Owls in Space: Rice University's
Connections to the Johnson Space Center
Jessica A. Cannon
President John F Kennedy, September 12, 1962
Copyright 2009 All rights reserved. Aubrey B. Calvin, H ouston
Photo courte y of Aubrey C alvin.
This article first appeared in "Houston History," Volume 6,
Number 1, Fall 2008 and is reproduced here with the
permission of that journal's editors.
On September 12, 1962, President John F. Kennedy
stood in the rniddle of Rice Stadium and restated a
goal he first announced before Congress in May of
that year: America would send a man to the Moon
by the end of the decade. Beyond this historic
moment for the city of Houston, however, Rice
University's associations with the space program are
less well known. In fact, Rice officials worked closely
with leadership in the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) beginning as early as
1961 when Houston was first selected as the site for
the new Manned Spacecraft Center. Kennedy even
recognized these early negotiations and plans in his
speech: "I am delighted that this univer ity is playing
a part in putting a man on the moon as part of a
great national effort. ..." 1 And while the research
program that developed around connections with
NASA did not materialize on the grand scale that
many initially hoped, the interchange of ideas,
technology, and people between NASA's Lyndon B.
Johnson Space Center GSC) and Rice over the last
half-century never the less have helped to sustain
scientific research at both institutions and contributed
to the larger story of Houston's transition to Space
City, U.S.A. in the latter half of the twentieth
century.
Rice 's link to what would become the Johnson
Space Center began in early 1961 as Humble Oil
and Refining Company Chairman Morgan Davis,
Texas Congressman Albert Thomas, and university
officials tried to convince NASA to build its sixtymillion-dollar facility to support manned space flight
in Houston. Thomas had tried
unsuccessfully throughout the
late 1950s to convince the
Atomic Energy Commission
to create a laboratory and
research program at Rice. In
August and September of 1961
he succeeded in convincing
NASA Administrator James
Webb and a site selection
committee of the virtues of a
George R . Brown
Hou ton facility-access to
Ellington Airfield, a climate that allows for yearround training and flights, and proximity to a major
city with established communications and computer
resources, indu try, and educational institutions.
Thomas had assistance from his friend and fellow
Rice alumnus George R. Brown, then chairman of
the Rice Board ofTrustees, President Kenneth S.
Continued on page 3
TJhce Rice
Hisf({J)ric~1
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IN THIS ISSUE
Owls in Space: Rice University's Connections
to the Johnson Space Center
PURPOSE
To collect and preserve for the fut11re the
history of Rice University
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
2008-2009
OFFICERS
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President
Karen H ess Rogers '68
Vice-President
Al Woelfel '47
Treasurer
Helen Toombs '79
R ecording Secretary
Nancy Burch '61
Corresponding Secretary
Mary Dix
Cornerstone Editor
BOARD
Lucretia Ahrens '71
John Boles '65
Lynda Crist '67
D eni e Fi cher '73
Nancy Flatt '69
Stephen Fox '73
John Gladu
Kerry Goelzer '70
Neal Heaps '42
Melissa Kean (MA '96, Ph.D. '00)
Doug Killgore '69
Lee Kobayashi '50
Quin McWhirter '62
Joyce Winning Nagle '44
Lee Pecht
Norman Reynolds '61
Patrick Van Pelt (M.B.A. '99)
Ted Workman '49
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Owls in Space: Rice University's Connections to the Johnson Space Center (continued from page 1)
University of Houston administration, and Rice
Pitzer and Chancellor Carey Croneis, as well as the
faculty. 4 Communications between NASA
Houston Chamber of Commerce and other leaders
Administration James Webb and Kenneth Pitzer,
in the city. In fact, Davis transferred 1, 000 acres of
George Brown, Carey Croneis, and others at Rice
land to Rice University from Humble Oil's holdings
continued throughout the fall of 1961 and into 1962
near Clear Lake, and Rice in turn gave the land for
as plans were finalized and both sides outlined their
the new NASA Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC)
goals for cooperative efforts.5
to be constructed. Soon thereafter NASA purchased
NASA officials were
another 600 acres from Rice
particularly impressed with
(also deeded to the university
Rice's program of materials
from Humble Oil) for $1.4
research and its strong
million dollars. 2
engineering programs, which
NASA officially
they hoped would continue
announced the site of the
to grow and provide a natural
new Manned Spacecraft
training program for NASA
Center on September 19,
employees living in Houston.
