their perseverance toward what will be a prestigious and—as recent national studies have shown—lucrative HMC degree. You’ll find many accomplishments—of students as well as faculty and staff—in the 2010–11 Annual Report included in this issue. Part reflection and celebration, this review is our way to showcase the academic year highlights so you can see what we’ve accomplished together. It takes all of HMC’s stakeholders to ensure we continue to be guided by our mission and the six themes of our strategic vision. Let’s continue to work together to secure the College’s status as a leader in STEM higher education.
Maria Klawe President, Harvey Mudd College
Vice President for College Advancement Dan Macaluso Senior Director of Advancement, Communications Judy Augsburger Director of Communications, Senior Editor Stephanie L. Graham Associate Director of Publications, Graphic Designer Janice Gilson Editorial Contributors Richard Chapman, Rich Smith, Steven K. Wagner, Koren Wetmore The Harvey Mudd College Magazine (SSN 0276-0797) is published by Harvey Mudd College, Office of Communications, 301 Platt Boulevard, Claremont, CA 91711 www.hmc.edu Nonprofit Organization Postage Paid at Claremont, CA 91711 Postmaster: Send address changes to Micki Brose, Harvey Mudd College, Advancement Services, 301 Platt Boulevard, Claremont, CA 91711 Copyright © 2012 Harvey Mudd College. All rights reserved. Opinions expressed in the HMC Bulletin are those of the individual authors and subjects and do not necessarily reflect the views of the College administration, faculty or students. No portion of this magazine may be reproduced without the express written consent of the editor.
Find the Bulletin online at www.hmc.edu/hmcmagazine
The Harvey Mudd College Bulletin staff welcomes your input: communications@hmc.edu or HMC Bulletin Harvey Mudd College 301 Platt Boulevard Claremont, CA 91711
Fall/Winter 2011
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FEATURES
C e l e b r a t i n g t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l Ye a r o f C h e m i s t r y
16 A Common Bond, Multiple Missions Chemistry Alumni creating change
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Tom Smith ’80
Nicci Nunes ’91
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Neel Joshi ’01
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Jennifer Holmgren ’81
Kevin Meagher ’95
Liz Thompson ’97
DEPARTMENTS
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Michael Sailor ’83
4 Campus Current Groundbreaking for teaching and learning building, Astronaut Bruce McCandless, Trustee update, Rankings roundup, Nelson Series talk by Madeleine Jacobs, Grants received Campus News Faculty News Student News
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Don Murphy ’64
28 Mudderings Alumni Weekend, Family Weekend, Community Connections, Australia Travel Opportunity, Upcoming Events, CMS Hall of Fame and Wall of Fame Recipients
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30 Class Notes Alumni Profiles: Chemists Ann McDermott ’81 and A.J. Shaka ’80
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This magazine was printed in the USA by an FSC-certified printer that emits 0% VOC emissions, using 30% post-consumer recycled paper and soy based inks. By sustainably printing in this method we have saved… 28 trees preserved for the future.
12,629 gallons of wastewater flow saved.
8 Million BTUs energy not consumed. 2,622 LBS. of net greenhouse gases prevented.
767 pounds of solid waste not generated.
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Find the Bulletin online at www.hmc.edu/hmcmagazine
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College News
Rich Legacy Leads to Teaching and Learning Building
KEVIN MAPP
GROUNDBREAKING MARKS BEGINNING OF CONSTRUCTION
Construction progress can be viewed at any time via the web. A camera takes stills every five minutes. This image was taken in mid-December.
Saturday, Oct. 1, was an exciting day as community members celebrated the groundbreaking of the first academic building to be constructed on campus since 1993. But the ceremonial hard hats and shovels were taken up only after many expressions of gratitude to the Garrett Family, who are among the key pioneers whose past efforts made the day’s events possible. Garrett family members Marvin (son of founding Trustee Leroy Garrett) and Judy (Marvin’s spouse) joined HMC Board of Trustees, alumni, faculty, staff, students, architectural and construction staff, community members and friends, to cele-
“Their names are around [campus] because of a financial commitment, but the real commitment was of the heart,” said Marvin Garrett of his father and stepmother. “They were dedicated with the Mudd family to creating and being part of the creation of a science and engineering facility second to none in the world. That emotional dedication was equally as important as the financial commitment. Also, my father had great foresight and always looked ahead, and I think he would be very comfortable that the time had come to move to the next era in the College’s history.” Assistant Vice President of Planning and Construction David Dower reported that during the fall months, installation of soldier beams, lagging and tie-backs were completed to allow excavation. Excavation operations included removal of approximately 23,000 cubic yards of earth to create the space for the new building’s foundation and basement. Mechanical, electrical and plumbing coordination with the BubbleDeck® structural systems should be completed by the first of the year. For a birds-eye view of construction 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. (fiveminute delay), see hmc.edu/building/construction.shtml.
VIDEO
Pres. Klawe leads faculty, AABoG, student and trustee representatives in the breaking of ground for the new teaching and learning building.
Groundbreaking: www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXhOoXYGC0o&feature=youtu.be Demolition: www.youtube.com/harveymuddcollege#p/u/2/QWV4MFAt6SE
brate the historic occasion in a tent adjacent to the construction site, where Thomas-Garrett Hall once stood. Speakers described how the 50-year-old academic building impacted the Mudd community and helped to inform the program of the new teaching and learning building that will be completed in 2013. Kerry Karukstis, chair of the faculty and Joseph B. Platt Professor of Effective Teaching in Chemistry, said Thomas-Garrett “fostered our vision of this exciting facility, and for that we owe the Garrett family an immense amount of gratitude.”
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Space Program a Valuable Scientific Resource Risk management is key for advancing space exploration, said United States space program veteran and astronaut Bruce McCandless. “The real challenge is to take a task which has a perception of high risk and engineer and analyze it until you overcome and manage those risks and then go forward and conquer it,” he said. McCandless visited campus Oct. 4 to present the Astronaut Scholarship Award to Paul Riggins ’12 and to provide a historic look at NASA’s space shuttle program, a review of lessons learned and a glance at the potential future of space exploration. He highlighted pending and future projects including the James Webb Space Telescope, which can image data farther out in the infrared band. Its planned position of a million miles out from Earth, however, may make it difficult to service should a problem arise, McCandless said. He also touched on the current shift toward commercial lowearth orbit vehicles, China’s development of the space station, “Heavenly Palace-1,” efforts to address near-Earth asteroids, and NASA’s new Space Launch System. “I do believe we are in a time of great change. We need new and aggressive engineers and scientists to develop new concepts and push them,” McCandless said. “It’s a new day. The opportunities are different, but they are there.” —Koren Wetmore
Trustee Update The Harvey Mudd College Board of Trustees recently approved the appointment of Kevin Schofield P13 of Bellevue, Wash. He is general manager for strategy and communications at Microsoft Research, where he develops relationships with customers, press, analysts and Microsoft’s own product groups. Schofield joined Microsoft in 1988, and has worked in Microsoft Research since 1997. He is a magna cum laude graduate of Dartmouth College with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. Schofield is deeply involved with the Human-Computer Interaction research field and is the co-author of three issued patents and several pending ones. Schofield’s twin daughters, Elly and Xanda, are both members of the HMC class of 2013.
STEVE SCHENCK
ASTRONAUT BRUCE MCCANDLESS CITES NEED FOR “NEW AND AGGRESSIVE” ENGINEERS
Astronaut Bruce McCandless congratulates Paul Riggins ’12, 2011 Astronaut Scholar.
High Regards The annual rankings roundup U.S. News and World Report No. 1 in undergraduate engineering (tied with Rose-Hulman) No. 1 SAT/ACT percentile range (25th-75th) among incoming students No. 18 among 252 U.S. private and public liberal arts colleges PayScale, 2011-12 College Salary Report No. 1 Highest salaries of all U.S. liberal arts college graduates. HMC alumni earn a median starting salary of $64,400 and a median mid-career salary of $121,000. Washington Monthly No. 1 among liberal arts colleges whose undergraduates go on to get their Ph.D.s. No. 2 “Best Engineering Colleges by Salary Potential” No. 9 among liberal arts colleges that give back to their communities Princeton Review Guidebook One of “The Best 376 Colleges”; among “Best in the West” No. 1 “Students Study the Most” No. 2 “Professors Get High Marks”
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Pre-Sputnik Mentality Urged
WILL VASTA
MADELEINE JACOBS SAYS RAISING AWARENESS OF CHEMISTRY IS KEY
Noted chemist Madeleine Jacobs shares her insight with Nelson Series co-organizer Prof. Jerry Van Hecke ’61 and a student participant.
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you well,” she said. “There is nothing that goes on in the world that does not involve understanding.” Still, Jacobs said she is concerned about what she perceives is a lack of interest in science, a shortcoming she believes begins at a young age. The passion and rigor that have long characterized science and technology in the U.S. are fading, she said. In part because of that, the U.S. faces a strong challenge to its longstanding pre-eminence in science and technology. “We can still claim superiority—we have the best colleges and universities in the world,” Jacobs said. “The standard of living that we enjoy and hope to extend around the world is due to advances in science and technology.” Despite the challenges, Jacobs said hope lies in the exciting opportunities available to the country’s best and brightest. “There must be a return to the feeling of the pre-Sputnik era,” Jacobs said. “We need to get back to the sense that science and engineering are noble callings that will do good things for humanity. Being a scientist is about helping people, and that’s really the end goal of everything you do.” Talks by each of this year’s Nelson Series speakers—Jacobs, Peter Atkins, Peter Dervan and Judith Giordan—can be found on the HMC YouTube channel. —Steven K. Wagner VIDEO
In preparation for the International Year of Chemistry, numerous countries issued postage stamps celebrating the long-venerated “science of matter.” Notably missing is the United States’ version, demonstrating that chemistry does not always receive the appreciation it deserves, a noted chemist observed this fall while speaking on campus. “People don’t fully appreciate what chemistry does for daily life,” Madeleine Jacobs, executive director and CEO of the American Chemical Society, told a near-capacity audience Oct. 6 during the 2011 Dr. Bruce J. Nelson ’74 Speaker Series. Clearly, much is needed to raise the level of consciousness about chemistry. “If there’s a single challenge in the world that does not involve chemistry, I cannot tell you what it is,” said Jacobs. “Chemists and chemical engineers will be part of solving [those] challenges—it’s important that people understand this.” Jacobs is an honored science journalist and an internationally acclaimed public speaker with an extensive understanding of the chemistry field. According to Jacobs, more chemists, chemical engineers and other scientists are needed to solve the world’s most pressing problems. She said students like those at HMC—“the elite”— are embarking on a noble calling. “Although some of you may not become scientists and engineers, the studying you are doing at Harvey Mudd will serve
Nelson Talks: youtube.com/watch?v=iGyV_51mm3I&feature=youtu.be.
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Grants Benefit Wide Range of Students, Programs SUMMER RESEARCH IN CHEMISTRY RECEIVES BOOST
KEVIN MAPP
CHEMISTRY Undergraduate research in chemistry received a welcome boost from the John Stauffer Charitable Trust, which donated $150,000 toward Chemistry’s summer research program.
Chemistry Professor Karl Haushalter (left) and fellow faculty members helped raise funds that were matched by the John Stauffer Charitable Trust.
VIDEO
Stauffer trustees John F. Bradley, Sr., H. Jess Senecal and Michael R. Whalen presented Dean of Faculty Robert Cave and Chemistry Department Chair Hal Van Ryswyk with a check Sept. 20 during an inaugural meeting with HMC students and faculty. Trustees also visited Professor Karl Haushalter’s chemistry class. Haushalter’s HIV research: www.youtube.com/harveymuddcollege#p/
The funds match gifts and pledges raised by HMC faculty, alumni, parents and friends. “We are pleased for the continued support of the John Stauffer Charitable Trust,” said Van Ryswyk. “They understand the critical importance of a summer research experience in the training of our students, and we gladly accept their challenge to make such opportunities available to all of our students.” In 2008, the Stauffer Trust awarded a matching challenge grant to HMC to establish an endowed fund for student
research in chemistry. The goal is to raise $500,000 so that, when fully funded, the Stauffer Challenge will provide a total of $1 million to provide access to summer research opportunities for all chemistry students. Since 1960, when a National Science Foundation grant allowed six HMC chemistry students to undertake research during the summer, the Summer Research Program has grown beyond chemistry to include a second NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates program and more than 100 research projects annually. Established by prominent Los Angeles industrialist John Stauffer, founder of the Stauffer Chemical Company, the Pasadena, Calif.-based Stauffer Trust has been a longtime supporter of science education at Southern California colleges and universities. COMPUTER SCIENCE, ENGINEERING, PHYSICS The Henry Luce Foundation has granted Harvey Mudd College $200,000 to provide scholarships to female students majoring in computer science, engineering or physics. The grant is an affirmation of the College’s priority to increase the representation of women at HMC. The Clare Boothe Luce scholarships will be awarded during the 2012–2013 and 2013–2014 academic years. “We are deeply grateful for this vote of confidence in our work by the Luce Foundation, which increases the resources at hand for outstanding women students,” said President Maria Klawe. The Clare Boothe Luce Program is the single-largest private source of funding for women in science and engineering.
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New Faculty Will Communicate Physics and Study Smog STUDENTS WILL HAVE NEW RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES
Vivien Hamilton
Q. How did you decide to focus on this area of research?
A. I have always been fascinated by physics—my undergraduate degree is in physics—but of all the sciences, it has a reputation for being abstract and inaccessible. Given this reputation, I am very interested in how physics gets communicated to wider audiences. Doctors are a fascinating audience to study because they are trained in the natural sciences but in no way self-identify as physicists. They often express resignation rather than enthusiasm for the physics section of their education. I’m interested in how this education, along with their exposure to popular accounts of physics, has affected their professional relationships with physicists and their attitudes toward complex technology like x-ray machines.
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I AM VERY INTERESTED IN INCORPORATING MY INTERACTIONS WITH EARLY X-RAY AND ELECTROTHERAPY EQUIPMENT INTO THE HISTORY THAT I WRITE.
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Q. How will students be involved in your research? A. I am hoping to involve students in the part of my research where I interact with actual material objects. Historians tend to focus mainly on textual evidence, but I am very interested in incorporating my interactions with early X-ray and electrotherapy equipment into the history that I write. I plan on developing a course that will allow students to replicate historically significant experiments so that we can explore what kinds of insights these hands-on experiences can offer to a historian.
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Q. When not working at HMC, what are you most likely to be doing? A. I am most likely to be practicing T-ball with my 4-year-old daughter or crawling around on the grass with my 10-monthold son. Lelia Hawkins joins the Department of Chemistry as an assistant professor of chemistry. She earned her Ph.D. from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 2010, and most recently served as a teaching and research postdoctoral associate in the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department at the University of San Diego. Hawkins is an analytical chemist who studies the organic component of atmospheric particles as they relate to climate.
