Tech Times 2017
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The Magazine of Fall 2017 The Brooklyn Tech Alumni Foundation TECH TIMES Ph.D.’s in Class Surprise Reveals TECH TIMES 2 Contents Surprise Connections 10 Lifetime Giving Society 23 The Magazine of Inside Tech Unlikely Encounters 14 Class Notes 24 The Brooklyn Tech 2 Alumni Foundation From the Alumni Foundation President 5 Rising Stars 15, 17 Last Word 25 Principal’s Letter 5 Alumni Foundation Annual Report 19 Fall 2017 “I need a supercomputer to do my project” — A Brooklyn Tech student See page 2 Brooklyn Tech Alumni Foundation, Inc. 29 Fort Greene Place Brooklyn, NY 11217 www.bthsalumni.org Inside their heads Doctor in the house? Value Engineer “Dear Brooklyn Memorable Return Tech...” In which we explore what Ph.D’s. on the faculty Floyd Warkol ’65 Alums thank A noted alum visits Tech today’s Technites think, makes buildings smarter the alma mater 73 years after graduation and think about Note: All objects shown on cover represent actual responses by actual students to the question, “What’s on your mind?” Thanks to Romy Aran, Madelaine Lebetkin, Certified by the Forest Stewardship Coun- Ayane Naito, Valmira Popinara and Saikanam Siam. cil. The Mark of Responsible Forestry. TECH TIMES 2 IT’S HAPPENING AT FORT GREENE 29 PLACE for the Specialized High School Admissions Test. Of her own experience, she says: “The day of the admis- sions test, all my friends were nervous and I felt prepared. State Backs Expanded in 2016 thanks to a onetime $250,000 state And when I got to classes at Tech, I kept thinking ‘Oh my Everyone learns to grant, STEM Pipeline in four years has touched the lives gosh, I already know how to do this.’” Tech Pipeline Project of 169 middle school children. The first two cohorts have reached high school, and the results are: Of the STEM Pipeline program she says: “It is amazing that Ange Louis ’19 was one of a small handful of students in her the doors to a specialized high school are being opened.” Brooklyn middle school to gain admission to a specialized • 41 of the first 55 participants were accepted to Tech or CODE high school, and she knows why she succeeded: “I would another specialized high school * The depositing of a thin film crystalline overlayer on a crystalline not be at Brooklyn Tech if it were not for the STEM Pipeline substrate, currently a key tool in nanotechnology development. • 27 of the 41 were offered admission to Tech Reflecting the growing importance in all professions of “digital citizen- program.” • 22 of the 27 accepted the offer and are now Technites ship,” computer science is now a mandatory course for all Brooklyn • 19 of the 22 have a grade average of 90 or better in the Tech students. STEM Pipeline, an Alumni Foundation initiative now in its STEM disciplines fourth year with generous support from National Grid, intro- The class, Advanced Placement Computer Science Principles, is duces middle schoolers from underserved communities to One of those 19 is Ange. In addition to participating in City college-level. Tech being Tech, it is taken in the sophomore year. technology and science study — and provides preparation College of New York research into molecular beam epitaxy* “Brooklyn Tech students have shown us time and time again that they at age 15, she mentors seventh and eighth graders every are ready to be challenged,” says assistant principal Rosabeth Eddy. Saturday morning for the STEM pipeline program. The course was added to the curriculum last year. More than an In addition to helping them with admissions test prep, she Ange Louis ’19, (inset at Tech as a introduction to coding, it emphasizes creative problem solving and teaches them 3D modeling on Autodesk software, of which middle school participant in Pipeline, real-word applications, and focuses on exploring how computing and she is a certified user by virtue of her freshman year course- and today as a Technite) is the first technology shape today’s world. work at Tech. Pipeline graduate accepted into Tech’s prestigious Weston Research Scholar program. “These are skills to which all students need to be exposed,” Ms. Eddy adds. Anybody Have a Supercomputer for Irwin? Made in High school teachers have heard all tute of Technology, where he interned the excuses, so there was little sympa- during his Tech years. Supercomput- Below, three alums recall the thy at first when Irwin Huang ’17 came ers, however, can do in one day what Brooklyn defining class projects of their in with his: “I couldn’t finish the project; I would take a standard PC 20 years. time. What was yours? didn’t have the right equipment.” Tell us. The Alumni Foundation’s Weston (Tech) Until Irwin explained further: Research mentors Every generation of Tech- Numeric Base Converter: Daniel Khait ’17, Robotic Device with Sensory Compo- Mark