1961, to the elation of many
"It is clear that the Manned
people in Houston. 3 The
Spacecraft Center will want
availability of the land from
to look to Rice for advanced
Rice was a major draw for
The Clear Lake Site, May 1962
NASA, and it demonstrates
training of the Center
personnel," wrote Homer Newell, Director of
the cooperation and planning that went on locally to
NASA's Office of Space Sciences, but also "we will
win this coveted government installation.
wish to go further than this ... to develop a
Cooperative efforts continued, and on September
relationship between elements of the Manned
22, NASA officials from the Space Task Groupincluding Walt Williams, Robert Gilruth, and Martin
Spacecraft Center and Rice similar to those that
Byrnes-arrived in Houston to see the land and the
now exist between Jastrow's Institute for Space
Studies and the universities in the New York area." 6
relevant city facilities. They were treated to a warm
President Pitzer and Rice officials had similarly high
welcome by members of the Houston Chamber of
aspirations. In a speech before the Houston
Commerce, and after touring the Clear Lake site
Chamber of Commerce on December 7, 1961,
NASA officials enjoyed the president's box at Rice
Pitzer illustrated how Rice fit into the larger goal
Stadium where they witnessed Rice defeat LSU 163 before a crowd of 73,000 football fans. That
for space exploration: "Rice is participating
effectively in this sort of [theoretical and practical]
evening they attended a party hosted by Rice Dean
research activity and we anticipate expanding our
of Engineering Franz Brotzen and were introduced
to additional city officials, members of the Rice and
activities with the aim of contributing further
The Johnson Space Center, March 1964
knowledge and providing trained
manpower for the space program."
Specifically, Rice could offer the
MSC "great enthusiasm for the
project" and "complete
cooperation" of a "supporting
academic and scientific
environment." Additionally, Rice's
"traditional emphasis on
excellence" would complement
"an effort such as Apollo, where
the failure of even a minor valve
or control circuit can mean the
failure of an entire mission and can
endanger the life of the astronaut."
Lastly, "the willingness of Rice
University to expand its activities to Dr. Alexander J Dessler
meet space age needs and the
ability of the community to support such
Southwest in Dallas named as head of the
7
expansion" were factors that finalized the deal.
department. The department offered a graduate
Although Pitzer only vaguely mentioned "new
course of study leading to the Masters and Doctor
of Philosophy degrees, with "a well-balanced
programs" in this December 1961 speech, he quickly
program .. .in the most important fields that
set about creating graduate courses of study and
constitute Space Science and will develop scientists
organizing a program around space studies during
who are proficient in most areas of Space Science
1962. Pitzer briefly considered adding these courses
and expert in at least one." 8 With the department
to the current Physics Department but instead won
established and numerous students applying to study
approval from the Committee of Faculty, Students,
at Rice, a need for laboratory space became evident.
and Alumni to start a new Depa,tment of Space
Funding for a Space Science Building to be built on
Science. On January 4, 1963, the "first Department
the Rice campus was provided by NASA and by the
of Space Science in any college or university in
university, and ground-breaking ceremonies were
America" was announced, with Alexander]. Dessler
held in February 1965. It was completed in 1966. 9
from the Graduate Research Center of the
In June 1963, immediately
following the creation of the Space
Science Department, the university
established a Satellite Techniques
Laboratory to serve as the basis
"for the design, construction,
check-out and environmental
testing of individual instruments
and complete payloads" at Rice.
The lab housed a telemetry
management and command station
and the necessary equipment to
analyze data received from satellites
in addition to design and
fabrication equipment. Curtis D.
\f,\U. ~ lL'1(:I ~~o ffl*otOOr f}tJIUli~C
Laughlin was brought in to head
~
the new lab, as were Brian].
,~ia.O'Brien, newly appointed
Professor
of Space Science at Rice,
Program for groundbreaking, Space Science and Technology Building,
and Ray Trachta. These three men
February 12, 1965
,_.
had designed and built the Injun 1, 2, and 3 satellites
at the University of Iowa funded by the U.S. Navy. 10
One of the lab's first projects was a contract with
NASA to design and build six rocket payloads to be
launched atop Nike-Cajun rockets. The payloads
were named in honor of Rice's mascot Sammy the
Owl, making them Sammy 1, 2, 3, and so on.