Q. So, what’s this about a hole being cut in the Keck roof for you? A. Most people think I’m kid-
WILL VASTA
WILL VASTA
Vivien Hamilton joins the Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and the Arts as an assistant professor of history of science. She will earn her Ph.D. in history and philosophy of science and technology from the University of Toronto in 2012. Hamilton’s research includes exploring the interaction between physics and the 19th- and early 20th-century medical community.
Lelia Hawkins
ding when I claim to have come to Claremont partly for the Los Angeles pollution. One of the perks of my research is that I can do “field” work right here in my lab. To do this, I’ll need an aerosol inlet directly from the atmosphere (our fair Claremont air) to my research lab. This requires a hole in the lovely roof as well as some infrastructure for a weather station. The first step is do trial runs with a flexible tube so we can determine the area unaffected by building exhaust.
Q. How will students be involved in your research? A. Students working with me will be able to use their analytical chemistry prowess to measure chemical components, mainly organic, of the particles we collect. These particles mostly originate from car exhaust in the greater L.A. area and concentrate here due to prevailing winds. We will also be measuring the light absorption of these particles, and be looking for connections between where the air came from, the composition and the light
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absorption. This has important consequences for their impact on the global heat balance. In the future, students will also be able to travel with me to other locations to collect and measure atmospheric particles, perhaps even on research ships.
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MOST PEOPLE THINK I’M KIDDING WHEN I CLAIM TO HAVE COME TO CLAREMONT PARTLY FOR THE LOS ANGELES POLLUTION.
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Q. What is your favorite activity outside of work? A. Gardening. I love spending a cool Saturday morning pruning, weeding and otherwise communing with nature. I also enjoy taking my dogs, Mabel and Bochy, to the dog park.
ARRIVING SOON Joining the faculty this spring Elizabeth Glater, assistant professor of biology. Ph.D. (neuroscience), Harvard University; postdoctoral research fellow, Rockefeller University Sharon Gerbode, assistant professor of physics. Ph.D. (physics), Cornell University; postdoctoral fellow, Harvard University Joining the faculty in fall 2012 Chris Clark, associate professor of engineering. Ph.D. (aeronautics and astronautics), Stanford University; assistant professor of computer science, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
NEW
N SCREE TEST Faculty members weigh in on the bad and the good of science on screen. Pass/Fail: The beeping computer. TV show/movie: Anything with a computer. Situation: The hero types on the keyboard, asking the computer to retrieve crucial information about the bad guys. Error: While the computer is working, it makes beeping noises and the screen quickly flashes images of things that are supposedly being searched. Why it is wrong: Beeping and flashing images take computer power. That power is better spent on doing the actual search. When you type a search into Google, it doesn’t beep while it’s looking things up because that would be wasteful. Geoff Kuenning, professor of computer science and director, Computer Science Clinic
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Faculty News
In the Hunt for Engineering Innovation 2011 MUDD DESIGN WORKSHOP VIII IS LARGEST YET Teaching and showbiz are alike in the sense that it’s important to always finish big and leave the audience wanting more. That’s exactly what retiring Professor Clive L. Dym did at Mudd Design Workshop (MDW) VIII, held in May. Dym stood on stage for a final time in his role as organizing committee chairman of this important biennial event. He has been its driving force since 1997, when MDW debuted. As in the past, MDW brought together engineering design educators, practitioners and students to bandy ideas about innovation and entrepreneurship. However, this year’s gathering attracted 85 registrants, an approximately 67 percent gain over prior attendance norms.
Also headlining the event was Larry J. Leifer, a Stanford University professor of mechanical engineering design and the founding director of that school’s Center for Design Research. Leifer lamented that engineers are not taught the ancient art of hunting—at least hunting in the intellectual sense. Were they, he later wrote, it would be a matter of course for them to track, spot, trap and haul home the “next big idea,” a most elusive quarry. At one point during the proceedings, Dym—the Fletcher Jones Professor of Engineering Design and the director of the HMC Center for Design Education—reminded attendees that HMC’s engineering program was developed by “visionaries, innovators and entrepreneurs who put together a curriculum that was well ahead of its time…[They] were ‘doers’ rather than talkers or writers and publishers of papers….” In other words, they, like Dym, knew how to always finish big and leave an audience wanting more. —Rich Smith
Origins of the Mudd Design Workshop
Clive Dym
The three-day event yielded a number of intriguing insights about idea formation. For example, a consensus developed around the notion that innovative concepts frequently arise unexpectedly, but especially during times when informal thought-processes occur. These are generally labeled “out-of-action reflections,” and a good illustration is the burst of creative thinking stimulated by taking a hot shower in the morning. Keynoter Alice Merner Agogino from the University of California at Berkeley asserted that the journey to success in design engineering entails traveling the path less taken. “Good design requires utilizing methods and expertise outside of one’s discipline in engineering; thus, finding a way to create partnerships outside the college of engineering in the social sciences, education, arts and humanities is vital,” Agogino elaborated in a post-event writing.
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In 1997, HMC’s Department of Engineering instituted a biennial program of Mudd Design Workshops to bring together design educators, practitioners and researchers to discuss issues in design and engineering education. The MDWs have become a highly-desirable meeting place with important intellectual content on design pedagogy for engineering faculty. • Computing Futures of Engineering Design, 1997 • Designing Design Education for the 21st Century, 1999 • Social Dimensions of Engineering Design, 2001 • Designing Engineering Education, 2003 • Learning and Engineering Design, 2005 • Design and Engineering Education in a Flat World, 2007 • Sustaining Sustainable Design, 2009 • Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 2011
Workshop Proceedings: hmc.edu/academicsclinicresearch/interdisciplinarycenters/cde1/workshops1/pastworkshops.html
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Faculty Updates Kerry Karukstis, Joseph B. Platt Chair of Effective Teaching in Chemistry and chair of the faculty, was named a 2012 Council of Undergraduate Research (CUR) Fellow. The prestigious award, which Kerry Karukstis and Alison Lee ’09 recognizes excellence in undergraduate research, teaching and mentoring, will be presented to Karukstis in June 2012 at the 14th CUR National Conference. CUR Fellows Awards are given biennially to two CUR members who have established nationally respected research programs involving undergraduate students. Fellows are selected as well for their efforts to reach out to students of all backgrounds, incorporate research activities into the courses they teach and lead efforts to institutionalize research on their campuses and across the country. “Professor Karukstis understands how important research is to [students’] formation as young scientists and was the driving force in the department for providing research opportunities at very early stages in students’ careers,” said Dean of Faculty Robert Cave. “Her research has been far ranging, touching topics from photosynthesis to phase behavior of complex mixtures, and this has allowed students to explore varied interests in physical chemistry. She has been truly impressive to watch.” Karukstis has conducted externally-funded research (NSF, NIH-AREA, ACS-PRF, Research Corporation, Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award 1994), in collaboration with more than 100 HMC students. With more than 70 publications in scientific journals during her time at HMC, Karukstis publishes often with undergraduate co-authors, and her students regularly present their research results at national meetings of the American Chemical Society. Karl Haushalter, associate professor of chemistry and biology, discussed “The End of AIDS” during the 7-C student-organized TEDx conference held Sept. 23. Students gathered “Claremont’s greatest minds to spread the ideas that will define our future.” Speakers also included individuals in the fields of art, entertainment, politics and business. All talks, including Haushalter’s, can be found on the TEDx website, www.tedxclaremontcolleges.com. Art Benjamin, professor of mathematics and resident mathemagician, is featured in Chapter 7 of the book from Princeton Uni-
versity Press entitled Fascinating Mathematical People. The chapter chronicles his path from Carnegie Mellon undergraduate to HMC mathematics professor and magician. The book contains portraits and informal interviews with 16 prominent members of the mathematical community. Debra Mashek, associate professor of psychology, contributed two essays for the book The Science of Relationships: Answers to Your Questions about Dating, Marriage and Family. The 186-page work contains the most upto-date scientific findings on nearly every conceivable relationship topic, including attraction, whether love lasts forever, getting over a break up, Debra Mashek the role of sex in relationships, cheating, cohabitation and parenting. Contributors include relationship scientists and college and university faculty considered experts on relationship issues. Mashek’s essays are “Isn’t Being too Close to a Partner a Bad Thing?” and “How Can I Tell Someone is Interested in Me?” The article “Dynamic Server Allocation at Parallel Queues” about airport checkpoint queues by Susan Martonosi, associate professor of mathematics and Mathematics Clinic director, has been published in the December 2011 Institute of Industrial Engineers Transactions and in IE Magazine. News about the new inorganic chemistry education website (www. ionicviper.org) traveled fast this summer after an article by Adam Johnson, associate professor of chemistry, and fellow collaborators appeared in the journal Inorganic Chemistry. The article “Inorganic Chemistry and IONiC: An Online Community bringing Cutting-Edge Research into Adam Johnson the Classroom” topped the most-read list during the month of July and was the first educational article published in the journal. The user-friendly IONiC website is designed for inorganic chemistry professors at primarily undergraduate institutions to share ideas and lessons, receive support and develop friendships.
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Faculty Updates (continued) The research group of Theresa Lynn, assistant professor of physics, has had two articles accepted for publication, both in Physical Review A 84: “Distinguishability of hyperentangled Bell states by linear evolution and local projective measurement” by Neal Pisenti ’11, Philip Gaebler ’09 and Lynn, and “Entanglementsecured single-qubit quantum seTheresa Lynn cret sharing” by Peter Scherpelz ’08, Rudy Resch ’09, David Berryrieser ’10 and Lynn. In the Aug. 24 “Academic Minute” on Northeast Public Radio, Paul Steinberg explains the unique position of the United States as a potential global leader on environmental issues. Associate professor of political science and environmental policy, Steinberg focuses on global environmental politics, with a special interest in biodiversity conservation and the environmental policy of developing countries. In 2001, he published Environmental Leadership in Developing Countries, in which he explains how Costa Rica and Bolivia have become leaders in environmental conservation. Listen at publicbroadcasting.net/wamc/newsnew smain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1833657. A Chinese translation of the book Science and Religion, 1450–1900: From Copernicus to Darwin written by Richard G. Olson ’62 has been published by Shandong Peoples Press. The book examines the contributions of scientists like Galileo, Newton and Darwin and their influence on religion, specifically Christianity. Olson is the Willard W. Keith Richard Olson ’62 Fellow in Humanities and the 2012 Hixon-Riggs Professor of Science, Technology and Society. His research focuses on the interrelationships between the natural sciences and other cultural domains, including moral philosophy, the social sciences, political ideology and religion. Olson, who is retiring this fall, will be featured in the spring issue of the HMC Bulletin.
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In Memoriam Dotty Campbell, Wife of First HMC Professor The wife of chemistry professor emeritus J. Arthur Campbell, Dorothy (Dotty) Emily Carnell Campbell died at her home at Mt. San Antonio Gardens on Sept. 19. A Claremont resident for more than half a century, she was just short of 97 years of age. Dotty met and married Art Campbell in 1938 at Oberlin College in Ohio where both were attending school. After graduation, they moved to Purdue University where Art earned his master’s degree, then to Berkeley where Art earned his Ph.D. in chemistry and stayed on to work on the Manhattan Project. After the war, Art became a chemistry professor at Oberlin (until 1956) and Dotty was a member of the Oberlin School Board and president of Church Women. Through Church World Service, Dotty helped bring two “displaced families” from Russia and Lithuania to the United States. From Oberlin, they moved to Claremont where Art was hired as the first professor of a new college, Harvey Mudd. Dotty became very involved in college activities, including hosting many students. Her other interests and activities included many years volunteering for Planned Parenthood, one of the first volunteers of Hospice, president of the Faculty Women of The Claremont Colleges, a member of Scripps’ Fine Arts, The Rembrandt Club and the League of Women Voters. The couple traveled extensively, including trips to Cambridge, England, India and Kenya. Dotty taught English in Asia, including Hong Kong, Japan and Thailand. The death of Art in 1989 brought a move to Mt. San Antonio Gardens, where Dotty served on the board of directors and many committees. Dotty is survived by her daughters, Elae Ellinwood and Christine Campbell, six grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
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Student News
Awards Recognize Student Research SENIORS STUDYING ENGINEERING AND MATH HONORED Two seniors have developed into accomplished researchers and are preparing to continue graduate work in their respective fields. Elissa Leonard ’12 of Haddonfield, N.J., was named a winner of a Biomedical Engineering Society 2011 Undergraduate Student Award, designed to provide encouragement and recognition for students’ academic achievements. For several years, Leonard worked on the Corneal Tissue Engineering project with Elizabeth Orwin ’95, Elissa Leonard ’12 associate professor of engineering. Orwin and her student researchers are working on designing a tissue engineered artificial corneal model, a complicated problem that few undergraduate colleges are undertaking. The idea is to make a new cornea out of cells and a matrix material or biological polymer, not unlike what is found in your skin or eye. Leonard is majoring in an Independent Program of Study (biomolecular systems and design), and is the president of the Mudd Creative Collective. An HMC President’s Scholar, she plans to attend graduate school for a Ph.D. in cell, tissue or biomolecular engineering, then continue doing research in that field. Dhruv Ranganathan ’12 of Chennai, India, was awarded the inaugural Giovanni Borrelli Fellowship, which recognizes an HMC mathematics major who has completed high-quality research either independently or in tandem with a faculty advisor. The fellowship, established through the generosity of Emeritus Professor Robert (“Bob”) Borrelli, includes a stipend that will support summer research and travel re- Dhruv Ranganathan ’12 lated to the research. Ranganathan is working with mathematics Professor Dagan Karp and Paul Riggins ’12 on techniques to study basic properties of toric varieties, with applications to Gromov-Witten Theory and Donaldson-Thomas Theory. This work impacts high-energy physics, algebraic geometry, algebraic topology and combinatorics. Ranganathan plans to study algebraic geometry and representation theory in graduate school, with the goal of joining the professoriate.
