University of Pittsburgh - Owl Yearbook (Pittsburgh, PA)

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E241 I-le's a recognized scholar, too, and many schools use his textbook, Man and the Western World. Visits to his office were always a treat, they usually started with puzzling over the intricacies of a timeline and drifted from there into an hour or two of lively conversation about anything from football to the part that airplanes will play in the future. We look up to Dr. Geise because his height is mental as well as physical and because he is a far-sighted historian who is actively helping to shape our future. MR. PHILIP E. RUSH As an electrical engineer who man- ages to see farther than his sliderule, jovial, round-faced Mr. Rush has cap- tured the imagination of his students. His guips brighten the long hours of detailed lab work, and after class he joins the fellows in lively discussions of his many interests. If it's sports they like, he can add his bit as a baseball and football fan: stamp-collectors talk over rare issues with him, and the technical terms fly thick and fast when short-wave radio enthusiasts consult him about constructing sets. Eager to help his students, this easy-going pro- fessor advises several Engineering School organizations. MRS. AGNES LYNCH STARRETT Blue-eyed Mrs. Starrett with her halo of braids can scoff at those who cry that marriage and a career can't mix, she combines her two full-time jobs, as editor of the University Press and as mother of two lively children, with efficiency, patience, and good humor. We students have known her as a dis- cerning critic in English classes, as a co-operative, ever-ready advisor to The Owl, and as a down-to-earth, sin- cere friend. A loyal Pittite since her undergraduate days, Mrs. Starrett bakes cookies for the Chancellor every year on his birthday. With as deft a touch as she displays in the kitchen, she puts out the Pitt Quarterly and has published a complete history of the University. As one more of our faculty who has a sense of balance and who lives her ideals, Mrs. Agnes Lynch Starrett leads the University of Pitts- burgh on its road upward. DR. ALEXANDER SILVERMAN Dr. Silverman, who heads our chem- istry department, everyone likes im- mediately for his charming air and his guiet, ingenuous humor. Completely unaffected, he puts students at their ease by the sincerity of his interest in them and his eagerness to be of help. For instance, there's the well-known box of coughdrops that he keeps on his desk all winter for those who have colds. As a teacher he's thorough, patient, and stimulating, students are proud to be able to study under the guidance of the internationally re- spected authority on glass. Increas- ing outside recognition has accom- panied Dr. Silverman's rise on our campusg his list of honors and honor- ary societies is almost overwhelming. I-lis own glass collection is one of the most outstanding in the world. Fore- most in his field, loved for his gentle friendliness, Dr. Alexander Silverman is our idea of a truly remarkable leader. MR. ROBERT D. AYARS Bus ad students prize their associa- tion with the energetic and enthusias- tic chairman of the accounting depart- ment, Mr. Ayars. They admire his brilliance, are grateful for his clear- cut, well-organized presentation of a difficult subject, and have complete confidence in the fairness of his de- cisions in grading their papers. Both in and out of the classroom he displays a likable twinkle of humorg his jokes help to relieve the tension of exam days. Unraveling the intricacies of big business math still leaves Mr. Ayars some leisure time to perfect his tech- nique as an amateur magician and to work at cabinet-making. Sometimes he prefers to rough it for awhile by retiring

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coaxing rhythm out of the most un- musical of pianos, and this year the freshmen unveiled him as the title figure to climax their Sultan Swing. Fergie remembers his former students, too, and mails copies of the Pitt News to many of them who are now in the armed services. We point with pride to this professor because he hasn't been submerged by the routines of academic life but has managed to re- main a memorable, colorful person- ality. DR. WILLIAM F. SWANSON Dental students unanimously agree that Dr. Swanson is an all-'round good fellow. Professor of bacteriology and histology, he is absorbed in his work and is always willing to explain his fine collection of slides to interested visitors. He trains his students well for the exacting precision of their profess sion, the boys complain good-na- turedly about his inspection of their slides, when We had to grind those teeth down so fine that a breeze would bend them back and forthl Between periods the dents like to gather around and hear about Dr. Swanson's latest hunting or fishing trip. Aviation en- thusiasts compare notes with him, too, for he is also an expert navigator. As a scientist with a talent for knowing how and when to relax, Dr. William Swanson deserves recognition in our Faculty Hall of Fame. DR. JOHN I. GEISE Today he's saluted by the Historical Research Department of the U. S. Army, but we University of Pittsburgh students still think of him as the tall, deep-voiced professor who helped us to discover that there's more to history than reciting dates. ln his survey course of world history, Dr. Geise made even the remoteness of the Paleolithic age seem real and exciting. Philip E. Rush Agnes Lynch Starrett Alexander Silverman t23l

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to his cabin in the woods near Emlen- ton. Popular for his versatility, friend- liness, and helpfulness, Mr. Robert Ayars is representative of what is fin- est in our faculty. DR. EDNA T. BATZ Amid all the activity and confusion of her twelfth floor office, Mrs. Edna Batz, our YWCA Secretary, remains unruffled and good-natured. l-ler repu- tation as a Willing and sympathetic listener has spread, and she welcomes with a smiling, Cf course l have time to see you, the many students who drop in to chat with her and to ask for advice. Prom her World travels she learned the art of Qriental flower ar- ranging, she often brightens the cor- ners of her office with delicately bal-A anced spikes of her home-grown irises and daffodils. We'll remember Mrs. Batz for the guiet Way in Which she fos- ters spiritual beauty on the Pitt campus by her cheerful encouragement, her understanding, and her calm, behind- the-scenes efficiency. MR. WALTER SOBOTKA Typically Continental, Mr. Sobotka continuously delights his students in Retail Training School with his soft Viennese inflections and his precise, glinting humor. l-lis classes in textiles are staccato, emphasized by flicks of his monocle and the expressiveness of his hands. Widely-read, he has a range of information that verges on the encyclopedic. Decisively he scorns superficiality and deplores studying that only skims the surface. Mr. So- botka is consistent in his beliefs, a well-known architect and interior dec- orator, he was a pioneer in designing modern furniture. l-lighly intelligent and individualistic, Mr. Walter So- botka is a colorful part of our Pitt scene, a fervid exponent of good taste in art and architecture. . Robert D. Aycrrs Edna T. Butz Walter Sobotkcz 2