Sammy 1 was launched from Wallops Island, Virginia,
on January 14, 1964, to the cheers of a number of
alumni who flew to Virginia to see Rice's first space
traveler (albeit a mechanical one). The rocket
reached an altitude of 90 km, and Sammy 1
functioned according to plan sending back data to
waiting Rice graduate students on the ground. The
remaining Sammies (2 through 6), with more
complex equipment to study the auroras, were
launched successfully that winter and the next from
Fort Churchill in Canada. A report on the flight of
Sammy 5 dated March 23, 1964, recorded "a
complete success" with "three beautiful flights into
auroral conditions which were very satisfactory." The
Sammy payloads made pioneering studies of the
auroras, regions of the sky where highly charged
particles enter the Earth's atmosphere and interact
with the magnetosphere after a long journey from
the sun. The Sammies also provided valuable design
and launch experience for the students, some of
whom earned their degrees based upon these
projects and went on to contribute further to the
study of space during their research and academic
careers. 11
In addition, the Rice Space Science program
won the honor of building the first satellites in
NASA's University Explorer Program. This program
allowed universities to design and build complete
satellites rather than simply constructing instruments
to be added to other NASA satellites. Rice faculty
and students designed a two satellite system to be
launched in both the northern and southern
hemispheres that would study the particles causing
the auroras. The satellites, code-named Owl 1 and
Owl 2, were initially set to be launched in
1967 from the Vandenberg Air Force
Base in California, although they
were delayed by budget
issues and development
problems. 12 Ultimately
they were never
launched, but
several instruments
developed for the
Owls, including
Apollo 15 Crew~ tor): David R. Scott, Commander;
Alfred M. Worden, Command Module Pilot;]ames B. Irwin,
Lunar Module Pilot
a low-level auroral TV camera, were later flown on
manned spacecraft. 13
Other scientific instruments and satellites were
developed during the 1960s at Rice. The Biosatellite
Research Program in the Department of Biology, a
NASA-sponsored program, developed two
satellites-Biosatellite-A and -B-that were
launched from Cape Kennedy in December 1966
and September 196 7 respectively. These satellites
used vinegar flies to test the effects of radiation and
weightlessness on living organisms. The first satellite
was never recovered, but the second was recovered
near Hawaii after a 45-hour flight. 14 Back in the
Satellite Techniques Lab, Brian O'Brien and the
Space Science students built a Navy-funded satellite
to conduct further research on the auroras and the
Earth's magnetosphere. Called Aurora 1, the satellite
was put into orbit in June 1967. 15
NASA's Apollo missions to the Moon (11, 12,
and 14 through 17) included scientific equipment
designed to be left on the Moon by the
astronauts. Rice Space Science faculty
and students designed three
different instruments that were
included in these Apollo
payloads. John Freeman's
Suprathermal Ion
Detector Experiment
(SIDE) was set up on
the Moon by
Apollo 17 View
of Earth
Apollo 11 on the Moon,July 20, 1969
Astronaut Young Drives Rover at Descartes Landing Site
Apollo 12 and Apollo 14 astronauts. The ChargedParticle Lunar Environment Experiment (CPLEE)
developed by Brian]. O'Brien was on the ALSEP
payload for Apollo 13, and was deployed on the
Moon by Alan Shepard on the Apollo 14 mission.
The CPLEE was, in fact, an electronic ancestor to
equipment developed for the Aurora 1 satellite. The
Dust Detector Experiment (DDE), also developed
by O'Brien, was perhaps the most note-worthy
experiment of the three. The matchbox-size detector
weighed just 270 grams, and was one of only two
experiments placed on the Moon during the historic
landing of Apollo 11 (the other was a seismology
monitoring device). The DDE was also deployed on
Apollo missions 12, 14, and 15. Data sent back to
scientists on Earth showed dust accretion was a
significant problem on the Moon's surface- research
that is still important today as NASA plans new
missions to the Moon and must design equipment
Apollo 11 Space Vehicle
and space suits that will work in the highly dusty
lunar environment. Transmissions from the DDE
ended only when NASA turned off all the ALSEP
equipment in December 1977, although these small
pieces of Rice remain on the Moon today, much
like the foot prints of twelve men who also made
the long journey from Houston. 16
There have been other connections between the
Johnson Space Center and Rice since the 1960s too.