NEW
Course description: A laboratory course for chemistry juniors and seniors that focuses on techniques of chemical measurement and is built around the chemistry needed to determine the concentrations of common analytes in seawater. Topics include titrations of several flavors, spectrophotometry and ion chromatography. Texts: None (all students have Quantitative Chemical Analysis, Harris, seventh edition, for the corresponding lecture course) Assignments/Activities: Students develop and optimize procedures to measure nine common compounds in seawater using the basic principles and methods of analytical chemistry. After six weeks of optimization, students rotate through their classmates’ procedures to continually monitor the analytes in a tropical marine ecosystem. Final reports summarize the method and series of results obtained on their compound. Students also learn to write scientific abstracts on the various experiments. Faculty say: “Allowing the students freedom and responsibility to design their experiment makes them much more engaged in the technical details of the chemistry. They internalize the principles of analytical chemistry more quickly as they optimize their project.” (Lelia Hawkins) Students say: “It’s a little intimidating at first to design a whole lab protocol, but you really get to be an expert on the analysis of your specific analyte. Also, it’s nice to see how a lab technique we talk about in class can actually be important in a real-world situation— nobody wants the fish to die!” (Alex Chan ’12) Only at Mudd: Most schools provide the students with seawater. Mudd students get an entire tropical marine ecosystem—with fish—to monitor as the analyte levels change.
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Student News
New Life for Leftovers
Campus Snapshot
A Mudder’s Life Unicycling, tutoring, hanging out—all part of a typical Thursday for chemistry major Veerasak (Jeep) Srisuknimit ’12. 6:30 a.m. Get ready, have breakfast 8:00 a.m. Go to lab to work on senior thesis (chemistry) Noon Have lunch at the Hoch 1:00 p.m. Unicycle to Pomona for Logics (philosophy)
KEVIN MAPP
Tortellini, beef, green beans and carrots fill plastic containers that stand ready on a cart in the Hoch-Shanahan walk-in refrigerator. “These will go to the church tonight,” says Dining Services General Manager Miguel Ruvalcaba. “It’s a complete meal that will feed about 25 people.” Leftovers from the previous day’s menu, the food will be transferred to Pomona Valley Christian Center, which ministers to the hungry and homeless. What might have been wasted will now help others through a Food Rescue program of the student club Mudders Making a Difference (MMAD). About 20–25 containers—each holding servings for about 20 people—are donated by HMC weekly during the academic year. “[The program] is a good way for students to make a real difference on a regular basis, but in a way that’s practical given their busy schedules,” said Julius Elinson ’13, HMC’s Food Rescue program coordinator. In the spring of 2010, MMAD joined with volunteers from the other Claremont Colleges to participate in the Food Rescue program, which originated on the Pomona College campus. Five nights a week, HMC student volunteers join with those from CMC and Scripps to collect the food containers and deliver them to the church. “People can easily forget or simply ignore how much good one can do right in their neighborhood,” said Elinson.
2:30 p.m. Go to Algorithms (computer science) 4:00 p.m. Ride back to Mudd and hang out in the dorm courtyard N
5:00 p.m. Have dinner N
6:00 p.m. Tutor Organic Chemistry 8:00 p.m. Go to Thrive (Christian fellowship meeting)
NANCY NEWMAN
10:00 p.m. Do some leisure reading
Community members gather in support of Coming Out Day Oct. 11.
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11:00 p.m. Fall asleep
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Mathematics is Focus of Two Grants
CAMPUS CURRENT
Student Research
This Drill is for Real E4 EXERCISE TESTS STUDENTS’ DESIGN Dong-hyeon Park ’14 spent two weeks this past summer working with Aid Africa to field test an HMC-designed manual water drill bit in Northern Uganda. The test site’s location in the remote village of Rwothobilo gave Park a glimpse of the need the drill will meet and the people it will serve. “They had springs, but it was mostly dirty and contaminated water,” Park said. “Some had pumps that were installed by others, but many of those did not work properly or provide enough water.”
“It was fun trying to fix the problems as they came up and setting the drill up and seeing it work.” The work gauged the performance of the prototype Park and his fellow E4 Water Drill Team members developed during the 2010–11 academic year. Aid Africa asked the team to redesign its current drill bit to better withstand the sandy and rocky Ugandan soil. The original, X-shaped drill bit often got stuck in the soil and the drill pipe broke whenever the bit struck rock. The team was also tasked with making the drill less strenuous for its users to operate. Park and team members Brett Manning ’14, Nobuhiro Yokote and Courtney Keeler ’14 developed a conical-shaped drill tip with slots that allow the sandy soil to enter the pipe. Under the supervision of engineering Professor Adrian Hightower, they also designed a tripod, rope and pulley system that eased the stress on the drillers. To operate the drill, three people pull on the rope to lift the drill-pipe while two others hold the pipe and provide stability and downward thrust. Each time the rope is let go, the drill-pipe is manually thrust down into the soil. Once the pipe fills with soil, it is pulled up and emptied. The drillers repeat the process until they strike water. The drill bit tested well in California, but had to be modified to fit the larger pipe used in Uganda. So the test team added couplings to increase its diameter.
Engineer Dong-hyeon Park ’14, shown working with Ugandan villagers, and two other Mudders worked with Aid Africa to redesign a drill bit.
“It was fun trying to fix the problems as they came up and setting the drill up and seeing it work,” Park said. “The conical [bit] worked pretty well because it could go through rocks and hard soil. I thought we would have to hit a couple hundred times to go in a foot, but it only took about 30 strokes down to get a foot deep.” —Koren Wetmore
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A C OMMON BOND
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MULTIPLE MIS SIONS
The International Year of Chemistry 2011 (IYC2011) is a worldwide celebration of the achievements of chemistry and its contributions to the well-being of humankind. HMC marked IYC2011 with the Dr. Bruce J. Nelson ’74 Distinguished Speaker Series (see page 6), highlighting chemistry’s place as the central science contributing to a greener environment, new materials and advances in medicine. In this issue of the HMC Bulletin, you’ll find alumni leaders working in fields as diverse as secondary education, materials science, green manufacturing, biotechnology and winemaking. This small sample highlights how our alumni have integrated their solid technical background, understanding of the humanities, social sciences and the arts, and training in chemistry to address important challenges. In addition to those profiled here, we have chemistry alumni raising families and practicing the fine arts, intellectual property law, journalism, and investment banking, to name a few of their more challenging endeavors. Through our alumni, you can see chemistry’s scope as a liberal art for the 21st century.
Hal Van Ryswyk Professor of Chemistry and Chair
Photo illustrations by: HMC Communications; Original photography by: LanzaTech, page 18; Robert Downs, page 22; Erika Kyte, page 24.
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JENNIFER (SALEM) HOLMGREN ’81
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fueli ng
THE FUTURE Written by STEPHANIE L. GRAHAM
Chemists and other scientists face a daunting technical challenge: creating a sustainable future with equal access to clean energy for all. At the forefront of this renewable energy quest is Jennifer (Salem) Holmgren ’81, a chemist who recognizes there are many obstacles but prefers to view the challenge as “a global opportunity.” Holmgren has spent most of her career seeking solutions in the energy sector. During 23 years at UOP, LLC, a chemical technology company, she led the organization’s renewable business from inception to commercialization of several novel biofuels technologies. The author or co-author of 50 U.S. patents and more than two dozen scientific publications, she is known for seeking out new capabilities—like combinatorial chemistry, advanced characterization, new materials and modeling—to achieve change that will impact daily lives. After many successes and accolades along the way—she was the first woman to receive the Council for Chemical Research’s Malcolm E. Pruitt Award in 2003—at midcareer and midife she found herself ready for a new challenge. She was approached by New Zealand-based clean energy company LanzaTech, which utilizes gas fermentation technology to produce fuels from industrial waste gas or biomass syngas. “Being in an emerging market that could have significant impact—I love that!” says Holmgren, whose spouse is physicist Donald Holmgren ’81. “LanzaTech has given me the opportunity to take lab technology to commercial, staff my vision for the company and the technology, and grow it. It’s hard to pass that up.” She has brought to LanzaTech many years of experience commercializing new technologies, as well as her global contacts in the energy sector. Holmgren, who spent her formative years in Colombia, believes her childhood and career-related travels to India and China have given her perspective on the importance of industrial growth and the impact of the lack of available energy. An international team drives LanzaTech, which has partnered with companies in the United States, Sweden, India and China
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to help develop its product from pilot to commercial sale. The company is moving ever closer to this goal. In October, biofuel flight pioneer Virgin Atlantic and LanzaTech announced their partnership and work toward a new biofuel breakthrough: technology that takes waste gases—primarily carbon monoxide from steel—and converts them to ethanol, which is then turned into drop-in jet fuel using technology developed by partner Swedish BioFuels. Holmgren, who is based in Chicago where most of the engineering and business development staff are located, says the Virgin Atlantic project is on track, despite the difficulties of the process. “We are using an organism that takes energy and carbon from a carbon monoxide molecule not from sugar,” she says. “The problem with that is CO, unlike sugar, is not soluble in water. Therefore, not only do you have the risk of the organism not producing at scale, but there’s also the risk of the reactor design not being effective in getting enough CO into the water so that the organism can pick it up. It’s a new reactor, a new organism.” LanzaTech also has teamed with China’s largest steel producer, Bao Steel, to create a steel mill demonstration plant. “It will be a real litmus test as to whether or not we’re truly scalable and if the economics we’ve been talking about make sense. It’s our next big hurdle,” says Holmgren. If successful, Virgin Atlantic will launch a demonstration flight within 12–18 months, and a facility with the capacity to produce fuel for commercial use will be equipped by 2014. In addition to partnerships with the steel and refining industries, Holmgren sees LanzaTech doing more in the natural gas and biomass sectors, including utilizing municipal solid waste to make fuels and chemicals. She undertakes these opportunities and challenges with great enthusiasm and with a strong belief that “all things are possible with innovative ideas and teamwork.” “That’s what I was trained at Harvey Mudd to learn to do,” she says, “tackle the big, hard, ugly problems.”
when less is more
Written by RICH SMITH
When chemists wrap up a research project, the result is usually something bigger and better than what previously existed. When chemist Kevin Meagher ’95 finalizes a project, the result is usually something better but smaller. “The key now for manufacturers being competitive is doing more with less, so that you end up with products that are lighter, thinner, stronger,” says Meagher, who today is the European sales director for the transportation and metals group at Germany-based Henkel Technologies. “In the past, manufacturers used materials by the kilogram; now we’re striving to use them by the gram and milligram.”
“We’re changing the world with new raw materials and processes that result in finished products made more economically and environmentally sustainable.”
KEVIN MEAGHER
Making products using materials no longer measured by the kilogram requires plenty of thinking outside the box, which is standard operating procedure for Meagher and the team he oversees. “We do a considerable amount of innovating,” he says. “For example, my team not long ago developed an extremely efficient inorganic coating system based on non-toxic, non-regulated and benign materials that allows us to stop using heavy metal-containing processes and phosphorous-containing processes. This system is now in growing industrial use, and it’s replacing the coating systems for the appliance, beverage can, architectural, agricultural and automotive industries.” At present, Meagher is involved with the development and rollout of nanometer material as an alternative to conventional chromium and heavy metal-based processes. “This new technology we’re working on uses no chromium and is totally pH neutral,” he says. “So not only is less material used, it also decreases the potential for harm to the environment
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and helps dramatically reduce the risk of human injury in industrial accidents.” Meagher—who at HMC made economics an area of concentration within his major of chemistry—credits three of his instructors with starting him along the path of success. Gerald Van Hecke ’61 is one of them. “He was very tough, very demanding,” says Meagher, “but he opened my eyes to how much farther I could go in the field of chemistry.” Another is Lisa Sullivan, economics history. “She challenged my thinking about how different cultures view trade and about how businesses and societies grow to become successful.” And then there is Hal Van Ryswyk. “Great lacrosse player. He taught that playing and working as hard as you can leads to the greatest degree of satisfaction.” Upon completing his studies at HMC, Meagher advanced to Princeton University for graduate schooling in physical chemistry. There, he researched new methods of inhibiting oil well and pipeline corrosion. After Princeton, Meagher landed a job with Henkel at the company’s Madison Heights, Mich., facility. “I started as a research chemist working in the field of metal pretreatment for steel and aluminum coil coatings,” he says, noting that, two years later, he was placed in charge of a product development team there and additionally assigned to lead an R&D team looking into zinc phosphate technology replacements. In 2005, Meagher relocated to Germany, where he lives today. In 2008, he took charge of Henkel’s automotive product development group of 150 employees doing upward of one billion euros per year in sales of adhesives, sealants, cleaners and more. In 2011, he hung up his lab coat in order to don a business suit for his current post with the company. Still, despite mainly working in a management capacity, what excites the chemist in Meagher is, he says, “how we’re changing the world with new raw materials and processes that result in finished products made more economically and environmentally sustainable, and sustainable from the standpoint of human health and safety.”
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KEVIN MEAGHER ’95
CHARGED with
innovation
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DON MURPHY ’64
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Written by DOUG MCINNIS
The lithium ion battery has liberated technology. But four decades ago, these high-capacity rechargeable batteries were no more than an idea in the minds of a few dozen scientists, including Bell Labs scientist Don Murphy ’64. “By 1975, I had a working model of a lithium ion battery in my lab,” says Murphy, a member of the Bell Labs team that made the breakthrough. At the time, the lithium ion battery had a limited horizon. Today’s battery-hungry gadgets weren’t on the horizon, and the battery prototypes were primitive. “When we started, we were thinking of using them in cordless phones,” Murphy says. Fortunately, batteries follow their own version of Moore’s Law, which predicts how quickly the capacity of integrated circuits will double. “Instead of doubling every 18 months (as chip capacity does), it doubles every 10 years or more for batteries,” says Murphy. He predicts the capacity of lithium ion batteries
“As battery capacity grows, electric cars could be powered with fewer batteries.”
DON MURPHY
can still increase four or five times using the existing framework of theoretical knowledge. But the rate of change could accelerate as more scientists work on them. “Back in the ’70s, there were a handful of people who understood this technology and a half-dozen labs around the world working on it,” he says. “Now there are hundreds of labs and thousands of people working on it, so things happen faster.”
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As battery capacity grows, electric cars could be powered with fewer batteries, says Murphy. That would save money. It would also cut vehicle weight, increasing the number of miles per charge. Alternatively, the number of batteries could be kept at current levels, boosting the distance the cars could travel without recharging. None of this would have come about without lots of timeconsuming trial and error, as the Bell Labs team tested numerous materials that could be used to build the battery. But Murphy found a way to speed that process. “The single most important thing I did was come up with some benchtop chemical reactions that you could do in a beaker that allowed us to mimic what would happen in a battery,” says Murphy. HMC prepared him well for his laboratory career. He worked two summers at Harvey Mudd doing undergraduate research with professors. He also took a psychology class that taught critical thinking. The class was given formal research papers in the field and then told to tear them apart. “There is a tendency for most people to read something and believe it. This course taught us to doubt first. That (kind of thinking) goes a long way in research.” Murphy is now semi-retired. He has more time to work on his golf game, but he also continues as a consultant to small startups. One of these companies is trying to create better batteries. In the meantime, he benefits from the fruits of his labors. “It gives me great satisfaction every time I use a laptop or a cell phone.”
