Articles Energize
I enjoyed your September 2001 alumni magazine, particularly the two articles on fuel cells, and the longer article on the ambitious building projects. Perhaps you should consider using co-generation fuel cells to supply energy and heat for these new buildings. It would be an excellent way to demonstrate RPI’s commitment to fuel cells as the best future energy providers. I hope they are considering use of GE silicone coated polyurethane foam as the roofing material. It has many advantages from an energy, cost, and maintenance point of view.
Brian Benicewicz’s development of the use of PBI fibers for fuel cell use could greatly simplify current PEM fuel cells.
John McCulloch
Via e-mail
As usual, I read with interest the latest Rensselaer magazine. I want to comment on an odd juxtaposition of stories:
Page 3 has an article about advanced research on fuel cells, a highly efficient means of power generation.
Page 9 has an article about the addition of a boiler plant to serve the two new buildings being planned for campus.
If RPI truly wants to be the university of the future, why power this latest development with the technology of the past? Using fuel cells would be a statement in more ways than one.
Lin Hartung Chambers ’85
Hampton, Va.
I was interested to see in the September 2001 issue of Rensselaer magazine that in the section called “On the Bookshelf: Recent Books by Alumni Authors” you review the President as Architect: Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Top Cottage.
There were a number of RPI connections with FDR and his presidency, as well as the restoration of his retreat, Top Cottage. Several RPI architecture graduates work for John G. Waite Associates and worked on that particular publication: Arik Mathison ’95, Carrie Britt ’99, Douglas Bucher ’71, and Nancy Rankin ’93. Other RPI graduates working on the restoration on the building include Steve Reilly ’93 and Cory Trembath ’00.
Carrie Britt ’99
Albany, N.Y.
Referring to “100 Years and Looking Good”: Hockey was discontinued in 1938, 1939, 1940, and 1941. I was on the freshman team in 1937. We played three games. The outdoor rink at Sage & 15th Street was subject to snow, rain, etc.; very unsatisfactory. It broke my heart to miss out on the varsity team.
Edwin F. Goodman ’41
Atlanta, Ga.
The Silver Bay Experience
Editor’s note: We asked alumni to share their memories of “freshman camp” with us—and they did! To see what student orientation is like today, click here.
I attended Silver Bay Conference Center with the Class of 1955. My memory was its friendly, spirited atmosphere where we learned Rensselaer songs and cheers from the Key Club. The experience was an opportunity to meet others we would be spending the next four years with.
Personally, I recall running between a tennis tournament, and taking a physical exam required to join the NROTC. Fortunately I was successful at both.
William Eckert ’55
Carson City, Nev.
Being a simple young man from the Midwest at the time, my initial and fondest memory of Silver Bay during the first week in September 1953 was the sight of a group of men playing (fighting) on the green in front of the lodge. They were apparently playing some form of keep-away using pitchforks to alternate between passing something between their teammates and hitting the opposition over the head as hard as they could. In casual investigation, I was told this was a very old game played by the native populations of the East Coast of North America. Not surprising, those populations have nearly disappeared.
The second memory was from the second day and is worth passing along to the males of later generations—Don’t jump into the water of Lake George!
Jim Fulton ’57
Corona Del Mar, Calif.
I think it was late August 1953 when my parents left me off at Rensselaer—apprehensive and uncertain as to my future. I was not alone in this uncertainty. All of us arriving early were soon aboard many long orange buses and we were off to Lake George. The bus and the freshman orientation camp became a “half-way” house for all of us making the transition from safe home to unknown college life... It was simply beautiful and near-pristine at that time—the clearest lake I had ever seen... Nearly a half-century has passed, but feelings remain in me as clear as that beautiful lake... From simple beginnings and seeds come greatness. Lake George was simple but it was simply great.
Edward Umgelter Jr. ’57
Mentone, Calif.
We’d love to hear from you! To provide space for as many letters as possible, we often must edit them for length. Please address correspondence to: Rensselaer Magazine, Office of Marketing and Media Relations, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY 12180, or e-mail to alum.mag@rpi.edu, or call (518) 276-6531.
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