Perelman ’03: “I need a supercomputer.” reached high level officials “Tooth-pick bridges, wooden Irwin, as it happens, is a Weston at Brookhaven National nite has had its own iconic Mechatronics and Robotics nents: Lydia Stanford ’18, Mechatronics benches and 25-second Research Scholar investigating the Laboratory, who agreed to student project: In the pre- and Robotics marble machines.” behavior of light particles in space, at grant Irwin access to their digital age it was the leg- “The software program here is LabVIEW 2016. such an advanced level that profes- supercomputer after hear- endary Step V Block. Other The primary hardware is a myRIO microcon- “The software program is ROBOTC for VEX Cor- sional researchers have taken interest ing him deliver a graduate- cohorts had their equiva- troller. Daniel built a circuit and designed a pro- tex and the primary hardware is the VEX Cortex Donovan Wickline ’88 : in his work. level presentation on his lent. Today’s Tech experi- gram that converts a numeric value to another microcontroller with VEX robotic components. “The mallet we made in project. ence is more diverse and number system.” — Teacher Anthony Pigis Lydia’s robotic device is programmed to: machine shop.” • Autonomously drive through a maze with “I need supercomputers to simulate perhaps, dare we say, more “It shows how a student can imitate a conver- predetermined start and end points. a three dimensional quantum ran- Irwin, now a freshman at advanced. Here, two current Laurie Zephyrin ’92: sion calculator using nothing but some physical • Operate and drive guided by a joystick or dom walk,” he later told TechTimes. Stevens, will continue his day examples: “We made ship models His calculations had exhausted the research connected to accessories and some sparks of ingenuity.” controlling device. in shop.” capacity of all commercially available BlueGene, Brookhaven’s — Daniel • Navigate a maze with sensors, and a bump computers and those at Stevens Insti- supercomputer. switch and limit switch to detect obstructions.” — Teacher Anthony Pigis 2 3 TECH TIMES 2 Meeting the Challenge Larry Cary ’70 IT’S HAPPENING AT FORT GREENE PLACE The theme of this issue is “Inside a Technite’s Head.” It explores what motivates, inspires, and drives our amazing students. Having graduated Tech so long ago (1970), I can’t pretend to fully understand what is in 29 the head of every one of our 5,900 students. No one could. But I do have a few observations. The challenges Tech students face today are as real and confusing as they were for my generation, and (Our) Penny Found in the maybe more so. My generation had Vietnam, the fight for civil rights, the assassinations of Kennedy and Student Spins A Musical Win King, Watergate, and a counterculture urging us to “tune in, turn on, and drop out.” Today’s students are A 15 year old sophomore’s social media savvy netted Tech’s music department a $10,000 White House coming of age in a post 9/11 world with terrorism, Afghanistan and Iraq, the Great Recession and wide- grant, and brought a famous performer to the school for a free concert. Tech Alum Penelope “Penny” Kokkinides ’87 was one of eight female spread distrust of government. Many of us, not just the young, have a growing fear of the future. Kaskade is a multiple Grammy-nominated DJ and producer whom The New York Times called health care experts invited to the White House to brief the President and But, like my generation, today’s Technites have hope, courage and a determined drive to overcome what “the new face of electronic dance music.” top officials on the potential impact on women of health care legislation. for many would be overwhelming challenges. Fundamentally, today’s Technites have faith in themselves. Burlyn Andall-Blake is a violin-playingTechnite who likes Kaskade’s music. When she learned Kokkinides, an Alumni Foundation board member, is the chief By getting the very best education and of a social media contest with his concert and the grant as administrative officer of InnovaCare Health, a New Jersey-based first prize, she mobilized Tech students to enter en masse. working very hard, they believe they can medical management company. Her They did, and they won: Tech was named the nation’s “most achieve and succeed. company has extensive operations engaged” high school. I saw these traits in Bridget (not her in Puerto Rico, and she spoke about The music department will use the grant on new instru- real name), a Tech student I hired some how proposals to reform health care From ments and supplies which Burlyn, an orchestra member years ago to do office work at my law firm. would affect the island. since freshman year, knew were needed. “This contest was Bridget was in the law and society T he Principal David Newman the perfect opportunity for us to get the funds,” she said.