NICCI NUNES ’91
CATALYST
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“It eased students into atoms and molecules first without an emphasis on whether or not they liked math,” Nunes said. “There was a lot of hands-on experience. They had to look for patterns, come up with ideas and build their own knowledge rather than my telling them things.” A follow-up study to gauge the program’s success revealed the curriculum not only improved every student’s performance but also closed the achievement gap, significantly helping students who normally struggled with chemistry. It also prompted the school to detrack its chemistry classes from four levels to two— AP and regular chemistry. Even more significant for Nunes was the attitude shift among the faculty and students. “It really changed the conversation from ‘who gets it’ to ‘how can we make it so everyone gets it, everyone understands chemistry?’” she said. “Once people see they can do it, you get a lot of mileage from that. I still remember a student telling me, ‘If you showed me this final exam at the beginning of the year, I wouldn’t have believed I could have done all this.’”
“Going through Mudd, you learn how to believe something is possible, that it can happen.”
Disturbed that others viewed the discipline she loved as being either too difficult or dull, Nicci Nunes ’91 became a catalyst for change. She wanted others to embrace—and understand— the beauty and power of chemistry. But first she would have to overcome a few barriers. Her first hurdle happened in graduate school, where she resisted the pressure to work in the chemical industry in favor of becoming a teacher. Later, as an educator, she quickly realized the need to transform the chemistry curriculum and student access to it. She found her opportunity for change in a program called, “Living by Chemistry,” which was designed to make the subject more accessible to a diverse group without sacrificing content. Its innovative curriculum mirrored her own ideas, so she seized the chance to test it while working at Thurgood Marshall Academic High School in San Francisco.
NICCI NUNES
Having seen what a great teacher and the right curriculum could do for students’ understanding of chemistry, in 2006, Nunes accepted an offer to direct U.C. Berkeley’s CalTeach program. The statewide initiative helps undergraduates in the UC system obtain a bachelor’s degree in science or mathematics and prepares them to become a secondary-school science or math teacher. A key accomplishment, she said, was seeing the first class through to graduation because it created a valued place for students who, like her, love their studied discipline and want to teach rather than launch a commercial or industrial career. Now that she’s tackled high school and university educational arenas, Nunes aims to transform science education in elementary schools. She’s left her post at CalTeach and plans to start either a charter school or nonprofit that supports more science programs in the primary grades. Although her passion for chemistry has always fueled her efforts, her years at HMC were what seeded her potential, she said. “Going through Mudd you learn how to believe something is possible, that it can happen. It made me feel comfortable doing hard things.”
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LIZ THOMPSON ’97
Trials and I N N O VAT I O N Written by STEPHANIE L. GRAHAM
While cases of some serious illnesses appear to be declining— new cases of rheumatoid arthritis have decreased as have cancer death rates—researchers are no less committed to finding improved methods of preventing, detecting and treating these illnesses. Among those dedicated to finding solutions is Liz Thompson ’97, who works at biotechnology pioneer Amgen Pharmaceuticals in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Thompson helps design “large scale clinical research experiments” studying molecules that are on the market as well as those that are still in the pipeline. She leads a cross-functional team that determines what the design of Amgen’s later-stage clinical trials should look like. “My team and I get to consider aspects of study design, like picking the right measurements of efficacy, determining the necessary powering to demonstrate statistical significance of the end result, and crafting inclusion or exclusion criteria to ensure that
“The biotech and pharmaceutical industry is rapidly evolving in so L I Z T H O M P S O N many ways.” we’re studying the right patient population. We take molecules from our laboratories that have undergone early-stage testing in people and seek to determine whether they have the makings of useful drugs. “The trials, involving hundreds to thousands of patients with important, life-altering diseases like psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease, investigate different aspects of the molecule we’re working on,” she says. “For molecules that are still in the pipeline, it would be to demonstrate whether they are efficacious and whether they are safe to be used by patients. For agents that are already marketed, it would be to help address unanswered medical questions.” While she’s not able to give specifics about the programs that she works on, Thompson says the experiments are fascinating.
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“It’s a fun way to use the critical scientific thinking skills that I learned at Harvey Mudd and within the chemistry department,” she said. “Though these are experiments of a different type and on a different scale, many of the principles are the same, obviously: you need to ensure your experiment is the right size, you need to do your best to isolate the variables you are trying to explore, and you need to identify and minimize or avoid sources of bias.” Thompson arrived at Amgen by way of the Scripps Research Institute (SRI), where she earned her doctorate from the Macromolecular and Cellular Structure and Chemistry (MCSC) department, and a public relations firm, where she served biotechnology clients. She decided that “doing biotech” without necessarily being in a lab was something that appealed to her. Eight years ago, she became a senior writer at Amgen before moving into her current position as a development clinical director. Her scientific background, gleaned from Mudd and SRI, has enabled her to approach her work from a logical and scientific perspective, allowing her to think through an experiment and answer questions definitively “without having so many confounding variables that you don’t actually know if you’ve answered the question.” She adds, “The technical skills that I learned at Mudd and elsewhere are obviously important in my work, but I think some of the ‘soft skills’ have been just as critical. At Mudd, I learned to work with smart, talented people with a variety of skills, whether that was my PChem lab partner or my frosh engineering team. In industry, working in teams is hugely important. I’ve been able to harness those skills and come up with the best possible final result that was better than what I could have done all by myself.” Thompson and her team are constantly moving into new therapeutic areas, learning new things and “figuring out that the way you did something yesterday is not going to work anymore.” Thompson says, “The biotech and pharmaceutical industry is rapidly evolving in so many ways, it’s a constantly changing environment. And that’s what makes it fun.”
.............................. ......................................................... ........................ ... ................ .................. ................. ............................ ...................................................... ......... .. ................ ... .............. ............. ............ . . NEEL JOSHI ’01
using NATURE’S TEMPLATE Written by DOUG MCINNIS
Neel Joshi ’01 figures it makes no sense to reinvent the wheel, especially one already perfected by nature. So he and his Harvard University team are borrowing from nature in hopes of creating systems that will trigger the body to grow new tissue or enhance cancer-fighting drugs. “We would like to extract the design principles that are already there in nature,” says Joshi ’01, head of a new research group at Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and assistant professor in the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. The building blocks for these design principles are proteins. Their shape determines their function, so the trick is to copy that shape and then create synthetic copies. But biological materials are so complex that Joshi’s team will try to understand and mimic only small bits of them. “You’re looking at very complicated machines that you’re trying to replicate,” says Joshi. “You can’t understand the entire machine. So we will take only one part of it.” That may be enough, for example, to make cancer-fighting drugs more effective. “It’s known that chemotherapy has varying levels of efficiency, depending on when it’s administered,” Joshi says. “We might be able to change the body’s chemistry so that a cancer drug is effective a higher percent of the time.” The team is also using synthetic proteins to build implantable scaffolds that would trigger the body to assemble its own proteins within and around the scaffolding, forming new bone, new tissues and, perhaps, new organs. Another goal is to deliver drugs precisely where they are needed, thus minimizing collateral damage elsewhere in the body. For example, the team might create synthetic proteins that would transport a drug through the bloodstream until it encounters a point where the body is physically stressed. That stress point would activate a bio-chemical switch, prompting the delivery agent to release the drug at precisely that spot.
Joshi grew up in Silicon Valley and chose Harvey Mudd College over U.C. Berkeley for his undergraduate studies. That choice paid off when he applied to Harvard for a job. “Engineering Dean Cherry Murray wanted people who are T-shaped, which means they have depth in a particular field and breadth in terms of what they are able to discuss and who they are able to interact with,” says Joshi.
“We might be able to change the body’s chemistry so that a cancer drug is effective a higher percentage of the time.”
NEEL JOSHI
He says he gained the depth in a Berkeley Ph.D. program. But HMC gave him the breadth of knowledge that Harvard sought in its researchers. “At Harvey Mudd, I had to take something from each of six core areas of science,” he says. “And a third of my courses had to come from outside of science. I took a wide range of classes, sometimes to the dismay of my parents who saw I was taking courses like ethnomusicology.” Joshi’s unit formed in 2010, and its first research papers aren’t scheduled for publication until next year. “We’re just in the early stages,” he says. “But it’s our goal to reach the point where we can first use our materials in animals, and then humans. We could team up with Harvard Medical School for the human trials.” If Joshi’s team succeeds, it could herald a sea change in medical treatment. “The materials currently available for interfacing with the human body are somewhat limited,” he says. “They are based on what is readily available. We want to use the building blocks of natural systems to create synthetics that mimic some of the things that natural systems can do.”
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MICHAEL SAILOR ’83
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A view
OF THE NANO HORIZON Written by RICHARD CHAPMAN
For Michael Sailor ’83, understanding the big picture in chemistry usually means looking at some of the smallest things he can find. Such as nanoparticles, one billion of which could fit in a meter—or in a remote control-style model car, if you prefer. His job is to figure out, with his research team at U.C. San Diego, how to turn these tiny particles into valuable tools, charting the future of chemistry and engineering in the process. It’s a huge opportunity and one that keeps getting bigger the more his team explores.
“Nanotechnology is one of medicine’s new frontiers.”
MICHAEL SAILOR
Consider Sailor’s work with porous silicon nanoparticles. These incredibly tiny vessels can deliver life-saving drugs without being whisked away by the body’s natural defenses. That makes them especially effective weapons in the fight against breast cancer and eye disorders. They can also assist in delivering vaccines more effectively, developing new drugs and diagnosing diseases. “Nanotechnology is one of medicine’s new frontiers,” Sailor says. But it’s far from the only one. Nanostructures can add life and storage capacity to rechargeable batteries. Nano-size components can make solar or photovoltaic cells work better, and nano-materials are being employed to detect everything from environmental toxins and pollutants to infectious diseases and explosives.
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Nanotechnology is even the secret behind the waterproof, windproof, breathable membrane that makes Gore-Tex garments particularly handy in the outdoors. There’s even a brand of cold cream that boasts nanoparticles of gold. “There’s a lot of big science out there,” says Sailor, a full professor with 28 patents or patents pending. “But there’s still lots of room for the individual investigator with an idea who wants to make an impact on the world.” One of the keys to that impact is a simple concept instilled in Sailor during his days at Harvey Mudd College, where he earned a B.S. in chemistry before going on to obtain a master’s and Ph.D. at Northwestern. That concept is to let people work on ideas they develop and encourage communication between engineers and scientists. It’s an approach very much in evidence in Sailor’s own lab, where he lets up to 10 undergraduates tinker alongside doctoral students on projects of their choosing. “Kids need to do their own projects and take their own responsibility, and I let them.” It’s a learning model Sailor picked up as a teaching assistant and one he emphasizes in his own classes at U.C. San Diego. “Harvey Mudd taught me how to communicate and distill ideas into visuals and concepts, and I still do that. That was the theme they pushed. It was a ‘prep school for graduate school.’” Today, Sailor runs a crack research group with an eye toward as many nano-horizons as his team can come up with. Just the way it was at Harvey Mudd. “They wanted us to get in there and do stuff,” he recalls. “They taught us well.”
TOM SMITH ’80
A TO A S T T O
Winemaking Science Written by RICHARD CHAPMAN
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“The wine in the glass is the product of hundreds of discreet decisions a winemaker makes. And it all relies on science.”
TOM SMITH
ees worldwide allow the family-owned company to produce 60 brands and do business in more than 90 countries. It’s been wonderful, Smith says, with the best yet to come— quality wines produced sustainably. Winemaking in the future will require that wineries operate with zero emissions and be net energy exporters instead of consumers. They’ll also use less synthetic fertilizer and pesticide and employ creative devices for combating weeds and pests such as sheep and falcons. “That’s a really, really big deal,” he says. Sustainable production is right up there with developing new markets in China and expanding his knowledge of grape-growing, Smith says. With that knowledge, he’ll always know that when the glass is half empty, it’s because it’s being thoroughly enjoyed. “I learned how to think and reason at Harvey Mudd,” Smith acknowledges gratefully. “I was pretty lucky.” 100
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There’s no whining in winemaking. You don’t get to gripe and snigger when the vintage doesn’t measure up. Or blame the soil or the rainfall or the harvest moon. What you get to do is hunker down in the chem lab and ride out to the vineyards and climb down to the wine cellar until you figure out what made those 4,000 chemicals in that barrel of wine taste so unbelievably good? bad? dull? distinctive? Welcome to Tom Smith’s world. He’s vice president of worldwide winemaking for the E. Gallo Co., the largest winery in the world. He’s also a guy who’s spent 31 years since graduating from Harvey Mudd College with a chemistry degree trying to learn everything possible about the science of grape-growing.
It’s not been easy. All kinds of things can go wrong in winemaking, cautions Smith ’80, a Gallo winemaker for the last decade. “The wine in the glass is the product of hundreds of discreet decisions a winemaker makes. And it all relies on science,” Smith says. That includes plant biology, biochemistry, chemical engineering and crucial decisions on when to harvest grapes, what yeast to choose and how to regulate fermentation, temperature, oxygen levels and aging. Plus, how to be good stewards of the 16,000 acres under cultivation in California and embrace the new ideas that pour from the $10 million Gallo spends each year on winemaking research. “A good wine relies on the senses but also on every bit of scientific information available,” Smith says. And it also factors in consumer tastes and preferences, which makes winemaking even more delicate and the reason no winemaker worth his “must” will acknowledge producing the perfect wine. There’s always something to improve or change or adjust to. It took eight years just to hone the ability to taste wine properly, Smith says. You don’t just uncork that skill; you have to learn it. “Winemaking is a combination of science and art and is why we’ll never completely understand everything about how those 4,000 chemicals interact in that barrel,” he says. But that doesn’t keep Smith from trying. And it’s the reason he combined a fascination with wine from his undergraduate days at HMC with a wish for a life in rural California. He added a master’s degree at U.C. Davis, worked for a few small wineries here and there, and then settled at Gallo, whose 5,000 employ-
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And, the survey says... HMC Bulletin Readership Survey Earlier this year, the HMC Department of Communications sent an email survey about the HMC Bulletin to select recipients. The College used the CASE* Member Magazine Readership Survey, which gives us a benchmark of overall readership satisfaction and allows us to compare our survey data with other U.S. higher education institutions. Also, responses will help us determine which attributes of the magazine readers value and which ones they do not to help drive continuous improvement. We sincerely thank those who took the time to complete the survey. Your
feedback already has resulted in several new additions to the magazine: Teachable Moment, page 13; A Mudder’s Life, page 14; and the return of the Mind Muddler, page 35—and we expect to incorporate more of your suggestions in the future. We’ve reported some of the results and feedback below. Access complete survey results online at hmc.edu/about/ administrativeoffices/communications/bulletin-survey-2011. html *Council for Advancement and Support of Education
HMC Survey sample, size of readership – 2,009 alumni, parents, friends, staff, faculty (Bulletin mailing list size is 11,000)
Surveys completed – 172 (approximately +/-7% margin of error) Respondents – 60% alumni; 36% parents; 18% donors; 4% Other;
3% Attended/non-graduate; 1% Current student; 1% Faculty/staff member
39% 61% Respondents’ Gender
BU LL ET
Fall/Wi 2010
IN
nter
Key Findings Respondents receive All or Most of their information about HMC from emails (event notices and enewsletters), 40%, and the magazine, 38.%.
