News From Clarkson - The E-Newsletter for Clarkson Alumni

April 2007

CLARKSON UNIVERSITY’S ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN TEAM WINS SECOND PLACE AT COMPETITION IN NEW MEXICO
Clarkson‘s environmental design team, Clarkson University Remediation Engineers (CURE), won second place in the 17th annual International Environmental Design Contest (EDC) at New Mexico State University. The team is part of the University's SPEED (Student Projects for Engineering Experience and Design) program. The Clarkson team's design task was to create a treatment process for small produce growers (150-acre farms) to treat surface water before it is used in applying crop protection materials. The surface water often contains harmful bacteria and viruses, which can make people sick. The students designed a simple, cost-effective system to remove bacteria and viruses from the water. They determined that a 150-acre farm would only apply crop protection chemicals on average of one day a month and need only 3, 000 gallons per application. The students went a step further and developed a mobile system that could be shared within a farmer's co-op to reduce costs for individual farmers. Up to 20 farmers could share the trailered apparatus. "The students' score brought them to a second-place finish in the contest," said Professor Amy Zander, team co-advisor along with Professor Thomas Holsen. "However, the first-place finisher earned the highest numerical score ever in the 17 years of the competition, so our score, less than 10 points (out of a possible 2000) behind first place, was a very good finish. It was potentially the second highest finish ever." "A national environmental consulting firm has expressed interest in taking the system to market with help from Clarkson University," said Zander. "The U.S. Food and Drug Administration also took a strong interest in the design." The EDC is hosted by WERC (the Waste-management, Education and Research Consortium), one of three centers that make up the newly developed Institute for Energy and the Environment, (IEE) and uses an interdisciplinary research agenda to address environmental sustainability.

CLARKSON HONORS STUDENT IS NAMED 2007 GOLDWATER SCHOLAR
Jeffrey M. Ward, a dual Mathematics and Computer Science major, has been awarded a Goldwater Scholarship. He is the 17th Clarkson student to receive the highly coveted award since the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation was established in 1986. Ward, a resident of Brewerton, N.Y., is a member of Clarkson's Honors Program, an intensive four-year curriculum for exceptionally talented students. The University admits only 30 new students to the Honors program each year. Ward is also a Clarkson Presidential Scholar, a member of the National Honor Society, and has won several Mathematical competition awards and other academic recognition. Associate Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science Christino Tamon is Ward's research supervisor. "Jeff's research lies at the intersection of two diametrically opposite areas: cryptography and machine learning," says Tamon. "Cryptography deals with hiding the known, while machine learning is about inferring the unknown. When they meet in a mixture of geometry and numbers, things get irresistibly interesting." "My essay for the scholarship competition dealt with lattice-based cryptography problems," explains Ward. "Specifically learning geometric shapes: Given some points and knowledge of what the shape should be, can you find the boundary for that shape?" Ward adds, "If so, surprisingly, some cryptosystems can be broken." According to James R. “Dick” Pratt, dean of Clarkson University’s School of Arts & Science, "Jeff exemplifies the type of focused, talented and hard-working student that is attracted to Clarkson's rigorous academic environment. His love of mathematics, curiosity and solid work ethic will carry him far in his quest to pursue a career as a research mathematician and teacher." The Goldwater Foundation is a federally endowed agency established in 1986. The Scholarship Program honoring Senator Barry M. Goldwater is designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences, and engineering.

CLARKSON PROFESSOR RECEIVES BACK-TO-BACK “BEST BOOK” AWARDS
It is a "two-peat" for Clarkson's Johndan Johnson-Eilola. The Communications and Media professor has received the Best Book on Technical and Scientific Communication Award from the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) for the second consecutive year. Last year, Johnson-Eilola won the NCTE award for Central Works in Technical Communication, a collection of 32 landmark essays co-edited by Penn State University professor Stuart A. Selber. His latest book, Datacloud: Toward a New Theory of Online Work, published by Hampton Press, explores how users learn to work and communicate within information-saturated spaces (both physical and online). Johnson-Eilola's book contends that the computer revolution is not a single definitive "event" in modern history, but rather "a dispersed network of subtle but profound changes in patterns of working, living and communicating." Datacloud helps readers understand how society is learning to deal with massive amounts of information and technological shifts. NCTE is an international organization founded in 1911 to advance teaching, research and student achievement in the English language arts at all scholastic levels. More than 60,000 English practitioners promote the development of literacy, the use of language to construct personal and public worlds and to achieve full participation in society, through the learning and teaching of English and the related arts.

