A Purdue Icon

The former Purdue Power Plant (HPN) with its iconic smoke stack and the attached Engineering Administration Building (ENAD) at the very heart of campus played important roles for most of the twentieth century. To many Purdue students and alumni, the smoke stack not only symbolized the emphasis at Purdue on technology but also provided a visible marker for the Purdue campus. The smoke stack was lovingly referred to by many as \"Purdue's finger to the world.\" Amid controversy, the smoke stack was demolished in the early 1990s when the Purdue Clock Tower was constructed to locate the campus on the landscape. A Purdue Icon: Creation, Life, and Legacy is an edited volume that speaks to the history of the Power Plant, from the initial need for increased power and heat to meet a growing campus demand and its Romanesque architecture that allowed it to fit contextually on the campus, to the people who worked to bring heat and power to the campus by keeping the boilers up and the students who experienced the principles and applications of mechanical engineering through active learning. This book tells the story of the transition to alternative power and heat sources at the University, the decommissioning of the Power Plant, the controversy about what was to be done with this important site at the heart of the campus, and the challenges associated with the Power Plant's potential reuse or demolition. The unique problems faced with demolishing a contaminated building in the middle of a major research university campus are insightfully explored before introducing the Thomas S. and Harvey D. Wilmeth Active Learning Center-a potential new Purdue icon.

Artfully curated by James R. Hansen, A Reluctant Icon: Letters to Neil Armstrong is a companion volume to Dear Neil Armstrong: Letters to the First Man from All Mankind, collecting hundreds more letters Armstrong received after first stepping on the moon until his death in 2012. Providing context and commentary, Hansen has assembled the letters by the following themes: religion and belief; anger, disappointment, and disillusionment; quacks, conspiracy theorists, and ufologists; fellow astronauts and the world of flight; the corporate world; celebrities, stars, and notables; and last messages. Taken together, both collections provide fascinating insights into the world of an iconic hero who took that first giant leap onto lunar soil willingly and thereby stepped into the public eye with reluctance. Space enthusiasts, historians, and lovers of all things related to flight will not want to miss this book.

In the years between the historic first moon landing by Apollo 11 on July 20, 1969, and his death at age 82 on August 25, 2012, Neil Armstrong received hundreds of thousands of cards and letters from all over the world, congratulating him, praising him, requesting pictures and autographs, and asking him what must have seemed to him to be limitless—and occasionally intrusive—questions. Of course, all the famous astronauts received fan mail, but the sheer volume Armstrong had to deal with for more than four decades after his moon landing was staggering. Today, the preponderance of those letters—some 75,000 of them—are preserved in the archives at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. Dear Neil Armstrong: Letters to the First Man on the Moon publishes a careful sampling of these letters—roughly 400—reflecting the various kinds of correspondence that Armstrong received along with representative samples of his replies. Selected and edited by James R. Hansen, Armstrong’s authorized biographer and author of the New York Times best seller First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong, this collection sheds light on Armstrong’s enduring impact and offers an intimate glimpse into the cultural meanings of human spaceflight. Readers will explore what the thousands of letters to Neil Armstrong meant not only to those who wrote them, but as a snapshot of one of humankind’s greatest achievements in the twentieth century. They will see how societies and cultures projected their own meanings onto one of the world’s great heroes and iconic figures.

The majority of professors have never had a formal course in education, and the most common method for learning how to teach is on-the-job training. This represents a challenge for disciplines with ever more complex subject matter, and a lost opportunity when new active learning approaches to education are yielding dramatic improvements in student learning and retention. This book aims to cover all aspects of teaching engineering and other technical subjects. It presents both practical matters and educational theories in a format useful for both new and experienced teachers. It is organized to start with specific, practical teaching applications and then leads to psychological and educational theories. The "practical orientation" section explains how to develop objectives and then use them to enhance student learning, and the "theoretical orientation" section discusses the theoretical basis for learning/teaching and its impact on students. Written mainly for PhD students and professors in all areas of engineering, the book may be used as a text for graduate-level classes and professional workshops or by professionals who wish to read it on their own. Although the focus is engineering education, most of this book will be useful to teachers in other disciplines. Teaching is a complex human activity, so it is impossible to develop a formula that guarantees it will be excellent. However, the methods in this book will help all professors become good teachers while spending less time preparing for the classroom. This is a new edition of the well-received volume published by McGraw-Hill in 1993. It includes an entirely revised section on the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) and new sections on the characteristics of great teachers, different active learning methods, the application of technology in the classroom (from clickers to intelligent tutorial systems), and how people learn.

