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Volume LXXIX Number 5 California Institute of Technology Friday, October Z, 1977 YRS Price Absurdly .. r I I Th By Brett Stutz session with students and attend Caltech very nearly had Dr. a dinner as well as making his Henry Kissinger as a speaker for evening presentation. At least the fifteenth of November. In a this concession was made; usually very unusual situation, the cost he makes his appearance for the was to be split among four presentation and then leaves as campus agencies instead of a soon as it is over. Many feel that more normal one or two, but it did little to ameliorate the when one of the co-sponsors high price asked by whom Meader withdrew its pledge, it became called "one of the most exagger impossible to fund this event. atedly paid persons on the About eighteen months ago, lecture circuit." the Caltech Y made the first The lecture circuit is big formal approach to Dr. Kissinger. business these days. The more After initial negotiations and an desirable a speaker is, the less unprecedented cooperative effort, accessible he becomes because of an unprecedented sum was agents and other staff. Initial raised, only to have Kissinger up contacts must be made one to the total package cost through an two years in advance. For this addendum to the contract. On reason, it is almost essen tial to June 22nd, one of the co have continuity of staff in the sponsors withdrew its support sponsorirIg organizations; this is because of internal reorganization one reason why Beckman and a change of priorities. Auditorium has a permanent staff. Professor Harry Gray displaying "Rhodium Bombshell," the latest rage at the Ath bar. But will it replace According to Walt Meader, direc The Y is the only agency on 'beer? Photo-Floyd Clark tor of the Y, it still would have campus with staff that acts as a been possible to obtain money to department of student activities. fund the addendum had this one As such, it makes initial contacts group not dropped out. Even and becomes the primary con Leading though the lecture could have tractor. The Y Student Executive been partially funded by selling Committee has responsibility for tickets, the Caltech Y's long deciding how to spend the Y's $12 illion at standing tradition of not charging limited budget to please the most Caltech chemists have announced development of a chemical admission to such events pre people, a fact to be considered compound that can convert the energy of sunlight directly irIto cluded this. by critics of the Y's programs as liBehind Goals chemical fuels. Although the compound is still in the experimental Dr. Kissinger had agreed to the going market prices for By Pamela Crane stages, its discovery raises the possibility of convertirIg sunlight into have a question and answer lecturers continue to increase. A little bit of that 01' black fuel with much greater efficiency rmagic may make the world go than schemes to convert either ,'round, but unfortunately not solar-powered electricity or plant Caltech. It is quite a tough material into fuels. c eady's Gossamer 5 ,business to run. Yes, business, The chemists-led by Dr. ~for instead of a product, Caltech Harty B. Gray, included Dr. Kent ,sells its talent. Grants are the R. Mann, .. an N.S.F. Energy ndor Fins Ra o 'payment for Caltech's contri- Postdoctoral Fellow and Nathan butions, to industry and general Lewis ('77). They discovered the By Spencer Klein foot high hurdles before and enlightenment. It is now the chemical, a complex molecule Dr. Paul McCready, designer after the figure eight. This course This fourth year of the five-year "At containing the metal rhodium, -of the Gossamer Condor, spoke has been generally accepted as fthe Leading Edge" campaign to last year, but only recently have to a full house last Monday defining a successful man By Mark J. Rosker raise $130 million for the the Caltech scientists found that evenirIg in Ramo auditorium. The powered flight. The demise of varsity football lnstitute, and there are still the chemical could be used in crowd was estimated at five Dr. McCready received his at Caltech will cost the Institute !obstacles to surmount. solar power schemes. In a paper hundred people, and about PhD from Caltech in aeronautical as much as $2500, yet it appears delivered at the annual meeting eighty people were turned away. engineering. He is the founder that some $4000 originally ear When public announcement of of the American Chemical Socie The Gossamer Condor, a and president of Aeroenviron marked for football will go ::the campaign was made in ty in Chicago, Professor Gray man-powered airplane, won the ment, Inc. An aeronautics and towards several badly needed January 1974, about $32 million said that when a solution of the 50,000 pound sterling ($87,500) meteorology expert, he enjoys