Although the focus at JSC rapidly became design
and applied engineering (on things like space suits,
capsules, and later the Space Shuttle), Rice
University was able to maintain some research
relationships with JSC and to capitalize upon its
strong engineering program in training several past
and present astronauts. Members of the Rice faculty
lectured to astronauts on various scientific topics,
and Brian O'Brien specifically was asked to serve on
a NASA commission to discuss radiation dangers to
the astronauts. 17
Collaborations with the MSC continued with
the creation of the Lunar Science Institute to handle
materials brought back from the Moon. Rice owned
the West Mansion (as part of the lands initially given
to the institution from Humble Oil in 1961), so
when NASA sought a facility for a Lunar Receiving
Laboratory to house the lunar samples and research,
the adjacent lands of the West Mansion near JSC
made sense. Rice, along with grants from NASA and
the National Academy of Sciences, created the Lunar
Science Institute. It was operated at this location by
Rice and the Academy until 1990 when the lab
relocated in the Clear Lake area. 18
Beyond scientific associations, Rice's Fondren
Library staff cooperated with the MSC library,
helping to obtain the necessary technical books
through a book sharing agreement. Fondren Library
became "an official repository for general purpose
educational-information materials from NASA," as
opposed to the purely technical reports. 19 More
recently, in the 1980s Professor Alexander Dessler
studied data received from Voyager 1 (which passed
by Jupiter and Saturn) and Voyager 2 (that went past
Neptune and the planet's moon Triton). 2 From
1982 until 2000 the Woodson Research Center, by
agreement with NASA, housed the Johnson Space
Center History Collection, making the records of
the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, and Apollo Soyuz Test
Project Programs available to the public. 21 Even
today there are on-going collaborations between
Rice's Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology
andJSC. 22
While the relationship between Rice and JSC
did not develop on the scale of the labs at Cal Tech
and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, there is a great
deal of history between these two Houston icons
Dr. Robert C Haynes, Associate Professor of Space Science, and graduate student, August 1965
°
Apollo 15 Lift-offfrom Cape Kennedy, Florida, 9:34 a.m., EDT,July 26, 1971
including several significant research connections
over the years. Rice University officials and
alumni-including Congressman Albert Thomas,
class of 1920-were very influential in bringing
NASA to Houston. The university also seized the
opportunity to develop a stronger graduate program
in the sciences with the creation of the Department
of Space Science to further facilitate the relationship
with the MSC and later JSC. Three satellites were
launched out of the Rice program, including
Aurora 1 which may still be in orbit. And three
different pieces of equipment designed at Rice were
deployed on the Moon through the Apollo ALSEP
program, and remain there today. These links
between the two institutions continue in the
twenty-first century through programs like the Rice
Space Institute and are reinforced by numerous
engineers and research scientists trained at Rice over
the last fifty years. Astronauts who have earned
degrees from Rice, including Peggy Whitson (Ph.D.
'86)- who recently broke the U.S. record for longest
cumulative time in space and was the first female
commander of the International Space Station-and
other alumni like former Space Shuttle Program
Director Wayne Hale (BS '76) contribute in obvious
ways to space exploration, but other alumni
participate behind the scenes through ongoing
research that is invaluable to continuing space
exploration. 23
NOTES
The author would like to thank Brian]. O'Brien (who
graciously provided feedback and a long-distance
phone interview from Australia),John B. Boles, Melissa
Kean, Rose Sundin, Philip Montgomery, and Lee Pecht
for their assistance on this project.
The text of Kennedy's speech available online at the
Kennedy Presidential Library website:
http://www.jfklibrary.org/Historical+Resources/ A
rchives/Reference+Desk/Speeches/JFK/003POFO
3SpaceEffort09121962.htm (accessed April 30,
2008).
2
3
4
See Francelle -Pruitt, "Congressman Albert Thomas
and NASA's Corning to Houston: A Study in
Legislative Effectiveness, 1936-1966," in
Southwestern Historical Quarterly 55 (April 2002),
583-614; Interview with Malcolm Lovett Ganuary
21, 1971), Center History Discussions- Site
Acquisition, Box 3, Merrifield Transcripts,Johnson
Space Center History Collection at University of
Houston-Clear Lake (hereinafter noted as JSCHC);
Letter from James Webb to George R. Brown dated
February 23, 1962, Apollo Chronological Files, Box
062-62,JSCHC; and copy of a letter from George
R. Brown and Rice University's attorneys to James
· Webb,January 23, 1962, in Box 9 Folder 3, Rice
University Carey Croneis Office Records, Woodson
Research Center.
NASA Release #61-207 dated September 19, 1961,
in Box 9 folder 3, Rice University Carey Croneis
Office Records (Provost, Acting President,
Chancellor), 1950-1972,WRC. See also "NASA To
Build Space Center On Clear Lake," section 1 page
1, and "Space Center Here Means New Era In
Science and Progress for Area," section 3 page 2
both in the September 20, 1961, edition of the
Houston Post.