BU LL ET
88% of respondents read Every issue or Most issues:
47% read Most read Most of it; 15%, All of it.
IN Summe r 2011
The magazine is kept for more than one month by 33% of respondents;
INS IDE
14 ble Tire Sust aina gy Tech nolo
17 nt Inte llige tatio n Tran spor Syst ems
2 rk Hotl ine Hom ewo iver sar y Firs t Ann
22 INSE RT Rep ort SPE CIAL 0 Ann ual 2009 –201 Roll or and Hon
28% hold on to it for up to one month. 37% spend 30 to 59 minutes with the magazine;
40%, 10 to 29 minutes: 10% spend 60 minutes or more.
20
INS IDE
Readers overwhelmingly prefer to read the HMC Bulletin in print, 7 HMC Gree n Engi neer Awa rd ing
10 New Stud y Abro ad Prog ram in Chin a
16 Stud ent Rese arch Proj ects
(61%). 21% like to see it both in print and online. 28 Alum ni
Wee kend
Revi ew
Top actions taken as a result of reading HMC Bulletin: 37% attended an event; 30% made a donation; 27% saved an article or issue.
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B UL L E T IN
How do you generally acquire information about your alma mater?
Editorial Content, Areas of interest
All info/Most info
Some Info
No Info
No opinion
Magazine
39%
55%
3%
2%
Emails from the institution
42%
56%
1%
2%
Website
21%
54%
18%
7%
Other institutional publications
2%
33%
52%
13%
0
26%
61%
13%
Word of mouth/other alumni
9%
49%
33%
8%
Other
15%
11%
24%
50%
Local or national media
...Online
...Both
HMC respondents
61%
18%
21%
National respondents*
70%
21%
15%
*175 public and private higher education institutions; 76,953 respondents as of Dec 31, 2010
Please indicate all the ways in which the HMC Bulletin strengthens your connection to the institution
Serves as a source of continuing education Helps me to feel more in touch with my graduating class Encourages me to volunteer my time to the institution Provides useful career and networking information Reminds me of my experience at the institution Encourages me to support the institution financially Other
Academics and Intellectual Life
1 2 3
Student research Faculty research Stories about individual courses
Campus Life 1 Campus controversies 2 Student achievements 3 Student issues and opinions
Do you prefer to read the HMC Bulletin…
...In print
Respondents rated articles that would most interest them. (Very Interested and Interested preferences combined.)
15% 52% 13% 17% 70% 39% 12%
Alumni Life and Activities 1 Alumni in their professions 2 Class notes 3 A lumni chapter activities/ regional programming Institutional Affairs 1 I nstitutional history and traditions 2 Campus facilities and growth 3 Admissions policies and results General-interest Topics 1 Science, technology, engineering 2 Environmental issues 3 Issues facing higher education
New topics that you wish the HMC Bulletin would cover (select responses)
Spotlight an entrepreneur every month, a Mudder. Lots of us are making it happen. I’m a parent so my primary interest is what life is like for my student, Clinic and the job search. More alumni news; network for young alumni doing startups. A day in the life of, say, Dean Maggie wherein a reporter follows her around and reports on her interactions with students.
Highlight majors. JOBS-JOBS-JOBS; job market and internships I’ve liked the various puzzles that are occasionally inserted. More student activities, internships, athletic outcomes.
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MUDDERINGS Alumni and Family News and Events
Stay Connected Alumni Weekend, April 27–29, 2012 Start now and make your plans to attend Alumni Weekend 2012. The theme this year is Stay Connected, and we encourage all alumni to return to campus, catch up with classmates and celebrate the reunion classes ending in “2” or “7.” The schedule includes: •F riday night Dinner and a Prank, celebrating the Caltech Cannon Heist •G onzo Unicycle Trip to Donut Man, celebrating the 40th anniversary of this event •M OSS/ESW Alumni-Student Debate, celebrating the fifth anniversary of this student-led sustainability organization • Women in Science panel: Challenges and Changes in Science •F aculty lectures in computer science and biology, celebrating the 20th anniversary of these departments • Emeriti lecture by Professor Dick Olson ’62 For a complete list of events, please visit hmc.edu/alumniweekend. This year, all five Claremont Colleges will be celebrating Alumni Weekend at the same time. The College has reserved room blocks at local hotels, but make your reservations as soon as possible. Want to get involved with your reunion? Contact the Office of Development and Reunion Programming at 909.621.8335 or send us an email at alumni@hmc.edu.
HMC Community Connections In recent months, alumni and parents around the country have gathered with faculty, staff and students in diverse locations, all in the name of connecting with each other and the College. In September, we offered our second annual Hollywood Bowl Pyrotechnics Tour and, over fall break, Professor Steve Adolph hosted our first weekend camping trip to Pismo Beach. Professor Gary Evans led meetings of the HMC Entrepreneurial Network in Seal Beach, Pasadena, San Francisco, Menlo Park, Seattle and Portland, some of which were attended by Professor Joe King and a few of Evans’ current students. Professors Jerry Van Hecke ’61 and Kerry Karukstis met with alumni in Chicago and Hong Kong, while Professor Erika Dyson discussed her latest research with alumni in Washington, D.C. Professor David Money Harris and Bill Hartman ’62 once again led our annual Mt. Baldy Hike. And, of course, we’ve offered an array of opportunities to join with fellow alumni of The Claremont Colleges in regional 5-C networking events and the bi-annual 7-C Worldwide Happy Hours. Are you interested in meeting Mudders in your area? Find information on upcoming events on the Events and Travel section of the Alumni website: hmc.edu/alumni.
Celebrating Family, Pi and Pie Family Weekend, Feb. 10–11, 2012 A remarkable lineup of events is just one reason to visit HMC and your student(s) in February. The College has designed a schedule to help all parents learn about the resources offered to students. New additions to this year’s schedule include: • The Road to Success: Director of Career Services Judy Fisher will help parents learn how to prepare students for research, internships and jobs. This session is intended for sophomore and junior parents, but is open to all. • Mudd pi Hunt: This fun event will take you on a journey through campus and end with a feast of pies. All you need is your wits, smart phone and, possibly, your student(s). Find more information online at hmc.edu/parents/familyweekend.shtml.
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Experience Total Solar Eclipse in Australia November, 2012 Join fellow alumni, parents and friends on a trip to Australia that culminates in one of the world’s most impressive phenomena: a total solar eclipse! This unique journey begins Nov. 5, 2012 with three nights in Sydney, where participants will enjoy a harbor cruise, a tour of the Sydney Opera House, wine-tasting in the scenic Hunter Valley and an evening of stargazing at the celebrated Sydney Ob-
MUDDERINGS
servatory. In Cairns, participants will discover Australia’s biodiversity during two nights shipboard on the Great Barrier Reef (with optional snorkeling) and visits to a native animal refuge and Daintree National Park. On Nov. 14, the solar eclipse shadow will sweep across the Gulf of Carpenteria and Cape York before the central line crosses directly over Port Douglas’ Oak Beach, the Great Barrier Reef and the Coral Sea. The city of Cairns is in the umbra of the eclipse and the general area to the north is one of the best observation points on the mainland. Professor of Physics Greg Lyzenga ’75, our faculty leader for this trip, will enhance the experience by sharing his knowledge of planetary science. Following the eclipse, experience a taste of the Australian outback at a traditional working cattle station and pioneer homestead. For more information or to register, visit the Events and Travel section of the Alumni website: hmc.edu/alumni, or call 909.621.8342.
Upcoming Events 2012 Joint Math Meeting Reception January 4 | Boston, Massachusetts Winter Receptions January 8 | Litchfield Park, Arizona Austin, Texas Portland, Oregon January 12 | San Francisco Family Weekend February 10–11 | Claremont 7-C Worldwide Happy Hours March 14 | Claremont American Chemical Society Brunch March 25 | San Diego Alumni Weekend April 27–29 | Claremont Commencement May 13 | Claremont
2012 Annnenberg Speaker Series • March 6 – Kathy Hill, senior vice president, Cisco Systems, Inc. • March 27 – Mike Schroepfer, vice president of engineering, Facebook
Athletic Mudders Inducted into Hall of Fame and Wall of Fame Patrick (Pat) Hagiwara ’68, engineering major and basketball player, was inducted into the Claremont/Mudd/Scripps (CMS) Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame. L. Victor (Vic) Bilger ’67 presented the award. A participant in basketball under Coach Ted Ducey, Hagiwara was a four-year participant in the program but couldn’t play as a freshman due to NAIA regulations. He played on SCIAC Championship teams in 1966 and 1967—the school’s first two SCIAC Championships in men’s basketball. The team won the NAIA District III Championship and went to Kansas City for the NAIA Championship. Pat played in the shadows of Richard (Dick) Barton ’68. in 1966 and 1967, and Bill Harmsen (a Hall of Fame member) in 1968 and still found a way to contribute in a big way to the first two SCIAC Championships in men’s basketball for CMS and to the NAIA District III Championship in 1967. He was a three-year letterwinner from HMC—a rarity. Hagiwara accepted his award at the 21st Annual Hall of Fame Recognition Banquet on Nov. 12. Each year, the Hall of Fame Committee honors alumni or coaching staff members who make outstanding contributions to one or more sports of the CMS Athletics Department. Young alumni with at least a 3.0 GPA and who achieved at least 1st-Team All SCIAC were inducted into the Wall of Fame: Georgi Dinolov ’11 (cross country), Jennifer Rinker ’11 (swimming) and Kramer Straube ’11 (cross country).
• April 3 – Carol Bartz, lead director, Cisco Systems Inc.; former CEO, Yahoo! and Autodesk • April 10 – Brad Wechsler, chairman of the board. IMAX Corporation • April 17 – Bob Muglia, former president, Server and Business Tools Division, Microsoft
Pat Hagiwara ’68 (No. 10) was a four-year participant in CMS basketball.
Australian Eclipse Trip November 5–15 | Australia FALL/WINTER 2011
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CLASS NOTES
1962
19 9 5
50TH REUNION YEAR
Gregory Milman was an invited speaker this fall at Keck Graduate Institute’s Industrial Strength Bio Seminar Series. He spoke on “Tapping into $700 Million in NIH Small Business Funds.” Milman is director of the Office for Innovation and Special Programs at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). He manages the $100-million NIAID small business programs and is acclaimed for his advice on NIH grant preparation and research funding. Milman established the NIH Centers for AIDS Research and the NIH AIDS Reagent Program. He also organized the NIH Bioengineering Consortium and acted as its first executive secretary. In 2000, Greg was on the NIH staff in President Clinton’s White House Office of Science Policy.
1963
Trustee Michael Wilson and Jane Wilson SCR ’63 hosted a three-day, 7-C alumni event in London, England. President Maria Klawe, Jerry Van Hecke ’61 and fellow alumnus and trustee Greg Rae ’88 were among those who helped the Wilsons welcome 80 guests over the busy weekend, which included tours at the London Science Museum, the Tate and the Wilson Centre for Photography, the Wilsons’ private collection.
1973
Paul C. Yin and his wife, Jane Yin, are looking forward to returning home to California. They have spent the last 18 years living abroad in Taiwan, China and Korea.
1985
Sam Israelit ’85/86 visited HMC and CMC Sept. 13 to make a presentation for Bain & Company, where he is a partner. The organization is a global business consulting firm that serves clients on issues of strategy, operations, technology, organization and mergers and acquisitions.
1991
Bruce Hinds recently was promoted to full professor in the Materials Science and Engineering Department at the University of Kentucky. When he is not teaching, he enjoys flying a 1963 Mooney M20C and spending time with his two daughters, ages 7 and 9.
1992
REUNION YEAR Harvey Mudd College alumnus Richard McHugh married Tracey Pae on May 29. He finished five years of residency this past June and has begun his last year of training as a laryngology fellow at Vanderbilt University.
Josh Berman, Nate Cook and Roy Roberts recently got together in Tehachapi, Calif. Roy flew himself and Josh in his Mooney (a single engine, four-seat airplane) from California back to the East Coast. Then Josh and Nate went glider flying. The next day, Josh and Roy took another flying trip to Brackett Field Airport where they met with Iris Critchell. See http://i.imgur.com/Kw9Q3.jpg.
The Orwin family, including Liz and Paul, and many Mudders (Muggles?), including faculty, staff and students, gathered opening night to watch “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” in Claremont. The enthusiastic group filled nearly the entire theater. Liz Orwin
Steven Suljak and Wendy Auyeung were married on May 15, 2010 in Palo Alto, Calif. His best man was fellow Mudder James Gibson. Other Mudders who had fun at the wedding were Geoffrey Meltzner, Bill Mitchell, Brett Peake Suljak-Auyeung Wedding and Tim Preusch. Steve is currently an associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Santa Clara University.
19 9 6
Brides-to-be can streamline their wedding planning with a blog created by Philip Cheung and his wife, Phyllis. They are founders of the San Diego-based My Wedding Concierge, a website and iPhone/iPad app that aggregates and curates wedding blogs. The effort combined Phyllis’ wedding marketing consulting experience and Phillip’s background in scientific computing and bioinformatics. Launched in September 2008, their free app “delivers thousands of wedding inspiration boards and wedding planning articles based on search terms the user submits.” The site handles as many as 600 to 1,000 downloads per day. My Wedding Concierge was featured in a June 2011 Entrepreneur Magazine article (entrepreneur.com/article/219741).
