E ITOR'S OTES hen we pulled into the young vineyard roofs of other farmhouses and the blue Coast in the Santa Maria foothills we saw Range where our future hid. We were witnesses to W grapevines that showed only the hint the ebb and flow of Valley life, from the thick of a future crop. Slender canes curled lime-green winter fogs to the sudden blossoming of peach tendrils out the tall ends of protective yellow trees to the reseeding of the fragrant four-o'clocks grow tubes. Yet as the tubes were removed for around our deck. our photographer, I felt the old promise of One morning a coyote came trotting toward fall harvest. us as we ate breakfast, stopping to lift his nose [ was swept back to the San Joaquin before he turned and melted into the shadows Valley, where my husband and I lived for behind our shed. Another day a cottontail moved several years on a small family ranch through the violet shade of a summer vine. south of Fresno. The grapes there were Cinnamon teal ducks swam in a pond across the grown for raisins, not wine, and the road and bluejays argued in the English walnut vines were decades-old, but the covenant of trees overarching our yard. One January first a harvest was the same. shining pheasant heralded the new year. Daily we We knew the black stumps would leaf out in saw mother quail and their babies hurry by like a spring surprise, grow lush over the summer, pull toys and every evening at sunset we watched and by late August hang heavy with Thompson a great horned owl fly from a eucalyptus grove to Seedless grapes. Then the pickers would come rest on a standpipe before sailing on. with their curved knives, settling the dusty These days I live in town, close to the sea, but yellow bunches on flimsy paper trays, and we I often miss my quiet life in the middle of a would play the elemental game with Nature all vineyard. The Santa Maria trip was a reminder of farmers do: in our case, praying for three weeks that time, and of the priceless circle of seasons, of dry weather. not the least of which is the ripe time of fall. For two of our years there we lived in a small house at the edge of a vineyard. Our living room bordered vine rows running west to where they Vicki Hanson disappeared in the distance, beyond them the Editor o OUR READE S just received my spring issue of the magazine geometry of Math 203. We had the singular good for­ I and noticed that Dean [Milo E.] Whitson had tune to have Dean Whitson for this class. He was a passed away. person with the ability and passion for teaching. I am a 1965 graduate of the Architecture Dept. Each day we showed up [during] his office hour to and now a practicing architect in Anchorage. [n the ask questions and get gUidance on the day's lessons. summer of 1964 [four of us] were going through the He never missed a day during six weeks [and] often agony of taking the dreaded calculus and analytic stayed long after the hour was up to help us. He From Our Readers continued on page 2 ON THE COVER Crop and fruit science specialist possibilities ofa unique proposed lames Ontiveros and Cal Poly senior wine marketing minor at Cal Poly agribusiness/marketing major Marta that would expand current viticul­ Polley examine a young pinot nair ture classes and give future students grapevine in their Santa Maria vine­ an edge in the wine industry (see yard. The hopes they nurture for a story on page 4). first harvest in 1999 mirror the (Photo by Doug Allen) CONY NT r~ "-~ r J ~r)~~'r \ I, ............ .J , fA~nd University Publication for Alumni • =..J • ....J • Fall 1998 ---I Friends of Cal Poly, San lUis Obispo EDITOR'S NOTES FROM OUR READERS 5 READER SURVEY RESULTS 4 HARVESTING SOMETHING NEW UNDER THE SUN 7 STUDENTS LIVE AND LEARN IN LONDON ..0 CIRCLING THE GLOBE TO EASTERN EUROPE .... SOLAR ENERGY PIONEER PLEDGES $1 MILLION GtFT ...-52 55-54 I A tranquil fountain graces the grounds of the Charles Krug Winery 55-57 Estate. (Photo by Lisa Hersch) 5 5a-47 48 , - _~ . From Our Readers continued from inside front cover never gave up on us even when we wanted to. We've never forgotten this man or the class he taught us to master. We all graduated and became architects. We couldn't have done it with­ Cal Poly Magazine is published for alumni and out him. This man, and other dedicated teachers, friends of California Polytechnic State University, is a major reason why Cal Poly has gone from a San Luis Obispo, by the Communications Office, very good college to one of the best universities in with support from the Cal Poly Foundation. America. - Jeffrey