CLARKSON CHEM-E-CAR TEAM WINS BEST ENGINEERING DESIGN AWARD IN BOSTON COMPETITION
Two Clarkson Chem-E-Car teams recently competed in the Chem-E-Car Competition at Northeastern University in Boston. The teams are part of the University's SPEED program. Teams were required to design and build a car powered by a non-combustion chemical reaction that can carry specified cargo a certain distance. The car also needed to be within certain size constraints. The winner was determined by a combined score, for traveling the correct distance and for creativity. One of the challenges of this competition is that beforehand the teams are only given a range for distance and load. The distance the vehicles travel can be up to 150 feet and the load can range from zero to 500 milliliters of water. Teams are told only one hour before the competition what the specifics will be, in order to prove that they know how to use the reactants and concentrations to calibrate the engine to meet the specifications. After extensive research earlier in the year, two promising ideas were developed by the students and the choice was made to break Clarkson's team into two groups to design two separate cars. Team members said that the production of two cars would not have been possible without a generous donation from ExxonMobil and admittance into the SPEED program. The "Goodness Gradients" chose Peltier junctions in order to create electricity to power a motor. The junctions are normally used to cool computer processors by inputting a current. Using two chemical reactions, a temperature gradient was formed across the junctions and electricity was produced. The second team, "CU Blue," chose a voltaic cell, which made use of zinc and copper plates in a copper sulfate solution to produce electricity and power their motor. Before being allowed to compete, each team had to pass a scientific poster presentation and an extensive safety audit. Both of Clarkson's teams passed with high marks and received many compliments on their work and design from judges, industrial observers and visiting university faculty. The Goodness Gradient team received the award for Best Engineering Design, but was later disqualified. "The car was by far the best performing car at the event, but was unfortunately disqualified due to a technicality," said Robert J. Davis, director of SPEED. Clarkson's car moved 73 feet (out of the required 80) but the chemical reaction that powered it did not complete within the two-minute time limit. They were over the limit by just a few seconds. The CU Blue team also had a very successful first run, but had technical problems during the second. The judges were impressed with both designs and encouraged Clarkson's teams to apply for two of the limited number of open positions to the national student Chem-E-Car competition to be held in Salt Lake City, Utah, in November.

SAAC HOSTS SPECIAL OLYMPICS SPORTS CLINIC
Clarkson University’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will host a Special Olympics Sports Clinic Day on Saturday, April 21. The clinic, which will highlight track & field, basketball, volleyball, floor hockey and soccer, will take place at the University’s Indoor Recreation Center (IRC) from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. The event is open to all current Special Olympics participants in Northern New York's Area 27. The clinic will also serve as a community awareness event for people interested in becoming involved with Special Olympics. For more information, interested individuals can pre-register with Martha Bowen at 518/483-1250 ext 250 or 518/483-5222. They can also contact Beth Demo at 315/386-7987 or 315/244-8758. To make a donation to Special Olympics of Northern New York, please contact Martha Bowen.

NICK DODGE NAMED 2007 ALL-AMERICAN
Add another honor to the exceptional resume of Clarkson University Golden Knight, Nick Dodge. The Golden Knights’ captain was named to the 2007 RBK All-American squad, announced Friday night in St. Louis, Mo. by the American Hockey Coaches Association. As a junior, Dodge led the Knights to one of Clarkson’s best seasons ever with a 25-9-5 record, winning the ECAC Hockey League Tournament Championship and earning the number one seed in the NCAA East Regional, the Knights’ first appearance in the national tourney since 1999. A second-team selection at forward, Dodge becomes the 35th Golden Knight to earn All-America accolades and the first Clarkson player to earn the prestigious honor in six years.