19 9 7
REUNION YEAR Todd Clements visited HMC this past fall to discuss his career with current Mudders. While in grad school, he studied three- and four-body dissociation reactions of small molecular clusters in the gas phase. He has worked as an engineer doing MEMS work on a fast refresh infrared display, as a physicist studying high-powered acoustic interactions with aerosols and as a chemist doing extremely sensitive and selective detection of small molecules, such as explosives and nerve agents. continued on page 32
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ALUMNI PROFILE
Ann McDermott ’81, an HMC Outstanding Alumna
and professo
r of chemi
str y at C olumbia
Univer
sity, sa
id her
succe ss be gan w ith “t h
A MUDDER’S PRIVILEGE: PURSUING THE TRUTH
e se e
d of
liste
ning
.” PHO TO S
Written by STEVEN K. WAGNER
A
s a freshman at Harvey Mudd College, Ann McDermott’s interest in science began to flourish, eventually evolving into a fluid curiosity about “molecules of life” and enabling her to become an esteemed professor of chemistry at an Ivy League university. Certainly, she had no idea of the journey that lay ahead, much like the students she addressed during HMC’s 2011 fall convocation. With that in mind, Ann ’81 brought hope and encouragement to students eager to leave their mark. “This experience is likely to redefine you by the company you keep,” Ann, a professor of chemistry at Columbia University, said of the group’s unfolding college years. “Not just the social network you walk away with, but the ways you learn and the ways you achieve success—thinking not as an individual but as a community. It’s inherently a privilege.” Ann, an expert in nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, has not taken that privilege lightly, rising to become a member of the National Academy of Science, winner of the American Chemical Society Award for Pure Chemistry, and recipient of Harvey Mudd College’s 2011 Outstanding Alumni Award. Her success began with a small seed, she said—the seed of listening. “Listening to what your colleagues have to say is the first step toward scholarship,” she said. “Not just hearing what you were thinking before they started speaking, but capturing what they mean and responding in an authentic way. That is the beginning of community, the beginning of deep friendships, and the beginning of finding your own authentic voice as a scholar.”
BY
WIL
Not only is listening important, Ann said, but so is accepting the responsibility inherent in attending an elite college. According to Ann, graduates have a responsibility to lead, discover and achieve in order to improve the world they inhabit. “The poet [W.B.] Yeats said that we should find responsibility through our own imagination,” she said. “I see in that the importance of developing a thrilling, compelling vision for something that is new, something that doesn’t exist. We have a responsibility to pursue such visions in preference to ignorance and inaction.” By learning to listen, by embracing responsibility and by translating those skills into accomplishment, graduates can achieve great success, Ann said. It’s the legacy of a Harvey Mudd College education. “More than at any other institution, you’re here to gain enabling skills—to act on your vision,” she said, adding that those skills include observation, analysis, scholarship and conceptualization. By effectively utilizing those skills, science and engineering students will have an opportunity to grasp meaningful achievement. “We have, as science and engineering students at an elite school, the extraordinary opportunity to participate in the generation of brand new information, to construct things that haven’t been constructed before. That’s the pursuit of a certain kind of dream: to be a real explorer and to pursue the truth with freedom and a premium on novelty. This is our special privilege.”
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L VA STA
AND KEV I
N
CLASS NOTES continued from page 30
2000
Erin Byrne is a post-doctoral fellow in mathematics. She was an engineering major at HMC and went on to earn an M.S. and Ph.D. in applied math from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Her thesis topic was “Post-Fragmentation Density for Bacterial Aggregates.” From 2000–2003 she worked for the Aerospace Corporation on vehicle concept design, including the Mars Exploration Rover and second- and third-generation GPS. Her research interests include mathematical biology, PDEs, modeling and fluid dynamics.
2006 Nadel-des Barres wedding guests
2003
Molly Waring and Ben FrantzDale were married in Woods Hole, Mass., in June 2009. Photos of the taller-than-the-bride tensegrity wedding cake engineered and baked by the groom are available at tinyurl.com/WaringFrantzDaleCake. Ben earned an M.S. in mechanical engineering from RPI in 2007, worked for 3M as a senior research and development engineer (until they moved the project to Minnesota), and is currently princiWaring-FrantzDale Wedding pal engineer and project manager for a tech startup, Lantos Technologies, in Cambridge, Mass. (they do 3-D ear scanning). In May 2009, Molly completed her Ph.D. in epidemiology and is currently an assistant professor in the Division of Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases and Vulnerable Populations in the Department of Quantitative Health Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Medical School (yeah, it’s a mouthful). They spent two glorious years living in a yuppie loft in downtown Boston, which has very recently gotten too small (well, too devoid of walls) for their new family member, Alice, born April 2011. Molly and Ben are very much enjoying parenthood. Alice FrantzDale
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Harvey Mudd College
Jeff Hellrung researches numerical methods to solve Poisson problems in irregular domains and with irregular internal interfaces, with applications to multiphase fluid simulations. Past research has included resolving triangulated surfaces against deformable tetrahedralized volumes (more of a computational geometry flavor), with applications to fracture simulation. He spoke about his career at a fall HMC Career Services event. After graduating from HMC, Chris Wottawa worked for three years with two start-up companies, then returned to graduate school in 2007. He recently began his fifth year in the biomedical engineering program at UCLA, where he is working on developing a tactile feedback system for robotic and other types of minimally invasive surgery.
2002
REUNION YEAR Loren Perlman attended the wedding of Jonathon Nadel ’03 and Annie des Barres on June 26, 2011 in Malibu, Calif. Mudders in attendance were Jonathon Nadel ’03, Justin Schauer ’03, Dmitriy Kogan ’03, Daniel Pennington, David Uminsky ’03, Nils Napp ’03, Galway O’Mahony ’03, Shea Lawrence ’03 and Dan Gianotti ’03.
2005
FALL/WINTER 2011
Under Alice Shapley, associate professor, UCLA Department of Physics and Astronomy, Kevin Hainline is studying galaxy evolution by looking at those galaxies that harbor supermassive black holes at their centers. His work seeks to understand why some galaxies have central black holes that are actively pulling in material, and others do not, and how these black holes affect their hosts.
2007
REUNION YEAR Christopher “Topper” Kain married Jennifer Erin Hodges from Tulane University on July 23. Jen and Topper were introduced at HMC by Jen’s sister, Kelley Hodges ’09 in 2005. Jen attended HMC for a semester while Tulane was shut down due to hurricane Katrina. The happy couple live near Washington, D.C., with their dog Tchaps.
2008
Max Gibiansky works in the Bioengineering Department at UCLA in the research group of Gerard Wong (wonglab.seas.ucla.edu). Max is studying the development of bacterial biofilms, microbial communities that form on surfaces. Many bacteria in nature are found in biofilms and have a greatly increased resistance to many forms of stress, including antibiotics. He uses high-frame-rate brightfield microscopy and particle tracking algorithms to follow the motion of large numbers of cells on the surface. Using this technology, they have observed a previously unknown mechanism of bacterial motion and have been able to see the friction interactions between the bacteria, the surface and the ‘glues’ bacteria secrete. Starcraft guru Sean Plott spoke at HMC about the military science fiction strategy video game as part of Art Benjamin’s Mathematics of Games course. continued on page 34
CLASS NOTES
Rhodes Scholar alumnus A.J. Shaka ’80 says that unli ke solar and wind solut io
A ZERO-CARBON ENERGY SOLUTION
A
ns, liquid
fluoride thoriu
m reac
tors o ffer a “d
Fission reaction
ee p g reen”
optio
n. PHO T
OC
OUR
TES Y
OF
Written by KOREN WETMORE
ccording to A.J. Shaka ’80, we can solve the world’s energy crisis using an element as abundant as tin to produce zero-carbon power plants that generate safe, reliable and affordable electricity. Shaka presented his argument to an intrigued audience at an Oct. 25 physics colloquium on campus. Unlike solar and wind solutions, which Shaka dubbed “lite green” because of their inconsistency, expense and inability to produce sufficient power, liquid fluoride thorium reactors (LFTR) offer a sustainable, powerful “deep green” option, he said. “Based upon the world’s current rate of energy consumption, there is enough thorium in Idaho to power us for 5,000 years without one iota of conservation,” Shaka said. In an LFTR, thorium fluoride is dissolved in a molten salt. The thorium absorbs neutrons and transforms into Uranium-233, which then fissions and produces heat and more neutrons. Not only does it produce the best fission fuel, but it also uses no weapons-grade materials, will not explode and poses little to no radiation risk. The process was actually discovered decades ago and a reactor built in the United States. However, it was decommissioned in 1969 when it was determined weapons could not be developed from it.
“Which is exactly why we should resurrect it now, because we have lots of bombs and no power,” Shaka said. “Thorium is everywhere and not very radioactive at all—in fact thorium is used in lantern mantels—and you can’t make a bomb out of it. Plus, it’s already been mined and is sitting above ground.” A ton of thorium will power a 1GW plant for a year and 500 plants would power the entire United States, he said. And, because thorium is dense, a ton of it is only a half-meter sphere. As for waste, its fission products decay in about 30 years instead of thousands. As for size, its reactor is absolutely compact. “The thorium reactor is tiny. It’s one meter across by two meters tall,” Shaka said. “So we’re talking about burying these things 10 meters underground in the desert and generating power till the cows come home.” HMC’s first Rhodes Scholar, Shaka now serves as a chemistry professor at U.C. Irvine, where he and his research group work on improving NMR techniques and applying them to high field solution experiments from small molecules to very large proteins.
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U.C .
IRV INE
CLASS NOTES
2009
Jordan Eboreime is enrolled in the molecular and computational biology Ph.D. program at USC. She is studying human genetics in Norm Arnheim’s lab, where researchers focus on genetic disorders that are due to mutations in the FGFR genes. These diseases, namely Achondroplasia, TDII, and Noonan, are associated with the Paternal Age Effect. Researchers are trying to find how/why this is, using a variety of PCR (polymerase chain reaction) techniques.
Ann Johnston is a first-year student, and graduate teaching assistant in the mathematics Ph.D. program at USC, where she is studying algebra and representation theory. Neal Pisenti was selected as a finalist in the 2011 LeRoy Apker Awards, which honors outstanding achievements in physics by an undergraduate. HMC’s seventh Apker finalist in the past 13 years, Pisenti received a $2,000 honorarium and an award certificate from the American Physical Society.
Jonathan Lake is a master’s (and future Ph.D.) student at UCLA, where he is studying microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). He is studying ways to leverage modern super computing capabilities and evolutionary algorithms in order to optimize MEMS designs. In conjunction with NASA, Graham Orr has launched Space Energetics, a research and development organization. The company’s goal is to continue space propulsion and power technology development through the implementation of advanced energetics research.
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Rob Best, who recently completed a Watson Fellowship, visited HMC in September to share his experiences about graduate fellowships. During his travels, Rob visited China, UAE, India, UK and Germany to study the social, economic, cultural and political factors that contribute to the success or failure of sustainability efforts in these countries.
IN MEMORIAM
|
Thomas C. Smith ’69
Thomas C. Smith ’69 passed away on May 31, 2010 due to injuries sustained in an automobile accident caused by a drunk driver. Although he did not work in engineering for very long due to serious health issues, he looked back on his days at Harvey Mudd College with great fondness. His youngest son is currently working in the field of engineering.
Jonathan Simkin, CEO of SwoopThat, shared that he was interviewed by Portfolio.com and that CBS in Denver recently aired a segment about the company. The CBS video and article can be found at http://denver.cbslocal.com/2011/07/21/website-educates-students-on-textbooks/.
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Heather Audesirk, who visited HMC this fall for a Career Services event, works at California Institute of Technology with Nate Lewis, George L. Argyros Professor of Chemistry. His lab group is focused on solar energy, specifically solar-to-fuels (artificial photosynthesis). Heather’s project is on a nanofabrication technique for the creation of silicon microwire arrays for solar absorption/ hydrogen production. Heather is doing soft lithography and electrodeposition to create a pattern for growth of the microwire array.
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Class Notes originate directly from alumni, usually as email updates. The rest are compiled from a variety of public sources: HMC campus event notices, newspaper and magazine clippings, press releases and Google alerts. The recent HMC Bulletin readership survey indicates you’d like to see more Class Notes. If you send them, we’ll include them. Please send your update by email to alumni@hmc.edu.
D MUDDL N I M ER 1
9
2
What element is a potential nuclear fuel and almost as plentiful as lead?
Which is the only letter in the alphabet not to appear in the Periodic Table?
The Washington monument (completed in 1884) is capped by 2.84 kg of a precious metal. Which metal is it?
3
The Frank Gehry-designed Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, is sheathed in 33,000 square meters of what pure element?
IN CELEBRATION of the International Year of Chemistry, Hal Van Ryswyk, chair of the Department of Chemistry, invites you to test your knowledge of the elements and elemental chemistry. Answers can be found on page 36.
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8
What is the rarest naturally-occurring element in the earth’s crust?
What is the only element that will not form a solid? coins
BONUS QUESTION During what months is the ozone hole over Antarctica largest and why?
5
7
How does a vending machine distinguish between American and Canadian coins (in either country)
molecule
6
The first synthesis of an organic molecule from inorganic material marked the beginning of the modern era of organic chemistry. Name the chemist, the product, the starting material and the year.
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When archaeologists want to determine if a campsite may have been used by the Lewis and Clark expedition, for what element do they test in the soil?
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FEEDBACK
B U LLE T I N
Summer 2011
Letter to the Editor
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INSIDE
Dear Editor, Congratulations! Your (summer) 2011 issue was the most attractive and informative bulletin or newsletter that I have ever seen. I was especially impressed with the layout and balance of text and visuals. More specifically I liked: 1) the cover illustration with content highlights 2) graduation picture using front flyleaf and first page 3) attractive layout and blending of pages two and three 4) excellent selection of action pictures and use of picture in sidebar on page 15 5) attractive colored title header and picture/text placement for Student Research section 6) interesting and informative Strategic Vision milestone Section 7) colorful two-page collage layout for Alumni Weekend 2011 8) attractive layout design for Alumni Profile (page 35) 9) good use of space on rear cover
7 HMC Green Engineering Award
10 N ew Study A br oad Pr ogr am in C hina
16 Student R esea rch Pr ojects
28 Al umni Weekend Revi ew
John Bowen P99
Mind Muddler Answers 1- Thorium. The thorium fuel cycle claims several potential advantages over a uranium fuel cycle, including thorium’s greater abundance, superior physical and nuclear properties, enhanced proliferation resistance, and reduced plutonium and actinide production. 2- J 3- Titanium. A metal chosen for its beauty, longevity and corrosion resistance. The SR-71 “Blackbird” surveillance plane that holds many speed records is also made of titanium. 4- Astatine. It is estimated that there is only 28g of it in the earth’s crust. 5- Lewis and Clark carried mercury laxatives with them on their famous trek, and today archaeologists test the soil for mercury contamination to help identify their campsites. 6- Friedrich Wöhler synthesized urea from ammonium cyanate in 1828. 7- Only three elements are ferromagnetic at room temperature—iron, nickel, and cobalt. No current American coins are magnetic—even the nickel coin contains only 25% nickel, the rest is copper. In contrast, Canadian dimes, quarters, and one and two dollar coins contain mostly nickel and are attracted to a magnet. 8- Helium 9- The tip was the largest single piece of aluminum cast at the time, when aluminum commanded a price comparable to that of silver. Two years later, the Hall–Héroult process made aluminum easier to produce and the price of aluminum plummeted, making the once-valuable tip nearly worthless, though it still provides a lustrous, non-rusting tip that served as the original lightning rod. Bonus Question- September and October. The destruction of ozone in the stratosphere by chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) is a photo-initiated, catalytic process with rates enhanced by certain ice surfaces. In southern hemisphere winter, a vortex of winds isolates the polar stratosphere and reduces the temperature below -78° C, allowing ice clouds of water, nitric acid and sulfuric acid mixtures to form. Heterogeneous reactions on these ice crystals quickly form chlorine gas, regenerating the precursor to the catalytic ozone destroyer much faster than gas phase reactions. By the end of winter, chlorine gas concentrations have risen to a substantial level, yet it remains inactive without sunlight. Once southern hemisphere spring arrives, photolysis releases chlorine radicals that rapidly destroy ozone in the isolated vortex. The overall ozone depletion can reach 50 percent across the total column of air and 90 percent at certain altitudes. Late spring brings a breakdown of the vortex, loss of the ice clouds and less ozone depletion.