improvements throughout the 'had already been collected. If rhodium compound is irradiated Kramer prize by successfully sailplanirIg and hang gliding. Physical Education Department. cash inflow had been constant, with light in the visible region of negotiating a mile and a half long Many other people were irI Like all divisions at Caltech, Caltech would have received the spectrum, it undergoes a figure-eight course, clearing ten Continued on Page Three the PE department has never . $103 million by the end of reaction to produce hydrogen received all the funds it re August of this year. But due to gas. The Caltech scientists' work quested from the Institute. But the vagaries of life, things don't was also reported irI the August the situation for PE has been !always happen the way we wish, 1977 issue of the Journal of the particularly acute over the past and only about $91 million had Amelican Chemical Society. four years as .their monetary ibeen collected by that time. The rhodium compound allotment has been kept constant Proposals totalling $17.5 million which is blue in solution, consists despite inflation. This has meant are now out, and another $22.5 of two atoms of rhodium held postponement of the purchase of million worth are now in prepar closely together by four clamp new equipment and has placed , ation. like structures composed of limitations on the number and carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen variety of courses offered. Professor William Corcoran, atoms. The compound's structure ivice president for institute af resembles a wirIdmill, with the Each year, a large portion of fairs, feels we do quite well in metal atoms trapped at the hub the. PE department's money is used to fund the perennial 'gamering funds, "but it's a hard and the cIamplike structures protrudirIg like the vanes of a Caltech football team. With the ibattle. Thirty-three hundred team's temporary disbandment wirIdmill. other colleges are all fighting for this year, the department was money from the same sources. When light strikes this com left with bills for purchased .The amount of money we get is pound, the blue compound reacts football equipment, for reserving a function of how much develop with hydrogen atoms in the game officials and for pre-school ment we do, as well as the surrounding solution to produce room and board costs, a total of economy, corporation interest, hydrogen gas, and changes to a about $2500. and just luck." yellow form of the compound. The elimirIation of football The new compound solves a will mean the general PE pro Over 60% of Caltech's revenue major problem that has plagued gram will inherit the remainirIg applied now comes from the scientists attempting to harness $4000. Athletic Director Warren government, either directly solar energy using chemicals. Dr. Paul McCready explains his man-powered airplane, the Gossamer Emery explained the probable Continued on Page Three Continued on Page Four Condor, to a packed house at Ramo Monday. Photo-Don Bacon Continued on Page Seven Page Two THE CALIFORNIA TECH Friday, October 7, The professors in charge of Physics 2 are to be commended for recognizing and correcting a gTave error, namely: the deplorable requirement that there be no collaboration on homework assignments. The point of homework is as a learning experience, with fellow students providing necessary insight and guidance after one has made a sincere individual effort. To prohibit collaboration is to severely inhibit the learning process at Caltech, homework assignments become tantamount to examinations and the spirit of scientific cooperation is shown the door. Ph 2, of course, was a particularly noticeable and irritating error In judgement as it is an Institute requirement. (Some around here call it an Institute anachronism.) Other courses have been brought to our attention as transgressors; Ch 14 being the most noticeable with ChE 63 and ChE 101 not far behind. The professors I am beginning this article films selected we feel offer the common cause or ideal. Our in these courses must miss the essential fact that the with an apology to the readers of best of the Marx Brothers. principals in this love story ar my Tuesday article. In that story Monkey Business will be shown necrophilic teen-agei and interaction between students is as important to the learning about the Marx brothers, I first immediately followed by The 80-year-old lady. Throughout process at Caltech as interaction between students and claimed that the opening dia Cocoanuts and finally DUCK film our heroes give jabs instructors. It seems senseless for a student who has made logue involved the president of Soup. The first feature was punches to motherhood, an honest effort to solve a problem to be unable to ask a Wagstaff college.

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