CLARKSON ALUMNI IN THE NHL
Here is a quick performance summary of Clarkson alumni in the NHL:

Eric Cole '01	Carolina Hurricanes	61 points
Chris Clark '98	Washington Capitals	54 points
Todd White '97	Minnesota Wild	44 points
Craig Conroy '94	Calgary Flames	37 points
Todd Marchant '94	Anaheim Ducks	23 points
Randy Jones '04	Philadelphia Flyers	22 points
Willie Mitchell '01	Vancouver Canucks	11 points
Kent Huskins '01	Anaheim Ducks	3 points

FINAL DAYS OF INAUGURAL WOMEN’S HOCKEY JERSEYS SALE
The team has made available their remaining unsold jerseys and the response has been overwhelming! These are the first sets ever worn by the D1 program. They are selling for $125.00 each and the proceeds will go directly back into the program.
Remaining jerseys are:
Home - #26
Away - #5 and #19
Please contact Coach Seeley directly if you would like to purchase a jersey (Rick Seeley at rseeley@clarkson.edu or call 315-268-4468).

WHERE THE BOYS ARE – JIM WOOD ‘64
If you have enjoyed the articles each month sent in by Jim Wood ’64, be sure to read this month’s article, Where the Boys Are. Remember spring break, that road trip to Florida, or perhaps sneaking co-eds into the residence hall, or maybe you have a fondness for the year 1961 because of baseball? If any of these strike a familiar tone, then please read this month’s installment by our favorite contributing editor! Thanks Jim!

5TH ANNUAL PETER KIEVENAAR ’70 MEMORIAL GOLF TOURNAMENT
Joan Kievenaar is pleased to announce the 5th annual tournament in the memory of her late husband, Peter Kievenaar ‘70 to raise money for West Bridgewater High School. The golf tournament will take place on Saturday, June 23rd at the River Bend Country Club in West Bridgewater, MA. All net proceeds will go towards college scholarships in Pete’s name! For further information please e-mail Joan at jkievenaar@aol.com or Tom Olsen at olsen413@hotmail.com or call Joan at 508-947-2069.

CLARKSON WELCOMES SAL CANIA BACK TO CLARKSON
It is with great pleasure that the Development staff welcomes Sal Cania back to Clarkson. Sal will serve as the Director of Major Gifts & Planned Giving. Sal along with his wife Lisa and their two children have been long time residents in the Potsdam area and Sal returns to Clarkson with his usual high level of enthusiasm and expertise. Welcome back Sal!

FIRST TEAM HEADS TO ATLANTA FOR THE FIRST ROBOTICS CHAMPIONSHIP
Division By Zero (Team 229) took first place this weekend in the Long Island Regional of the First Robotics Competition in Hempstead, N.Y. Division by Zero is made up of students from Massena High School and Salmon River High School and mentored by students in Clarkson University's SPEED Program. The team worked together to build a robot, named Afterthought, that competed in a sports-like game called Rack 'n' Roll. Last Thursday through Saturday the team traveled to the Long Island Regional to compete against 40 other teams. Division By Zero was undefeated in the qualifying rounds with a record of 11-0. This gave the team the first-seed position going into the elimination matches of the tournament. The team battled through semi-final, quarter-final and championship matches, to emerge as the winner of the regional competition. The final record for this double elimination event was 16-1, with the only loss occurring in the first match of a semi-final round. The team is now headed to the National Robotics Competition in Atlanta, Ga on April 12 - 14. The competition will consist of more than 300 teams and 25,000 students.

KNIGHTS OF NOTE
2006-2007 Golden Knights Men’s Hockey Team: Congratulations on an incredible season! We are proud of your ECAC Championship title and the invitation to the NCAA tournament! Thanks to all of the players, coaches and alumni who made this season a memorable one. See all of you next season.

Darryl Dillenback ‘69 Receives the Alumnus of the Year Award
Darryl J. Dillenback ‘69 joined Alpha Kappa Psi at Clarkson University in 1967 and is a Life Loyal member. Throughout his career Darryl has led and turned around several multi-million dollar companies. He has increased company revenues by more than one hundred million dollars, reversed 16 million-dollar losses to break-even, consolidated numerous manufacturing plants and implemented several new business systems.

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