University of Kansas - Jayhawker Yearbook (Lawrence, KS)

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Top: Tad Shvotsuka, graduate student from Waseda University in Tokyo, contemplates just where to start as he examines some of the Research Foundation ' s massive equipment. Below: Dr. Cordon Wiseman poses with a bat- tery of two oscilloscopes, an electrometer and other measuring devices used in his project. various metals in unusual oxidation or valence states; an example (for those who understand some chemistry) is the formation of aluminum with a plus one or plus two charge instead of the usual plus three. The most interesting thing about the project is the fact that the whole experiment does not use water as a solvent, but liquid ammonia. The advantage of liquid ammonia is that such strong reducing metals as sodium and potassium will dissolve in it much as salt does in water. In- cidentally, besides aluminum, the metals being studied include gallium, indium, magnesium, and ruthenium. The larger portion of research in the chemis- try department is the work of graduate students. Their work is done in the quonset hut behind Bailey. The hut is divided into small rooms; this allows each student to have his own laboratory (and rumor has it that they make excellent day- time sleeping rooms). One interesting graduate project is that of Ronald Jackson, who is working toward his doc- tor ' s degree. This project is the determination of the vapor pressure of cerium, a metal used in cigarette lighter flints. The metal used is particu- 30

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Dr. A. W. Davidson, professor of chemistry and assistant dean of the Graduate School, is instru- mental in the coordination of graduate research projects. We don ' t stop to realize what the research worker goes through. Many of you have had to reproduce the classical proofs of the Pythagorean theorem. Think of what the first man to prove it must have gone through. In the archives of science we find records of bravery, logic and sheer guts not to be surpassed by that on any battlefield. For an example, take the story of the construction of the first atomic pile beneath the University of Chicago ' s stadium. These men knew the principles behind the construction and control of the pile, but they had no idea how to keep their project from exploding. Nevertheless, they set to work, realiz- ing that an atomic pile was nothing more than a controlled atomic bomb and that they might be roasted alive in the white-hot inferno of an atomic explosion. Fortunately, these men succeeded, and we now look forward to the day when the atomic pile will be our chief source of centralized power. The most pathetic thing about research is failure over and over again. Even Einstein says that he is wrong 99% of the time. Although Ein- stein is a modest man, his estimation is probably very close to correct in describing most projects. One outstanding example of this is the story behind the discovery of fluorine, a deadly poisonous gas. Some of the world ' s greatest scientists worked in vain for 75 years to isolate the gas. At least eight are known to have died working with it; how many unknown men were killed is unrevealed. Finally, Henri Moissan isolated the gas in 1886. Moissan was a fanatically neat person, the story being that he once went into a fit of rage at finding a drop of water on his laboratory floor. He was well aware of the 75 years of failures, and it was only by applying all of his passion for neat- ness and precision that he finally succeeded. Yet in his joy and triumph, he nearly wrecked his lab- oratory celebrating. This was one case where the 99% of failures nearly reached the 100% mark; today we have many problems that are also approaching that mark. Most of us will never know that feeling of long repeated failure and then success; but on this campus there are those who are experiencing it now. It is to these men that we wish to pay tribute and to offer our heartiest wishes for good luck and success. The research being done here is by no means confined to the physical sciences, nor even to sciences as far as that goes. The research program here is an immense undertaking including projects concerning government, education, and business. However, since the physical sciences are more tangible, we will concern ourselves with them for the present. Even then we can only glance at a limited field, the projects of the departments of chemistry, physics, the Research Foundation, and the State Geological Survey. With all this in mind, let ' s look at some of the men that are writing to- morrow ' s textbooks. Explosions aren ' t the only things that happen at Bailey Chemistry Laboratories. A good example is the work being carried on by Dr. Jacob Klein- berg. The purpose of the project is to obtain 29

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Top: Dr. J. O. Maloney considers the many aspects of his job as director of the Research Foundation. Here he adjusts one of the many projects that he controls. Below: Dr. John C. Frye, executive di- rector of the Geological Survey, points with pride to one of the Survey ' s projects, the complete map- ping of all mineral resources in Kansas. larly fascinating. It is heated above its melting point of 645 C without any fire whatsoever. This is done by an induction furnace. A crucible con- taining the metal is placed within a water cooled tube. Encircling the tube is a coil through which a high energy alternating electric current is pass- ing. Each time the current is reversed the magnetic lines of force created by the current pass through the cerium in the crucible. This causes a terrific heat build-up in the metal. Since the temperature of the metal is so high, an ordinary thermometer is out of the question. Instead, an instrument known as an optical pyrometer measures the temperature by scanning the color of the metal. As the tempera- ture of the metal rises, its vapor creates a pressure in the tube exactly like the vapor or steam of boil- ing water. These figures are tabulated and will eventually find their way into a handbook of chemistry tables. This is the merest hint of the work done by the department of chemistry. The department is unfortunately handicapped by the lack of room at Bailey and is anxiously waiting to move into the new science building. The faculty is one of the best anywhere and its former students agree that the moment you enter Bailey you begin work on some of the most fascinating and most difficult courses of your college career. A few blocks from the delightful aroma of Bailey is another hot spot for research. This is Blake Hall, home of the department of physics. The physics projects are extremely complicated to say the least, and are mostly concerned with some form of atomic energy. The department has three major projects at present, each under the sponsorship of a faculty member, one of whom is Dr. L. Worth Seagon- dollar. His main piece of equipment is the Uni- versity ' s pride and joy, the Van de Graaff gen- erator. This essential for atomic research was built by the University several years ago. Since such machinery as the generator and cyclotron are not manufactured, all parts except some electrical de- vices were made here on the campus. The gen- erator is one of the largest in the Midwest, the only comparable ones being in St. Louis and Houston, and it is probably one of the best controlled in the world. The machine is capable of producing near- ly 3,000,000 volts and driving a particle at very nearly the speed of light. It is a monster of a machine consisting of a tank about six feet in diameter and twenty feet long. The control panel, containing a maze of wiring and dials, is shielded 31