5
Memo regarding the Manned Space Flight Center
from Croneis to Members of the Board of
Governors dated August 31, 1961; Letter from
George R . Brown to James E.Webb dated June 20,
1961; Letter from Croneis to James Webb dated
October 16, 1961; Notes and Agenda for Homer
Newell's visit to Rice in a Memo to Croneis dated
December 15, 1961, all found in Box 9 folder 3,
Rice University Carey Croneis Office Records,
WRC.
6
"Our Interest in Rice University," a memo "for the
Administrator" written by Homer Newell dated
November 14, 1961,Apollo Chronological Files,
Box 062-52,JSCHC. See also "Conference Report:
Visit to Rice University" by Newell dated
December 19, 1961, Apollo Chronological Files,
Box 062-54,JSCHC.
7
"Rice University and Houston in the Space Age,"
Box 49 folder 9, Rice University President Kenneth
Pitzer Office Records, WRC.
8
It should be noted that although it was the first
"Department of Space Science," several other
universities across the nation offered some
coursework in space science through their Phyiscs
Departments. Quotations are from Rice University
News Release,January 4, 1963, Box 11 folder 1,
Rice University President Kenneth Pitzer Office
Records, WRC.
9
Memo from Franz Brotzen to Pitzer, December 28,
1962, Box 11 folder 2 (and see folder 6 as well),
Rice University President Kenneth Pitzer Office
Records, WRC; "Support of Facilities Grant at Rice
Institute, 4 February 1964," and "Review of
Proposal #44-06-(014) Support of an Institute for
Space Technology and Science at Rice University,
11 May 1964," both in Box 075-12,Apollo Lunar
Science Chronological Files,JSCHC;John B. Boles,
Interview with Martin A. Byrnes, Center History
Discussions-Center Operations Management,
Box 1, Merrifield Transcripts, JSCH C, especially
pages 5-7 and 18-26.
A University So Conceived: A Brief History of Rice
University, third revised and expanded edition
(Houston, 2006), 40.
10
Rice University News Release,June 19, 1963,
Box 11 folder 2, Rice University President Kenneth
Pitzer Office Records, WRC. O'Brien and
Laughlin worked with James Van Allen (of the Van
Allen Radiation Belts fame) at the State University
NOTES (CONTINUED)
of Iowa, now called the University of Iowa in Iowa
City (as opposed to Iowa State University in Ames,
Iowa). Interview with Brian]. O'Brien, May 3,
2008, by the author (hereinafter noted as Brian
O'Brien Interview).
11
12
Two examples are James L. Burch (Ph.D. 1968),Vice
President of.the Southwest Research Institute who
continues to study the magnetosphere, and one of
his students, Dr. Patricia Reiff (Ph.D. 1975) who is
currently a professor in the Physics and Astronomy
Department as well as head of the Rice Space
Institute. Rice University News Release,January 6,
1964, Box 11 folder 2; Quarterly Report by B. J.
O'Brien on the Satellite Techniques Laboratory,
dated September 15, 1964, Box 11 folder 3; Memo
from A.J. Dessler to K. S. Pitzer dated March 23,
1964, Box 11 folder 2; Report on Sammy 5 dated
March 23, 1964, Box 11 folder 2 (quotation); and
Memo from B.J. O'Brien to K. S. Pitzer on the
"Flight of Sammy 1" dated January 24, 1964, Box
11 folder 2, all in the Rice University President
Kenneth Pitzer Office Records, WRC. Another
alumnus from this era who has since returned to
work at the RSI is Arthur Few.
"2 Rice Satellites OKd: Owls I and II, Naturally"
from the Houston Post, February 6, 1965; "New
NASA Program Would Fund University Satellite
Development," Aviation Week and Space
Technology, October 19, 1964; "Rice is Given OK
to Build Own Satellite," Houston Chronicle, February
4, 1965; and "Students do most of the work on
Rice contract with NASA," Product Engineering,
October 10, 1966. All news clippings can be found
in the Owl Satellite Information File, WRC. See
also: "The Rice University/NASA Owl Satellites," a
summary by B. J. O'Brien dated February 1966 and
"Proposal to the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration from Rice University, Houston,
Texas, for the Design, Construction and Use ofTwo
Research Satellites Code-Named OWLs," in the
Owl Satellite Information File, WRC.
