The Student Newspaper of Worcester Polytechnic Institute
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T u esday, D e c e m b e r
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V o lu m e
1996
T w e n ty -fo u r ,
Musical forces combine, spreading holiday cheer by M ichael Driscoll President, WPI Glee Club The W P I Glee Club and Chamber Choir w ill be presenting a seasonal concert in conjunction with the Wells College Glee Club of Aurora. New York on December 15. The W P I Glee Club and the Wells College Glee Club, under the direction of Louis Curran and Crawford R. Thoburn respec tively, have had a tradition of singing to gether several times a year since the late 1970’s. Thoburn began directing the all female choir in the late 1970’sas well. Louis Curran, who is also professor of Music Theory and Music History, has directed the Glee Club for over thirty years. The program will include a performance of “ Mozart’s Solemn Vespers of the Confessor” as well as various holiday carols including “ Angelus Ad Virginem” , “ Love Came Down on Christmas Day” , “Quern Vidistis Pastores” , and other well known carols. The soloist for the Mozart will be Sara Saplin (alto), and AlesiaTringale (soprano), both from the music studio of Ruth Cooper. The male soloists will all be from the W PI
Glee Club. The Kammer Orchestra from Bos ton will be accompanying the Mozart. Also included in the program is a performance * by W P I’s Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM ), the male a cappella group. SHM will per form “ Carol of the Bells” and “ Lo How a Rose E ’er Blooming.” One of the unique notes about this con cert is Alesia Tringale. She received her B.S. in Electrical Engineering from CamegieMellon University. She is employed at A l legro Microsystems as a Semiconductor Product Engineer. She currently studies with Ruth Cooper, who has provided a variety of vocal opportunities both in solo and choral work. Tringale has sung with the Salisbur) Singers and was principal soprano for th( First Congregational Church of Boylstor G LEEC LUBPH O TO In 1995 she performed a solo concert with Alesia Tringale, soloist from the music studio of accompanist Olga Rogach. Her repertoire Ruth Cooper. has covered both opera and oratorio works including solos in Haydn's “ Creation” , - she is up for quite a career. The concert will be held on December 15lh Rossini’s “ Stabat Mater” and Saint-Saen’s “Christmas Oratorio.” She is currently solo at 3pm in Alden Memorial Hall. General ad ist with the first Unitarian Church in Worces mission is $4, $2 for students and seniors. ter. As one of the few soloists in the region Tickets will be available at door. For more who can sing high soprano ‘F ’ - and in tune information email gleeclub@wpi.edu.
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N u m b e r T w e n ty -th r e e
Modern art on walls of MFE department Courtesy o f WPI News Service A gift to W P I’s Manufacturing Engineering Department by noted artist Barbara Rubin-Katz has visitors to the third floor of Washburn Shops taking a second look. Rubin-Katz, wife of Robert Katz, associate professor of mechani cal engineering at W PI, presented her framed assemblage “ Materials Ascendant” to the de partment recently. The work, composed of “found” objects, is a striking juxtaposition of aggregations of aluminum, steel, copper, tita nium, ceramic and composite materials, with large open spaces. “These assemblages convey a multifaceted sense of purpose and place, achieving a rare unification of art and activity,” says the artist. “Those who look closely will recognize the dif ferent components of an aluminum ingot, a tur bine blade, turbo charger rotors, Italian and Korean coins, and glass and various ceram ics,” adds Robert Katz.
Steering Committee works to bring WPI into the 21st Century by Adam Woodbury Newspeak Staff President Parrish addressed the faculty and a small number of administrators at a special faculty meeting, held two Thursdays ago in Kinnicut Hall, as well as a group of students at a special meeting last Thursday. The topic of discussion was the future of W PI, and the ne cessity for action. This is directly related to the Strategic Steering Committee, chaired by Prof. Weininger, created early this academic year. The presentation addressed the president’s thoughts on where W PI now stands, the cur rent status of the education field in general, and the reasons stating the need for change. Currently, W PI stands as a premier institu tion far ahead of the rest of the field. The W PI plan embodies a large number of the recom mendations the industry has been recently suggesting as the future for education. These include project oriented education, communi cation and team skills, global awareness, inter disciplinary understanding, and a strong hu manitarian background. As the president staled, W PI embodies everything the industry is looking for, even if they don’t know it yet. The largest problem however, is that times
have changed, and if W PI wants to remain the cutting edge of education, some amount of action is required. Because the W PI Plan con tains all of the ideas that they are looking for means that W PI currently has a lead in educa tion. In a presentation to the Frontiers in Edu cation Conference, the president related the feeling that “ [W PI] graduates report that life in industry is one IQP and MQP after another.” Unfortunately, this also means that other insti tutions are soon going to be adopting similar programs, meaning the opportunity will not last long. Since 1990, the National Science Foun dation has poured more than 1(X) million dol lars into Coalitions of colleges and universities nationwide lhat are attempting to create pro grams like the W PI Plan that meet the recom mendations proposed by the industry. The W PI Plan in its day was a revolutionary step in education, but unfortunately is out of date. Its also has a large number of problems associated with it, such as resource allocation and determination. The times have also changed, eighteen year-olds are making up a smaller fraction of the student body as years do by, and students economic backgrounds are continuously becoming mismatched with an institution such as W PI with a tuition in the
twenty to twenty-five thousand dollar tuition range. In the general field, an attitude of greater accountability has grown considerable, and even W PI must ensure that it justifies its choices to parents and employers. “ The planets are lined up,” said Presi dent Parrish, and it is uncertain when this window of opportunity w ill arise again. W P I has an established product, and a strong history in cutting edge education. Because of this, it is much easier to make
the ‘next step’ in education long before the competition, as they work to equal our cur rent progress. Currently, three large projects are going forward that will help to make the next change. The Steering Committee will provide the out line of what W PI should be in the future, and what the face of education will look like. The goal is to have the ‘big picture’ defined by April of 1997 lo be presented at the trustees See Steering, continued to page 2
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Ta b l e o f C o n t e n t s N ew s................................. 2, 11, 13 Sports.......................................... 3 Commentary..................................4 Arts & Entertainment...................... 4 Academic Honesty....................... 6, 7 West Street House........................... 8 letters to the Editor........................ 8 Announcements.................... 8, 9, 10
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Editorial...................................... 9 Health Services.............................. 9 Commentary................................10 Club Corner........................... 12, 13 Today in History........................... 13 Classifieds.................................. 15 Entertainment............................. 15 Police t e g .................................. 16
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NEWSPEAK STAFF PHOTO / FI) CAMERON
Ice Cat Terry Virtue puts the puck into the top of the net to score his second of three goals in Saturday night's game. AH his goals were power play goals and earned him First Star of the Game honors.