Vol. 18, No. 31	May 13, 1999

Memorial Day ceremonies, concert this weekend

The annual Newark Memorial Day ceremonies and parade will begin at 1 p.m., Sunday, May 16, on the UD Mall. The parade through the town will begin at 2 p.m. There is no rain date.

At 6 p.m., Saturday, May 15, a memorial concert of nostalgic music will be presented in the Academy Building Parking Lot.

The concert is presented by the Newark Memorial Day Committee, in cooperation with the Newark Business Association.

Senior Day party set on Old College lawn May 14

Senior Day '99 will be held from 3-6 p.m., Friday, May 14, on the lawn of Old College, rain or shine. Presented by the 1999 Senior Class officers, the free event will include live music from the band Flip Like Wilson.

The first 750 seniors will receive free Class of 1999 T-shirts. Senior Day sponsors are Dining Services, WSFS, the Student Alumni Association and the University Bookstore, along with several University offices, including Admissions, Alumni and University Relations, Annual Giving, Bob Carpenter Center, Dean of Students, President, Executive Vice President, Provost, Public Relations, Student Centers, Student Health Services, Vice President for Administration, Vice President for Student Life, Vice President and University Secretary and Vice President and University Treasurer.

Picture book to be signed

Nationally known photographer Richard Dunoff will sign copies of his keepsake book, University of Delaware: A Celebration, at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 18, in the lounge of the Perkins Student Center.

Dunoff spent a year at UD, capturing the spirit of the University from the lively intellectual life of its students and faculty to the beauty of its grounds. The first-edition book contains 96 pages of color photography and 16 pages of historical photographs from the University of Delaware Archives.

A professional photographer for more than 20 years, Dunoff shoots on location for advertising, education and corporate clients. His work has appeared in numerous publications worldwide, including Fortune, Working Woman, Ladies Home Journal and Philadelphia magazines.

University of Delaware: A Celebration is on sale at the University Bookstore in the Perkins Student Center and in the Campus Shop at the Trabant University Center. For more information, call 831-2637.

1997 Nobel Prize-winner to speak at UD May 21

Nobel Prize-winner William D. Phillips of the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg, Md., will speak at the American Association of Physics Teachers Chesapeake Section meeting on Friday, May 21, at the University of Delaware.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded the 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics jointly to Phillips, Steven Chu of Stanford University, and Claude Cohen-Tannoudji, of the Collège de France and École Normale Supérieure, Paris, France, for development of methods to cool and trap atoms with laser light.

Phillips' speech, "Almost Absolute Zero: The Story of Laser Cooling and Trapping," a multimedia production with live demonstrations and videos, will be presented in the Trabant University Center, after a banquet that begins at 6:30 p.m.

The banquet and speech are open to the public at a cost of $20. Reservations must be made by Friday, May 14, by contacting the conference secretary Helen Long by e-mail at <hlong @udel.edu> or by phone at 831-2661.

For more information see the physics teachers web site at <http://www.physics.udel.edu/csaapt/Spring1999/call.html>.

Upcoming University Gallery exhibition to explore the American adventure in space

The University Gallery and the University Mineralogical Museum are collaborating to present a major interpretive exhibition, "One Small Step: Exploring America's Adventures in Space, 1959-1999," which will open on Thursday, May 20, with a special reception and lecture by noted science writer, Andrew Chaikin.

Chaikin's award-winning book, A Man on the Moon, was the basis for the television miniseries, From the Earth to the Moon, produced by Tom Hanks for HBO.

The exhibition will run through Nov. 1 in the University Gallery in Old College, and will be in place to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing on July 20. A visit by astronaut Alan Bean, who has paintings in the show, and many other special events are planned in conjunction with the exhibit.

The Apollo missions will be the special historical focus of the exhibition, but the framework also includes a look at the start of the manned space program with the naming of the original Mercury Seven astronauts in 1959.

The July 4, 1997, robotic landing on Mars also will be explored, and the exhibition will discuss how the current study of that planet, and such activities as the building of the International Space Station, will shape the future of government-sponsored and commercial space travel.

The exhibition will follow three major themes: the role of science and technology in accomplishing the signal event of the 20th century–landing human explorers on another world; the impact of space exploration on the visual and literary arts, politics, mass media, and other aspects of popular culture; and, finally, the strong connections Delaware and the region have to space history–from being the birthplace of astronomer Annie Jump Cannon–to ILC, Dover Inc.'s role in developing the Apollo space suits and inflatable air bags that cushioned the Mars Pathfinder Rover.

A space suit prototype, space suit components, vintage test film, and other historical objects and documents from the ILC archives will be on view.

The museums also have secured a number of important loans from private collectors and space enthusiasts from the region and nation. Three works by astronaut Alan Bean, the fourth man to walk on the moon and an accomplished painter, are among the art works selected for the exhibition.

Charles Schmidt, professor of art at Temple University's Tyler School of Art and an original NASA artist, is lending works to the exhibition. Schmidt's mural commemorating the Challenger astronauts hangs in the Senate wing of the U.S. Capitol. The University of Delaware's own NASA artist, retired professor of illustration, Charles Rowe, also is participating in the exhibition with several drawings.

This exhibition and its related activities are being designed to capture the imagination of Delawareans and the regional audience, and increase their understanding of the significance of space exploration, both in terms of its historical/cultural contexts and its future applications.

In the interest of encouraging education and awareness of space history, a series of public events in which prominent speakers connected to the space program and the disciplines of geology, art, astronomy, engineering, history and material and popular culture studies will be featured. Alan Bean is scheduled to visit the University in September. The date will be announced later.

Since the University is one of the foremost institutions concerned with art and object conservation, the museums will present several outreach activities centered on the preservation of space-age objects and materials, including a lecture by Edward McManus, the chief conservator of the National Air and Space Museum. Special workshops for teachers, children and families also are being planned.

The University Gallery is a teaching museum, where students play a direct role in developing exhibitions. Students from the Museum Studies Program are involved in the exhibition planning as part of their coursework.

Faculty from numerous scientific disciplines are providing expertise for the exhibition. They include Norman Ness, formerly of NASA and now president of the Bartol Research Institute at UD (and a leading expert in planetary magnetism); Bill Glass, professor of geology (who has worked on lunar specimens); and Harry Shipman, professor of astronomy and physics (who was involved in Hubble Telescope research and teacher education).

The museums' efforts are being supported, in part, by the Delaware AeroSpace Education Foundation and by the University of Delaware Space Grant College, the College of Arts and Science and the Museum Studies Program.

The University Gallery is located on the second floor of Old College. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 1-5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday. The gallery is closed on Mondays and all University holidays.

The University Gallery is wheelchair accessible, and those individuals requesting other disability accommodations are encouraged to call at least 10 days prior to the event. The University of Delaware Mineralogical Museum is located on the first floor of Penny Hall.

All museum events are free and open to the public. For more information, call 831-8242, fax 831-8251, or TDD 831-4563. Visit the University Gallery on line at <http://seurat.art.udel.edu>. The University Mineralogical Museum website may be found at <http://www.udel.edu/geology/min/index.html>.