S. Wilson (ARCH '65) Please mail letters to the editor to "From Our Readers," Cal Poly Magazine, Heron Hall, Room 204, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407 just got around to reading the latest Cal Poly (phone 805/756-7109; fax 805/756-6533). Magazine (spring '98) and was wondering why the Submit written "Class Notes" items to the same editor felt it necessary to add "[sic]" to Mr. address or via e-mail at [email protected]. Kernberger's letter. I also attended Cal State Poly College in the '60s ... and that was the name of Mail address changes to Advancement SerVices, the school back then. You can look it up. Heron Hall, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, CA - Ray Dees (MATH '69) 93407. We did, and Mr. Dees is correct. We were confused by the current names of Cal Poly, Pomona (Cal State Poly VICE PRESIDENT FOR University) and Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo (California UNIVERSITY ADVANCEMENT: Polytechnic State University). - Editor William G. Boldt EDITOR: just got the latest Cal Poly Magazine and read Vicki Hanson Mr. Kernberger's unhappy letter. In your r ply, you missed the perfect opportunity to also tell him CONTRIBUTORS: that your publication is printed on campus in the Ben Beesley, Sauny Dills, Sandra Davis Lakeman, Graphic Communication Department by tu­ Lisa Hersch, jason Sullivan, Lisa Woske dents who are being educated in the process of "tile real world." Cal Poly's learn-by-doing motto DESIGN/PRODUCTION: is lived out every day on campus, but especially Karlen Design/]eff Hamilton by the Graphic Communication and journalism departments, who partner to turn out the Mustang WEBSITE PRODUCTION: Daily newspaper, among other things. Communications Office I'm a proud graduate of Cal Poly and I'm making a good living using the skills and knowl­ PHOTOGRAPHY/ ARTWORK: edge I learned there. [And while I was] in college, Doug Allen, Pat Coffaro, Philip Liang, james being an employee of University Graphics Systems O'Mara, David Wood, Marcia Wright helped pay my expenses. Invite Mr. Kernberger for a tour next time he's PRINTING: in SLO and bring him up to date on the "real University Graphic Systems education" that goes on at Cal Poly and produces excellent publications like Cal Poly Magazine. Keep up the great work. You make me proud! - Erin Thomas Palmeter (GRC '82) The Palmeter Group, San Diego ID 2 CAL POLY MAGAZINE Fall 1998 READ R URV Y R ULTS '. survey says The results are in from the Cal Poly favorite section - is ranked good by 60% of the Magazine readership survey we sent out in May. respondents but is not read by 19%. We thank those respondents who took the time The three most requested topics are to check all those little boxes and add some features on noted alumni (74%), campus comments along the way. Following is the improvements (70%), and Cal Poly research summary of results from our 15% response: projects (63%). Some areas that readers would Our overall reviews are solid, with extra like to see covered more are community praise here and there, and some construLi:ive relations, San Luis Obispo growth and changes, criticism as well, both of which we will use in and future events. improVing the publication. When you're finished with the magazine, Overall format and layout are rated at 78% of you discard it (!), with only 11% saving 24% excellent and 62% good. Artwork stands it or passing it along. (We need to think about at 32% excellent and 47% good. The cover is this one.) rated excellent by 33% and good by 54%, and As for reader demographics: You were the quality of writing is 33% excellent and split evenly among age groups of 31-40,41-50, 60% good. 51-60 at 25% each, most of you (63%) earned Most of you (68%) read some of every issue bachelor's degrees and master's degrees (16%), (68%) as soon as you receive it (55%), with and your university affiliation is primarily 39% reading it eventually. (Note: We encourage alum (70%) or parent of student/alum (24%). you to read the magazine on its Web page at Most of you live in Northern California (37%) http:// www.calpoly.edu/whats.new.html and Southern California (31%) and yow under "Publications" - 72% ofour respondents househo d income is $50,000-$69,000 (25%) have access to the Internet, but only 28% ofthose and $70,000+ (49%). have visited our Website.) Finally, many You consider the subject matter good of you tell us (72%) to excellent (21%) and the articles to keep up relevant to you (90%), with the range of the good topics 28% excellent and 54% good.