Page 3 - ME News Fall 2021

A message from the
DEPARTMENT HEAD
I am pleased to report that the department is back
in full swing after 18 months of empty hallways. We have taken steps to make sure that everyone can return to our building safely, and the transition back to in-person activites has been smooth. It is great to see students in and around the building again, even if things look a little different now.
Our research continues to make waves in the field of mechanical engineering locally, nationally, and globally. From coming up with new ways to handle energy loss caused by ice on wind turbines (a truly Minnesotan study) to changing the way agricultural
vehicles are powered, our faculty members, researchers, and students continue to have the kind of impact on the world around us that makes our department an excellent place to learn — a pursuit that everyone is engaged in, from the newest student to the longest-standing professor.
This newsletter focuses on one of our departmental impact areas: energy transition. From the classroom to the lab, energy transition is a common denominator for many of us. I hope you enjoy learning about some of the work we are doing to create sustainable energy sources.
Stay safe,
Susan Mantell, Ph.D.
Department Head
James J. Ryan Professor
Morse Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor
Paging Back: ME News in 1981
Want to know what was happening in our
department exactly 40 years ago? Let’s take a look
at the newsletter! Then called the M.E. Alumni News,
the 1981 edition featured a letter from Chairman
Richard J. Goldstein, who recaped an Alumni
Centennial Celebration, thanking organizers Darrell
Frohrib, Warren Ibele, Benjamin Liu, and Thomas
Murphy, among others. The letter also welcomed
new faculty member Terry Simon, then a recent
graduate from Stanford. (Terry remains a faculty
member today!) Professor Arthur Erdman was recognized for winning “best paper” at the 1980 ASME Mechanisms Conference, and David Kittelson was invited to serve as a visiting professor at the University of Vienna. Student groups ASME, SAE, and AIIE gave updates on their activities, and a profile of Thomas Murphy posed the question, “Is the teacher an endangered species?” The department enrolled 1132 undergraduates, and Goldstein noted some growing pains in his letter. Much has changed, but the focus on excellent research and teaching remains the same.
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