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Harvey Mudd College Legacy Society Remember Harvey Mudd College in your will, estate plan or beneficiary arrangement and join with others in the HMC Legacy Society (formerly called OAKS). For more information, contact Alanna Boyd, 909.607.9139. HMC encourages you to seek the advice of your tax advisor, attorney and/or financial planner before considering any estate gift. Your personal circumstances will determine the best way for you to support Harvey Mudd College.
PLANNED GIVING Creating extraordinary opportunities Preserving HMC’s future Establishing your legacy Visit us online at www.hmc.edu/giving/waystogive/plannedgiving
2010 | 2011 annual report
HARVEY MUDD COLLEGE
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Letter from the Chair of the Board of Trustees
O
ur review of the 2010–11 academic year reveals another year in which Harvey Mudd College has excelled at providing top-notch, innovative science and engineering education. Continued high rankings among U.S. higher education institutions, wins in national student competitions, prestigious grants won by faculty members, and the construction of the teaching and learning building are just a few of the highlights. As board chair since 2007, I have had the pleasure of working alongside President Maria Klawe, a vibrant and effective leader, who led the establishment of HMC’s strategic vision. Since then, the six themes have provided a strong framework for changes that have occurred, some of which are highlighted in this annual report. The board of trustees has been adapting to help facilitate these necessary changes. During 2010–2011,
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we welcomed five new members: James Bean ’77, senior vice president and provost at the University of Oregon; Tayloe Stansbury, senior vice president and chief technology officer of Intuit; Ann McDermott ’81, a chemistry graduate and Esther Breslow Professor of Biological Chemistry at Columbia University; Greg Rae ’00, computer science graduate, former Google employee and Tony Award winner (see page 42); and John Vickery ’90/91, physics/engineering graduate and a manager at Sony DADC. During the fall, the College celebrated the contributions of past trustees, who represented 130 years of combined service. Board members once again showed their support of the College by achieving a 100 percent participation goal for trustee annual giving. During my first year as board chair, I spoke of a coming transformation. Each year since, our incredible faculty, dedicated staff, bright students as well as loyal donors and friends have provided the support needed to bring about necessary change. I have been inspired by the way the HMC community has united to accomplish its goals. A year’s worth of these accomplishments follows. No doubt, there are many more to come. William A. Mingst Chair Harvey Mudd College Board of Trustees
2010-2011
Architectural design approved; construction of teaching and learning building begins.
July 1, 2010-June 30, 2011
YEAR IN REVIEW HMC graduates average $1.7 million ROI on educational investment–Bloomberg BusinessWeek, PayScale
Harvey Mudd College
Bill Gates visits HMC and participates in Annenberg Speaker Series.
Teaching and Learning Building Design Presentation
Four seniors awarded National Science Graduate Research Fellowships. National Science Foundation grants support for computer science summer research, synthetic chemistry, theoretical physics and mathematical economics. HMC team wins Southern California regionals and honorable mention at World Finals, Association for Computing Machinery, International Collegiate Programming Contest.
HMC graduates are highest earning in nation –PayScale 2010–11 College Salary Report Class of 2014 female enrollment (52%) surpasses male enrollment for first time in HMC’s history.
HMC celebrates its Founding Class and the first 50th reunion.
New Core curriculum launched; writing instruction integrated.
HMC named a Top Value College by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and Princeton Review.
Greg Rae ’00, co-producer of “The Normal Heart,” is the first alumnus to win a Tony.
Reaccreditation affirmed by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
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Engineering professors David Harris and Sarah Harris (in tie-dyed coats) oversee the E11 Autonomous Vehicle participants.
HMC is implementing innovative teaching and learning practices. Here, in a hands-on, interdisciplinary lesson, first-year students test autonomous robotic vehicles that they designed, built and programmed. 40
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STRATEGIC VISION: INNOVATION, LEADERSHIP & IMPACT | EXPERIENTIAL & INTERDISCIPLINARY LEARNING | EXCELLENCE & DIVERSITY | WHOLE-PERSON DEVELOPMENT | GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT & INFORMED SOCIETAL CONTRIBUTIONS | INFRASTRUCTURE & RESOURCES IMPROVEMENT
Achieving Excellence Through Strategic Initiatives New Core Launched The faculty Curriculum Committee launched a new Core curriculum that reflects the changing backgrounds and needs of students. It provides rigorous broadbased knowledge and experience and creates flexibility to pursue intellectual passions, new interdisciplinary electives or foreign language. The faculty have also enthusiastically integrated writing instruction into the new Core. Teaching and Learning Building The HMC Board of Trustees voted Jan. 29, 2011 to proceed with the construction of the teaching and learning building, the first academic space to be erected on campus since the Olin Science Center (1993). The board’s historic vote represents the culmination of careful planning, community discussion and a commitment to educate STEM leaders. At a cost of approximately $43 million, the 70,000-square-foot academic building will provide flexible and modern classrooms, lecture halls, faculty offices and public spaces. Completion is scheduled for fall 2013. HMC Reaccredited The Western Association of Schools and Colleges affirmed HMC’s reaccreditation for the maximum length possible—10 years—and praised the College for its engaged approach to assessment. The WASC team stated “Passionate commitment to the quality of teaching and learning is inscribed in the DNA of the College.” Making Herstory While many science and engineering schools have struggled to recruit and retain women students, the successful enrollment program at HMC has gained momentum in recent years. The incoming class of 2014 was 52 percent women out of 197 students (102 females and 95 males) and was the first time in HMC’s 55-year history that the incoming first-year class comprised more women than men. New Learning Studio Designed to encourage faculty and student interaction and to support collaborative and cross-disciplinary learning, the Sprague Center Learning Studio opened in fall 2010. It was made possible by a $750,000 grant from The Fletcher Jones Foundation and additional funding from the Arthur Vining Davis Foundation and HMC’s Computing and Information Services. “The Learning Studio provides a high-profile ‘anchor’ space in the heart of the academic end of campus, which will have a significant positive impact on teaching and learning,” said President Maria Klawe. Local and International Community Engagement HMC’s continued emphasis on service in the community continued through the activities of President Klawe (Math for America), faculty members and students. The Department of Mathematics
hosted the 12th annual HMC Mathematics Conference, which focused on how to broaden participation in the mathematical sciences. A Sacred SISTAHS math and science conference helped empower young African American girls by introducing them to successful academic and professional role models. The Society of Women Engineers student club introduced young girls to the engineering discipline, and student mentors helped coach a local robotics team to a first-place finish at the Los Angeles Regional FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition. HMC’s Homework Hotline, which began its second year during 2010, expanded to meet the math and science tutoring needs of the community, with 2,298 calls completed during 2010–11. A team of students and physics Professor Peter Saeta returned to Kenya to work on a water quality improvement project for a secondary school. A seven-member HMC team, led by HMC engineering Professor Adrian Hightower and biology Professor Donald McFarlane (Pomona College), installed a micro-hydroelectric station along a stream in a Costa Rican nature reserve in Costa Rica. Designed to be environmentally friendly, the student-built station will produce an estimated 48 kWh of energy daily and potentially serve as a model other ecology centers can emulate. “Si” for Summer Institute Summer Institute (SI), a program to help build students’ academic, personal, professional and leadership abilities, continues to provide a supportive social network within the incoming class as well as between students, faculty and staff. SI has the added benefit of helping advance the number of diverse people entering the STEM fields by encouraging and supporting traditionally underrepresented students, including women, ethnic minorities, students from rural areas and those who are first in their families to attend college. The program is gaining popularity; for the first time, it was oversubscribed. The Place for Undergraduate Research One of HMC’s strategic vision goals is to offer a research experience for every interested student. A grant by the The National Science Foundation brought HMC closer to realizing this goal. The NSF’s $367,461 award, which supports undergraduate computer science research through 2013, is a 10-week Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) that engages students in stimulating research and encourages them to pursue graduate study in computer science. HMC’s popular Clinic Program, now in its 41st year, hosted projects from 35 industry partners. Students from every major participated in research with a faculty advisor or as part of a class project during the school year or during summer. Many of these projects will be published and some will lead to patents.
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STRATEGIC VISION: INNOVATION, LEADERSHIP & IMPACT | EXPERIENTIAL & INTERDISCIPLINARY LEARNING | EXCELLENCE & DIVERSITY | WHOLE-PERSON DEVELOPMENT | GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT & INFORMED SOCIETAL CONTRIBUTIONS | INFRASTRUCTURE & RESOURCES IMPROVEMENT
Innovation and Accolades Faculty Research Funded Supporting the endeavors of dedicated HMC faculty members is the National Science Foundation, which provided several grants: Francis Su, mathematics, for his study of geometric combinatorics and voting; Adam Johnson, chemistry, for synthetic organometallic chemistry; computer scientists Elizabeth Sweedyk and Michael Erlinger for a software development model that engages college and middleschool students; and Vatche Sahakian, physics, for non-local dynamics in physics and black hole physics in quantum gravity. Deb Mashek, Iris and Howard Critchell Assistant Professor of Psychology, was awarded a Faculty Fellowship from the Haynes Foundation to study strategies for motivating participation in local Neighborhood Watch programs. Student Achievement Awards HMC students continue to be among the nation’s top achievers. One of only 14 students nationwide, Alicia Schep ’11 received a Churchill Scholarship to study computational biology at Churchill College, University of Cambridge. Physics major Paul Riggins ’12 was selected as a 2011–12 Astronaut Scholar, an honor bestowed upon only 19 college students each year. Chemistry major Anna Cunningham ’11 received a Fulbright scholarship for one year of study in Ireland, where she is investigating chemicals that show promise in fighting cancer. Engineering major Isabel Bush ’12 received a Goldwater Scholarship to support her studies in biomedical engineering. Four HMC seniors and 10 alumni were awarded prestigious 2011 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships. Two seniors and 10 alumni received honorable mention. Computer Science Success Three HMC students received honorable mentions in the Computing Research Association’s Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Awards 2011 competition, which recognizes undergraduates who show outstanding research potential in the computer science field. Their projects were a dance/exercise video game for senior citizens; a software program that helps biologists determine how two species may have co-evolved; and work on Jane 2 software. Alumni Recognition The Alumni Association Board of Governors gave Outstanding Alumni Awards to space scientist Gael Squibb ’61, strategic planner James Dewar ’66, chemistry Professor Ann McDermott ’81 and energy advisor R. Thomas Weimer ’71/72. Environmental Program Collaboration A new Environmental Analysis Program at the five undergraduate Claremont Colleges, funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, has been successfully launched and includes a key role for HMC. As sistant Professor of Engineering Adrian Hightower, a materials sci entist, is the HMC representative. The collaborative program aims to meet the increasing demand for environmental analysis majors. 42
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Undergraduate Research Leader HMC students continue to undertake impressive research with the guidance of HMC faculty and present at major conferences, including the Joint Mathematics Meeting, American Chemical Society and the Southern California Conference on Undergraduate Research. Excellence in Sustainability Innovation For the fourth year, HMC awarded its Green Engineering Award at the TechAmerica Orange County High-Tech Innovation Awards. Greenway Design Group, Inc. was recognized for its energysaving evaporative pre-cool misting technology. Clinic on the Forefront HMC research has contributed to scientists’ first forray into “trying to wire the ocean.” The Ocean Research and Conservation Association launched a new, portable deep-sea webcam that evolved from a prototype designed by a 2002 HMC Clinic team advised by Lori Bassman, associate professor of engineering. The camera will be used to study bioluminescent deep-sea creatures. Jolly Good Fellows Three engineering professors who have made strong contributions to the College and its curriculum were named to fellowship positions: Philip Cha, C.F. Braun and Co. Engineering Fellowship; David Money Harris, Harvey S. Mudd Engineering Design Fellowship; and, Erik Spjut, the Union Oil Company Design Fellowship. Mudd Prize for Innovation and Service Computer science professor Michael Erlinger, one of HMC’s first computer scientists, was awarded the Henry T. Mudd Prize for three decades of exemplary service, including his instrumental work building the Computer Science department. A Broadway Nod The HMC community celebrated the success of trustee and computer science/mathematics alumnus Gregory Rae ’00, whose play “The Normal Heart,” won three Tony awards. Rae was a co-producer of the play. Design Education and Innovation Clive Dym, Fletcher Jones Professor of Engineering Design and director of the Center for Design Education, hosted the NSF-funded “Design Education: Innovation and Entrepreneurship” Mudd Design Workshop VIII in May 2011. The program brought educators, designers and researchers from the nation’s top universities and colleges to campus. Parting Words Marissa Mayer, Google’s first female engineer, urged the 2011 graduating class to “Do things you are not ready to do” in order to obtain the best opportunities.
HMC students are among the nation’s top achievers.