13
An "Owl Spacecraft Schedule" dated August 9,
196 7 shows the scheduled launch dates for Owl 1 as
August of 1968 and September of 1968 for Owl 2.
The schedule can be found in the Owl Satellite
Information File, WRC. Independent inquiry by
the author with Professor Patricia Reiff and Brian J.
O'Brien, confirmed that the Owls were never
launched, but that the technology was quite
advanced for the time and was later utilized on
other projects.
14
" Rice bio-satellite recently orbited," Rice Thresher,
October 12, 1967, page 4 (available in the WRC).
15
Information on the Aurora 1 is from Brian O'Brien
Interview. O'Brien plans to publish his memoirs,
"Cave, Moon, and Saving Spaceship Earth," in the
future. See also:Vincent Beauchamp Wickwar,
"Photometers on the Satellite Aurora 1" (Ph.D.
diss., Rice University, 1968).
Photos from March 2 9 Presentation of Research Projects by Students ofJohn Boles
Kerry Goelzer and Ted Wieber
N icholas Muscara and Zachary Ceffelt
NOTES (CONTINUED)
16
Brian O'Brien Interview; additional information on
the specific Apollo missions and their ALSEP
packages can be found at (accessed May 5, 2008):
http: I I nssdc. gsfc.nasa. gov I nmc/ experimentDisplay.
do?id=1969-099C-05 (SIDE);
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/experimentDisplay.
do?id=1969-059C-05 (DDE);
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/ experimentDisplay.
do?id=1971-008C-08 (CPLEE).
17
Brian O'Brien Interview. Curt Michel, a professor
at Rice in 1963 and again after 1969, was a
scientist-astronaut at the MSC from 1964 to 1969.
18
"MSC News Release," stamped March 4, 1968, in
Box 47 folder 12, Rice University President
Kenneth Pitzer Office Records, WRC; and
"Planetary institute to end mansion stay," a clipping
from the Webster (TX) Citizen, March 20, 1990,
located in the Lunar Science Institute Information
File,WRC.
19
Letter Exchange between Shelby Thompson
(NASA) and Pitzer,July-August 1964, Box 47
folder 11, Rice University President Kenneth Pitzer
Office Records, WRC; Interview with Charles M.
Grant,Jr., Center History Discussions- Technical
Information, Box 2, Merrifield Transcripts,JSCHC.
20
"Voyager I focus of space lecture," Houston
Chronicle, January 15, 1981, "Weekend Preview"
section page 5, and "Rice chairman, graduate on
hand to study data, results from probe," Houston
Post, August 23, 1989, page 1; both clippings are
found in the Dessler Information File, WRC.
Ann Irving Cruikshank and Bonnie Sue Wooldridge
21
The Collection is currently located at the
University of Houston-Clear Lake. Guide to the
Johnson Space Center History Archive (1952-1980)
in the Woodson Research Center, Rice University,
page 1, and copy of the announcement on the
Woodson Research Center homepage detailing the
closure of the collection beginning March 31, 2000,
both in the Non-accessioned manuscript collections
of the Johnson Space Center History Archive,
WRC.
22
"Rice, NASA Team Up to Advance Nanotech
Frontier," Rice University Press Release, October
15, 1998, available at:
http:/ /www.media.rice.edu/media/NewsBot.asp?
MODE=VIEW&ID=356&SnID=2 (accessed
April 30, 2008).
23
"Rice alumna sets record in space," Rice University
News,April 17, 2008, available at:
http:/ /www.media.rice.edu/media/NewsBot.asp?
MODE=VIEW&ID=10891&SnID=692238672
(accessed April 30, 2008).
Joyce Nagle and Nancy Boles
Nina Xue
and
Embre J Smith
Photos courtesy
Greg Davis
of
FROM THE ARC:HIVES
By Alan Bath
Fall 1968
TheVietnam War dragged on. Young demonstrators at the Democratic National
Convention were br~•
attacked by the Chicago police. An,~ if these weren't en~ugh
to disturb the incoming Rice student, there was the Freshman Orientation Program:
~a!IY
The Thresher complained that the program was too structured, too intense, and too
stressful, and suggested it be altered to give freshmen "more time to sit around in the
grass and talk about the war, the draft, drugs, sex, racial issues, or whatever comes up."
To get away from it all, there was always a trip to the Village, following the map
thoughtfully
The Thresher.
A Rice Guide to Shopping in the Village