Stevens Institute of Technology - Link Yearbook (Hoboken, NJ)

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ww? I 1 XIII IIPQQ in 2 . 4 il ja nz- 2!zT z14,1ZL A --------gr ----- ----- I 1 Q ' - I . . ...-.--.--... -........- ..... amniiiiiinnmmiuiiun 1 all flllllllllll. llllllllilj ling Illlll!IIII!lllllltlllllllllllllllli . . . . .. . . . 4 .,.. . ,' i! 1!!E!!!iIii !ii mliliilillliilaiiiiwnlu f ill ' Qi: l161I0lHi5llt93949 . gggingggggugguy:IEEiiiiiihygmgiihilllilllllij.Q Dr. Harvey Nathaniel Davis IQIQARVEY NATHANIEL DAVIS was born in Providence, Rhode Island, on June 6, 1881. He is - descended from an old colonial family, being the son of Nathaniel French Davis and Lydia Martin CBellowsD Davis. His boyhood days were spent in Providence where he first went to school and where he lived and studied until his graduation from the Providence High School. He entered Brown University, where his father was head of the department of mathematics, and received his A.B. degree in 1901. In 1902, he received his Master's degree, and with A.B. and A.M. behind him he started to conquer new fields at Harvard University, winning his Ph.D. in 1906. In the meanwhile, Dr. Davis had already begun his teaching career. From 1901 to 1904, he was an instructor at Brown University and in 1904 he became an instructor at Harvard. From 1910 to 1919, he was an assistant professor, and, at the end of this period, he assumed the chair of mechanical engineering of Harvard University. Dr. Davis has had a very interesting and varied professional career. In 1917, he was associated with the General Electric Company as engineer in the turbine department at Lynn, Mass. In 1918, he became aeronautical mechanical engineer in the United States Air Service. In 1920, he joined the Franklin Railway Supplies Company, and in 1921 re-entered Government service in the Bureau of Mines. He was consulting engineer for the Air Reduc- tion Company in 1922. He is the author of several technical papers dealing with thermo- dynamics and high temperature steam in particular. He is co-author of two widely known books, namely, Practical Physics by Black and Davis, and Steam Tables and Diagrams by Marks and Davis. Both of these books are recognized as standards, the one, as a High School text-book, the other, as a world-wide authority on steam. Dr. Davis has taken out several patents on the liquefaction and rectification of air, and one on steam turbines. 20

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H ia Eixi t ltlllllli illlillllltill and to control inter-relations of the various student activities. The Council has done wonder- ful work at Stevens, both administrative and social, and has displayed keen judgment in successful efforts toward bringing the students and faculty into closer relationship. ln October, 1926, after twenty-five years of meritorious service at Stevens, Dr. Humphreys tendered his resignation to the Trustees, to take effect in January, 1927. His resignation was made imperative by severe illness to which he finally succumbed on August 14, 1927. The Institute and students mourned the loss of Dr. Humphreys, who had done so much to strengthen the student body, and make Stevens a bigger and better Institute of learning. Thus, it required a whole year on the part of the Trustees of Stevens Institute to select a man worthy of Dr. Humphreys, a man who would be willing to sacrifice his outside interests to become the third President. The interim between the second and third Presidents was very ably filled by Dr. Frank L. Sevenoak, a member of the faculty, who graciously served a year as the Institute's temporary head. During the latter part of the College year of 1927-1928, the Trustees announced their selection, and a testimonial dinner was given Dr. Harvey Nathaniel Davis, who had consented to become the third President of Stevens Institute. Thus did Dr. Davis, an eminent scientist and authority on steam, consent to leave his professorship of mechanical engineering at Harvard to take up the reins left by Dr. Sevenoak, and add to the undying fame of Stevens. 19

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In 1928, Doctor Harvey Nathaniel Davis was chosen as the third President of Stevens Institute of Technology. He made two formal appearances that spring, once at a welcome dinner given by the Trustees and alumni, and once at a mass meeting where he addressed the entire student body. I Since the opening of College, last fall, he has been in office as President, and Stevens has seen many changes which seem to give her a new lease on life. Doctor Davis's policies, which were well outlined in his inaugural address, have been carried out successfully from the start. There are many changes such as the new marking system and the sliding scale of grades, the new type of examinations and the use of text and reference books during examinations, and the new cut systemf, The administration is entirely reorganized, and the duties and powers of five Deans have been brought together under one Dean. The creation of the office of Vice-President is an innovation of great value, for it allows the President to give his un- divided attention to the educational side of his office while the Vice-President takes care of the business end. In February, the Trustees announced a raise in the tuition and Dr. Davis simultaneously brought forth his plan of sliding scale tuitionsf' This plan enables the more active and valuable men to win back their tuition in whole or in part, thus investing the greater propor- tion of the Institute's funds in the more promising men. The introduction of a department of humanities is a large step towards broadening the education of the Stevens engineer and making him a more completely educated College graduate. Another move in this direction is the chair in economics known as the Alexander C. Humphreys Chair of Economics of Engineering. Doctor Harvey Nathaniel Davis, A.B., A.M., Ph.D., Sc.D., LL.D., is a member of the Delta Phi fraternity, Phi Beta Kappa, and Tau Beta Pi. He is a Fellow of the American Academy for the Advancement of Science, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Physical Society, a life member of the American Mathematical Society, the Washington Academy of Science and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 21