In 1869 the State of Indiana founded Purdue University as Indiana’s land-grant university dedicated to agriculture and engineering. Today, Purdue stands as one of the elite research and education institutions in the world. Its halls have been home to Nobel Prize- and World Food Prize-winning faculty, record-setting astronauts, laureled humanists, researchers, and leaders of industry. Its thirteen colleges and schools span the sciences, liberal arts, management, and veterinary medicine, boasting more than 450,000 living alumni. Ever True: 150 Years of Giant Leaps at Purdue University by John Norberg captures the essence of this great university. In this volume, Norberg takes readers beyond the iconic redbrick walls of Purdue University’s West Lafayette campus to delve into the stories of the faculty, alumni, and leaders who make up this remarkable institution’s distinguished history. Written to commemorate Purdue University’s sesquicentennial celebrations, Ever True picks up where prior histories leave off, bringing the intricacies of historic tales to the forefront, updating the Purdue story to the present, and looking to the future.

A University of Tradition is a fascinating compilation of history, customs, pictures, and facts about Purdue University from its founding in 1869 to the present day. Covering all aspects of Purdue, from the origin of the nickname of its students and alumni—Boilermakers—to a chronological list of all buildings ever constructed on the campus of West Lafayette, Indiana, this book presents the ultimate insider's guide to one of the world's great universities. It contains a wealth of facts about student, academic, sporting, and campus traditions, as well as biographical information on all the University presidents and other members of Purdue's family, including David Ross, Neil Armstrong, Eliza Fowler, Jack Mollenkopf, Helen Schleman, and Amelia Earhart. A University of Tradition spotlights many items that will spark the memories of any Purdue alumnus or fan. No matter if you were in the "All-American" Marching Band, lived in the Quad, participated in Grand Prix, wrote for the Purdue Exponent, or were on campus when the Boilermakers won the 1967 Rose Bowl, you will appreciate and enjoy this book. The second edition is fully updated for 2012 and includes information about new landmarks, new traditions, and the incoming twelfth president of the University.

The Rocket Lab: Maurice Zucrow, Purdue University, and America’s Race to Space focuses on the golden era of space exploration between 1946 and 1966, specifically the life and times of Purdue University’s Dr. Maurice J. Zucrow, a pioneering teacher and researcher in aerospace engineering. Zucrow taught America’s first university course in jet and rocket propulsion, wrote the field’s first textbook, and established the country’s first educational Rocket Lab. He was part of a small circle of innovators who transformed Purdue into the country’s largest engineering university, which became a cradle of astronauts. Taking a chronological and thematic approach, The Rocket Lab weaves between the local and national, drawing in rival universities, especially Harvard, MIT, Princeton, and Caltech. Also covered is Zucrow’s role in the national project system of research and development through World War II and the Cold War. At Aerojet, he was one of the country’s original project engineers, dedicated to scientific-technical expertise and the stepwise approach. He made vanguard power plant contributions to the Northrop Flying Wing, as well as the Corporal, Nike, and Atlas missiles, among others. Zucrow’s work in propulsion helped to improve the country’s arsenal of ballistic missiles and space launchers, and as a teacher, he educated the first generation of aerospace engineers. This book elevates Zucrow and the central role he played in getting the United States to space.

William Carol Latta was the 13th member of the Purdue faculty. He became the driving force behind Purdue's world-famous School of Agriculture and initiated extension services that have lasted for more than a century. In 1890, he laid out the first permanent soil fertility field experiments, inaugurating a system of research considered one of the best in the country at that time. He administered Purdue's School of Agriculture until 1907.

When former Indiana governor Mitch Daniels was named Purdue University’s twelfth president, he became one of a small handful of nationally renowned figures to lead an institution of higher education. In an era when university presidents had largely abandoned the role of public intellectual, Daniels immediately captured broad attention for his willingness to take a thoughtful stand on America’s most pressing challenges—in academia and far beyond. Boiler Up: A University President in the Public Square offers readers a fascinating compendium of commencement addresses, published columns, and transcripts of speeches and hosted events spanning ten years of insights and insightful interactions that put Mitch Daniels front and center among American thought leaders. Throughout the book, Daniels’s sharp intellect, incisive analysis, and delightful sense of humor reign supreme. Via embedded QR codes, readers can “attend” recorded content, including evenings with Condoleezza Rice, Garry Kasparov, Walter Isaacson, and other fascinating people. Whether the reader seeks lessons on leadership or immersion in engaging ideas, Boiler Up is a tour de force of transformative thinking. Proceeds from the sales of Boiler Up support the scholarship fund at Purdue Polytechnic High Schools.

Throughout 100-plus years of flight, Purdue University has propelled unique contributions from pioneer educators, aviators, and engineers who flew balloons into the stratosphere, barnstormed the countryside, helped break the sound barrier, and left footprints in lunar soil. Wings of Their Dreams follows the flight plans and footsteps of aviation's pioneers and trailblazers across the twentieth century, a path from Kitty Hawk to the Sea of Tranquility and beyond. The book reminds readers that the first and last men to land on the moon first trekked across the West Lafayette, Indiana, campus on their journeys into the heavens and history. This is the story of an aeronautic odyssey of imagination, science, engineering, technology, adventure, courage, danger, and promise. It is the story of the human spirit taking flight, entwined with Purdue's legacy in aviation's history.