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Rensselaer celebrated the grand opening of the George M. Low Gallery on Sept. 27. Low’s family — including his widow (pictured) and five children — toured the facility before a formal dedication ceremony for the campus community. George Low ’48, Rensselaer’s 14th president, led the Apollo Spacecraft Program that successfully landed man on the moon. A collection of his space memorabilia, donated to Rensselaer by the family, is on display in the newly designed gallery. The George M. Low Gallery, open daily to the public, is located on the fourth floor of the Low Center for Industrial Innovation. “We dedicate this gallery in honor of a man who was an exemplary Rensselaer alumnus, an inspiring technological leader, and a gifted Rensselaer president,” said President Jackson. “Thanks to Mary R. Low and the Low family, we are able to bring home to Rensselaer these artifacts — not only of a distinguished career, but of a bold and exciting adventure in American technological achievement.” The Low Gallery, which is reminiscent of the inside of a space shuttle, includes items of personal and professional significance, such as historic National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) memorabilia, autographed pictures of astronauts, Low’s Presidential Medal of Freedom, even one of Low’s favorite green pens. Low earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aeronautical engineering from Rensselaer in 1948 and 1950. He began work as a research scientist for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, the forerunner to NASA. After a stint in the Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory in Cleveland, Low later joined NASA as the first chief of manned space flight programs and embarked on an illustrious and demanding career that touched on the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo projects. “His organizational genius made the seemingly impossible a reality,” said Samuel Heffner ’56, chair of Rensselaer’s board of trustees. “As the 14th president of Rensselaer, [Low] began the process of preparing the nation’s oldest school of engineering, his alma mater, for a leading world role in 21st-century education.” After 27 years at NASA, Low took Rensselaer’s helm in 1976 as its president and immediately began implementing his “Rensselaer 2000 Plan,” which ultimately helped establish the Incubator Program and the Rensselaer Technology Park. His leadership invigorated economic development in the Capital Region and beyond. Low died in 1984. George Low ’48, Rensselaer’s 14th president, led the Apollo Spacecraft Program that successfully landed man on the moon. A collection of his space memorabilia, donated to Rensselaer by the family, is on display in the newly designed gallery. The George M. Low Gallery, open daily to the public, is located on the fourth floor of the Low Center for Industrial Innovation. “We dedicate this gallery in honor of a man who was an exemplary Rensselaer alumnus, an inspiring technological leader, and a gifted Rensselaer president,” said President Jackson. “Thanks to Mary R. Low and the Low family, we are able to bring home to Rensselaer these artifacts — not only of a distinguished career, but of a bold and exciting adventure in American technological achievement.” The Low Gallery, which is reminiscent of the inside of a space shuttle, includes items of personal and professional significance, such as historic National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) memorabilia, autographed pictures of astronauts, Low’s Presidential Medal of Freedom, even one of Low’s favorite green pens. Low earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aeronautical engineering from Rensselaer in 1948 and 1950. He began work as a research scientist for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, the forerunner to NASA. After a stint in the Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory in Cleveland, Low later joined NASA as the first chief of manned space flight programs and embarked on an illustrious and demanding career that touched on the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo projects. “His organizational genius made the seemingly impossible a reality,” said Samuel Heffner ’56, chair of Rensselaer’s board of trustees. “As the 14th president of Rensselaer, [Low] began the process of preparing the nation’s oldest school of engineering, his alma mater, for a leading world role in 21st-century education.” After 27 years at NASA, Low took Rensselaer’s helm in 1976 as its president and immediately began implementing his “Rensselaer 2000 Plan,” which ultimately helped establish the Incubator Program and the Rensselaer Technology Park. His leadership invigorated economic development in the Capital Region and beyond. Low died in 1984. |
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A $1 million grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation of Los Angeles will establish the W.M. Keck Laboratory for Terahertz Science within a new Center for Terahertz Research at Rensselaer. The laboratory will expand the Institute’s pioneering work in the development of terahertz science and technology. Xi-Cheng Zhang, the J. Erik Jonsson ’22 Distinguished Professor of Science, will lead the laboratory and the center. Zhang is a world leader in the field of terahertz (“THz” or “T-ray”) research. The terahertz frequency range, which lies between microwave and infrared frequencies, presents the next frontier in imaging and sensing science and technology. “Under the leadership of Dr. Xi-Cheng Zhang, the terahertz research team at Rensselaer has become the world leader in the development and application of terahertz technology,” said President Jackson. “The support of the W.M. Keck Foundation will now allow the Rensselaer team to do what no other research group has done before: to create and detect terahertz waves at extreme levels, in the nonlinear range. The potential gains to be made by this research will form the next frontier in scientific discovery.” Terahertz sensing and imaging systems that allow us to see through walls have the potential to examine and identify asbestos or radiation contamination, search for land mines or plastic explosives, or to help police locate hostages, terrorists, and weapons during a standoff. Terahertz-based tools will be valuable in many other fields, including biomedical imaging, agriculture, forensic science, and food safety. Scientists expect that terahertz science will have a profound impact on biotechnology. In biotechnology, T-ray spectroscopy of biological molecules could provide new tools to study protein folding or a monolayer of DNA. The funding from Keck will allow the purchase of advanced instrumentation for the terahertz laboratory including a three-phase terawatt laser system, which generates intense terahertz rays. The terawatt system will be coupled with an infrared spectrometer, optical tables, and a vacuum deposition system. |
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| Rensselaer Magazine: December 2002 | ||||
| President's View | Your Mail | From the Archives | Hawk Talk | Class Notes Features |
| Front Page | At Rensselaer | Milestones |
| In Memoriam | Making a Difference | Staying Connected |
| Rensselaer Home Page | RPInfo | AlumServ Home Page |
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Opinions expressed in these pages do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors or the policies of the Institute. |
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