Tselil Schramm ’12, Eric Mullen ’12, Milo Toor ’13
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“One of the great assets of the United States is the higher education system, including institutions like the ones here. It makes me optimistic about the future.” —Bill Gates
STRATEGIC VISION: INNOVATION, LEADERSHIP & IMPACT | EXPERIENTIAL & INTERDISCIPLINARY LEARNING | EXCELLENCE & DIVERSITY | WHOLE-PERSON DEVELOPM
National Recognition Promotes Prestige Gates on Campus Students and faculty at Harvey Mudd College enjoyed the undivided attention of computer scientist and philanthropist Bill Gates March 10, 2011. Gates spent four hours on the HMC campus meeting with President Maria Klawe, having lunch with students and listening to faculty and student research presentations. He spoke with faculty about HMC’s recent curriculum revision and the College’s mathematics education outreach and spoke to The Claremont Colleges community as part of HMC’s Annenberg Lecture Series. “One of the great assets of the United States is the higher education system, including institutions like the ones here. It makes me optimistic about the future,” Gates said. Prestige, Profit, Value Harvey Mudd College continues to receive top accolades when compared with peer institutions. Our engineering program remains top-ranked by U.S. News and World Report—No. 1 in the nation (tied with Rose-Hulman). Among liberal arts peers, HMC has main-
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tained its Top 20 spot (U.S. News and World Report, Princeton Review). The highest-earning college graduates in the U.S. are from HMC according to surveys by PayScale—HMC graduates earn on average $126,000 mid-career, beating out MIT, Caltech, Harvard and Princeton. In addition to being a Top Value (Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, Princeton Review), graduates receive an average $1.7 million return on their educational investment (Bloomberg Businessweek and PayScale). Doing Good HMC’s commitment to the community was acknowledged by its listing in a Washington Monthly survey that measures what a college does to prepare students to serve the public good. HMC ranked No. 6 among 100 liberal arts colleges. This Just In: Faculty Newsmakers Arthur Benjamin, HMC’s resident “mathemagician,” was a special guest Jan. 27, 2010 on Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report,” where he dazzled host Stephen Colbert and nearly one million viewers with
Bill Gates discusses the research of physics Professor Tom Donnelly and Brendan Folie ’11.
MENT | GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT & INFORMED SOCIETAL CONTRIBUTIONS | INFRASTRUCTURE & RESOURCES IMPROVEMENT
his mental math skills. He was the first mathematician ever to be interviewed on the program. Clinical Professor of Engineering Carl Baumgaertner, who earned a Silver Star for heroic service during WWII, described his wartime experience and its meaning for his family on NPR’s “The Story” on Nov. 10, 2010. Assistant Professor of Religious Studies Erika Dyson gained notoriety for her course, “Ghosts and the Machines,” which made Daily Beast’s Hot College Courses list. The class explores occult mediumship, modern media and technology in Europe and the United States. Standing Out at National Competitions HMC’s strong tradition of high achievement in national competitions continued. Thirty-nine HMC students faced more than 4,000 competitors in the 2010 William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition and seven seized spots in the Top 200 individual category. Only five other, much larger schools had more than seven students in the Top 200. Three juniors received an “Outstanding” rank, given to only eight teams out of 2,775 entries worldwide at the 2011 International Mathematical Contest in Modeling and Interdisci-
plinary Contest in Modeling. In addition to the Outstanding team, one team earned a Meritorious designation (top 15 percent) and three earned an Honorable Mention (top 45 percent). Mathematics major and puzzle enthusiast Palmer Mebane ’12 helped Team USA emerge victorious at the World Puzzle Championship held in Poland during October 2010. Space Program Perspectives During the final weeks of the last U.S. shuttle mission, HMC’s veteran astronauts George “Pinky” Nelson ’72 and Stanley Love ’87 were interviewed by national media about their perspectives. Stanley Love ’87 spoke with Scientific American about being in space and the future of spaceflight on the eve of the launch of the penultimate space shuttle mission, STS-134. During his conversation, Love talked about how his experience in the HMC Bates Aeronautics Program and with instructors Howard and Iris Critchell influenced his career choice. Love flew in his first spaceflight with the crew of STS-122 Atlantis and logged more than 300 hours in space. Nelson flew three space shuttle missions during the 1980s.
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The College saw a 7 percent increase over last year in gifts from alumni, and a remarkable 41 percent increase in gifts from past and cu
Members of the Founding Class of 1961 were part of the record attendance at Alumni Weekend 2011. Thirty-three of the class’ 41 living members returned to campus to celebrate their 50th reunion.
Advancement Review
By Dan Macaluso, vice president for advancement
As I write my first HMC Advancement update, I am pleased to have an opportunity to reflect on and acknowledge the great work of our Advancement staff—prior to and since my arrival in March 2011—to continue building increased opportunities for individuals and organizations to learn about, connect with and invest in this amazing College. It is this work—combined with the strong efforts of so many other people across the HMC community—that I’d like to briefly highlight. Of the $29,058,439 raised during the 2010–11 fiscal year, just over $24 million came through charitable gifts and
pledges from individuals and organizations, while the remaining $5 million was a result of government-funded research and corporate partnerships formed through our highly-acclaimed Clinic Program. Although we saw a decrease in total dollars given to the Annual Mudd Fundd (unrestricted and additional budget-supporting gifts at all levels), the portion of those dollars given principally through mail, phone and electronic communications increased by 13 percent with the number of donors also increasing. Part of that increase was a result of a 7 percent increase over last year in gifts from alumni, and a remarkable 41 percent increase in gifts from past and current parents. Much of our success with parents is aided by a reenergized parent relations program, with its calendar of national parent/family activities conducted in partnership with the Dean
Fund Raising Report
By Fiscal Year
2010/11 2009/10 2008/09 2007/08 GIFTS AND PLEDGES Annual Mudd Fundd (greatest need) $3,907,291 $5,008,171 $5,114,594 $4,546,641 Designated/Restricted Endowment $4,741,254 $1,982,768 $979,608 $1,019,472 Non-Endowment $15,147,992 $5,696,249 $32,788,851 $5,040,973 Bequests $264,010 $435,813 $1,000,000 $153,811 Subtotal Gifts and Pledges $24,060,547 $13,123,001 $39,883,053 $10,760,897 GRANTS AND CONTRACTS Clinic $1,481,202 $1,285,382 $1,525,396 $1,340,401 Government $3,516,690 $4,496,510 $3,337,051 $3,530,573 Subtotal Grants and Contracts $4,997,892 $5,781,892 $4,862,447 $4,870,974 Total Revenue From Gifts/Pledges and Grants/Contracts $29,058,439
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$18,904,893
$44,745,500
$15,631,871
2006/2007 $3,773,858 $1,971,865 $2,353,891 $114,503 $8,214,117
$1,461,776 $3,468,659 $4,930,435
$13,144,552
urrent parents.
of Students Office. And, we’re hearing more and that parents are getting involved because of their students’ positive experiences on campus and as graduates. Alumni and Parent Relations’ major focus this year was to provide more and better opportunities for alumni, parents and other key constituents to stay connected to and reconnect with the College. In partnership with the Alumni Association Board of Governors, events were held on campus and across the country that have resulted in a significant participation increase—3,631 attendees this year compared to 2,617 in the previous year. In addition, Alumni Weekend 2011 was HMC’s largest and most successful ever with 740 total guests, including 467 alumni (a 63 percent increase over the previous year). Among the 10 reunion classes, those volunteering to serve on planning committees increased from just 17 the year prior to more than 85. In addition, a strong volunteer effort by members of The Founding Class of 1961 resulted in 33 of their 41 living members returning to campus to celebrate their 50th reunion. Other campus events included the first gathering of the HMC Legacy Society, which recognizes those who have made a bequest or other planned gift to the College, and HMC’s first “past trustee” event in September 2010, which invited former trustees to campus for an evening of recognition by faculty, alumni and students. Once again, strong attendance was seen at HMC’s two annual public lecture series: The Dr. Bruce J. Nelson ’74 Distinguished Speaker Series and The Walter and Leonore Annenberg Visiting Professors in Leadership and Management Series. We were especially grateful to have partnered with Pomona College to bring Microsoft’s Bill Gates to Claremont for a special public appearance, including a tour of HMC’s campus, interaction with our faculty and students, and a public talk (held in Bridges Auditorium) moderated by President Klawe and concluding with a lively Q&A session involving students from all The Claremont Colleges. The Communications group worked this year to bring inspiring stories about Harvey Mudd College to a wider audience and contributed significantly to our overall engagement efforts. From the hands-on, interdisciplinary nature of the new E11 autonomous vehicles lab to an exciting summer research project in gene therapy, Communications shared compelling stories about the exciting innovations in teaching and learning going on everyday at HMC. They spread the word via the HMC Bulletin and other print publications, monthly e-newsletters, local and national news media, and through the College’s growing social media channels like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. HMC’s prominence in national rankings and, increasingly, its innovations, such as the computer science department’s successful efforts to attract female majors, are garnering national media attention. As you can see, a lot is happening at HMC, and this is just a small sampling. As we enter this new year, we do so with momentum provided by the excellent work referenced here; the unwavering dedication of our trustees; the highly valued collaboration with alumni leaders serving on the Alumni Association Board of Governors; the value-driven partnerships
with industry leaders through career services, research and Clinic; the tireless dedication of our faculty and staff; and, the energy and leadership of our students and their parents. It is this remarkable community that attracted me to Harvey Mudd College and it is the same community with whom I look forward to working throughout this year and for many years to come. Together, we will ensure that the College we inherited will be an even better institution for those who follow. Sources of Giving $29,058,439
By Fiscal Year
Individual $22,127,923 76%
FPO Corporation $1,260,955 4% Foundation $2,070,689 7% Government $3,516,691 12%
Other Organizations $82,181 1%
Individual Giving $22,127,923
By Fiscal Year
FPO
Trustee (non alumni) $17,528,995 79%
Parent (non alumni) Alumni $391,792 Other $2,203,981 Faculty/Staff 2% Individuals 10% (non alumni) $1,924,825 $78,330 9% 1%
Alumni Giving $2,203,981
By Fiscal Year
Parent Alumni $27,248 Faculty/Staff Alumni 1% $11,885 1% Trustee Alumni $1,070,369 49%
Other Alumni $883,821 40%
Young Alumni (<=5 years) (07–11)
$21,169 1%
FALL/WINTER 2011
Reunion Alumni $189,489 9%
Harvey Mudd College
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Harvey Mudd College (the “College”) has experienced a positive fiscal year primarily due to a gain in its pooled investment funds and h
Financial Review
By Andrew Dorantes, vice president for administration and finance and treasurer
Financial Operations Total revenues were $57 million for fiscal year 2010–11 compared to $51 million for fiscal year 2009–10. This is due to an increase in net student revenues resulting from increased enrollment and gifts to fund endowed faculty positions. Total expenses for 2010–11 were approximately $50 million. For the year ending June 30, 2011, the College experienced an operating surplus of approximately $17,000 after a number of transfers to high priority areas, as approved by the Board of Trustee Budget and Financial Planning Committee: $400,000 of additional support for the renewal and replacement fund, $400,000 of startup funds for new faculty, and $163,500 of additional support for academic and administrative department needs. The key factors influencing the positive balance were higher than budgeted enrollment and salary savings from unfilled positions.
Harvey Mudd College has experienced a positive fiscal year, primarily due to a gain in our pooled investment funds and higher than budgeted enrollment. Following are highlights of the 2010–11 fiscal year.
BOORA ARCHITECTS
Financial Position Harvey Mudd College ended the fiscal year with assets in excess of $377 million. This total is composed primarily of investments
UDITORIUM FROM GROUND FLOOR TERRACE
The teaching and learning building is scheduled to open in fall 2013.
September 25, 2009
of $304 million and of land, buildings and equipment of $54 million. Liabilities of $33 million consist primarily of longterm bonds payable and of payables to annuitants and trust beneficiaries. The College issued $15 million of long-term bonds through the California Educational Facilities Authority for the construction of the teaching and learning building or various other capital projects, if needed. As part of that process, Moody’s Investors Service increased HMC’s credit rating to Aa3. During the 2010–11 fiscal year, total net assets increased by $37 million. This increase in net assets resulted from an increase in the value of the investment pool from both realized and unrealized gains in the value of investments. As of June 30, 2011, net assets totaled $344 million, comprised of three net asset categories: 1) unrestricted (those over which the College has full discretion) of $112 million, 2) temporarily restricted (those given to the College for a specific purpose) of $127 million, and 3) permanently restricted (those given to the College to be held in perpetuity) of $105 million.
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Harvey Mudd College
FALL/WINTER 2011
Endowment Investments The endowment produced a total return of 19.5 percent for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2011. This total return compares with the Standard & Poor 500 index return of 30.7 percent and the Barclays Aggregate Bond index return of 3.9 percent. Market value of the endowment was $243 million at year’s end, representing an equivalent of $317,000 per student. Endowment payout provided 23 percent of the College’s operating revenues during the fiscal year. The College employs a formula that governs the annual payout of endowment earnings to support operations. Endowment payout will continue to decline, as a result of the decline in the endowment in 2008 and 2009, and will impact the endowment’s ability to provide funding for operations. The formula is designed to balance the need for endowment resources to support current activities with the equally important goal of preserving the value of endowment funds for future generations of students and faculty. Summary Harvey Mudd College has been monitoring the economy, the volatile stock market, and their effect on the College’s investment pool and operating budget. The College’s administration and trustees have and will continue to prepare for various scenarios that may occur as a result of economic uncertainty. With the leadership of President Maria Klawe and the board of trustees, Harvey Mudd College will continue to thrive and achieve its mission of recruiting and educating the best and brightest students in the fields of engineering, science and mathematics.
higher than budgeted enrollment.
Total Revenues Consolidated Statement of Activities Year Ended June 30
Net student revenues 48%
(in thousands)
2011
2010
Revenue Tuition, fees, room and board
$40,231
$37,508
Less financial aid
(12,814)
(12,431)
Net student revenues
27,417
25,077
Gifts, grants and contracts
16,235
13,451
Endowment payout
11,919
12,005
Other revenue
1,339
907
Total revenue
56,910
51,440
Other revenue 2%
Gifts, grants and contracts 29% Endowment payout 21%
Expenses Instruction
20,072
19,579
Research
3,327
2,761
Public service
1,004
838
Academic support
5,237
5,323
Student services
5,287
4,949
Institutional support
8,503
8,004
Auxiliary enterprises
6,520
6,499
49,950
47,953
6,960
3,487
Pooled investment (losses)
28,746
9,894
Other changes in net assets
1,112
(239)
$36,818
$13,142
Total expenses Excess revenues over expenses
Change in net assets
Total Expenses Instruction 40%
Research 7% Public service 2% Academic support 10%
Auxiliary enterprises 13% Institutional support 17%
Student services 11%
Total Endowment Market Value (in thousands) $275,000
$260,809 $249,256
$243,125
$250,000
$225,000
$208,454 $194,705
$200,000
$175,000
$150,000 6.30.07
6.30.08
6.30.09
6.30.10
6.30.11
FALL/WINTER 2011
Harvey Mudd College
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HARVEY MUDD COLLEGE BULLETIN 301 Platt Boulevard • Claremont, CA 91711 • www.hmc.edu/magazine
Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Claremont, CA Permit No. 35
As part of an E4 project and Aid Africa mission, Dong-hyeon Park ’14 traveled to Northern Uganda to view firsthand the need an HMC-designed manual water drill bit will meet and the need people it will serve. Read more on page 15.
