WASHINGTON -- On Wednesday (03FEB10), NASA Administrator Charles Bolden named Dr. Woodrow Whitlow, Jr., the associate administrator for Mission Support at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Whitlow will continue to serve as the director of NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland until a successor is named. In this new position, Whitlow will be responsible for most NASA management operations, including human capital, budget and systems support as well as a variety of other vital cross agency business, institutional and contract support functions.

NASA Administrator Names Woodrow Whitlow Associate Administrator for Mission Support

The first part of the report contains the introduction, and the summary of each of the major findings and our recommendations for future action; it is also important to read the second part of the report, which is the research component including details from the interviews, survey and cohort analysis that are very revealing about life at MIT and the challenges we face in moving toward the goal of a more open and inclusive environment at MIT. -- Paula T. Hammond, Ph.D. '84 - Bayer Professor and Executive Officer

Report of the Initiative for Faculty Race and Diversity
MIT faculty study finds diversity is lacking --- The Boston Globe
MIT Report Recommends New Strategies for Improving Diversity Among Faculty --- Diverse

Nasa Astronaut (and BAMIT member) Robert L. Satcher, PhD, MD is part of the team that launched into space on STS-129 at 2:28 p.m. EST - Nov. 16, 2009. Satcher was selected as an astronaut in 2004. He earned a doctorate in chemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also is a graduate of Harvard Medical School. He was born in Hampton, Virginia.

Astronaut Robert Satcher Jr. works outside the International Space Station as he participates in space shuttle Atlantis’ first spacewalk of mission STS-129, as construction and maintenance continue on Nov. 19, 2009.   NASA via Reuters

Welcome Home Bobby!
This week in Space - Photos - USATODAY.com 

STS-129 Mission Information | http://twitter.com/Astro_Bones | HarvardScience

Historical coverage of Bobby by MIT and Harvard

Click here for really cool images from the NASA Image Gallery ...

Bobby on YouTube ...

• STS-129  US PAO Event with ESPN, BET & WRIC-TV
• STS-129  EVA #1 Highlights
• STS-129  Interview With Tom Joyner Show
• STS-129  PAO Educational Event with Tennessee Tech University
• STS-129  US PAO Event with WTTG-TV, Bay News 9 & WBBM Radio
• STS-129  View of a Lifetime

This just in from Jinx Hinton '77 ...

Folks might like to know that the ISS can be seen with the naked eye. It looks like a very bright star traveling across the sky. www.heavens-above.com shows the current position of ISS and will give you a list of all passes for the next 10 days. The link under ‘Satellites” that says ’10 day predictions for : ISS’ gives the visible passes with brightness. This link - http://www.heavens-above.com/PassSummary.aspx?satid=25544&lat=37.030&lng=-76.346&loc=Hampton gives the visible passes for Hampton, VA. You can change the location from the home page. The magnitude over the next seven nights will be as high as -3.5. Sirius, the brightest star is magnitude -1.44. Magnitudes are on a log scale so -3 is 2.51x as bright as –2; 6.3x as bright as -1. You’ll see from the chart at the above link that November 25 is a good for viewing in Hampton. It will rise in the NW at 6:18 pm, pass directly overhead (90º) at 6:21 p.m. at magnitude -3.5, and then vanish as it enters a shadow. November 27 is even better: same -3.5 magnitude, rising in the NW at 5:27 p.m., passing almost directly overhead at 5:52 p.m and setting in the SE at 17:33 p.m. (Remember, this is for Hampton; other locations will vary.)

It’s best to look with the naked eye – you have a much bigger field of view. Once you spot it, you can look through binoculars. Most telescopes will have too small a field of view to spot it before it is out of sight unless you are extremely lucky.

Happy viewing!

Jinx

Timan Goshit ’09 | Aisha A. Bobb-Semple ’09 | Brandon Reese ’09 | Matthew Gethers ’09

Established by BAMIT in 1986, the Fund is named in honor of Dr. Ronald E. McNair '77, the black NASA astronaut and MIT alumnus who lost his life in the space shuttle Challenger explosion on January 28, 1986. Dr. McNair's commitment to excellence and service in the black community are qualities that the Fund recognizes and rewards in black MIT undergraduates. (for 2.5mb hi-res image click here)

August  6, 2009 - Diapers in the boardroom—though surely the topic of a few off-color attempts at office humor—are not hallmarks of corporate excellence. But a cherub-cheeked babyface in the executive office? Depending on its hue, that face may be a naturally-endowed but subtle tool of an accomplished leader atop a seemingly impenetrable hierarchy. New research by Robert Livingston (Kellogg School of Management - Management & Organizations) and Nicholas Pearce '07 (Kellogg School of Management doctoral student) examines this intersection of face and race in corporate America. Appearing soon in Psychological Science, their work focuses on one particular facet of blacks’ ascensions to power: the physical characteristics of so-called “babyfaces” and their influence on perception and achievement.

The Teddy Bear Effect

NYU President John Sexton and Provost David McLaughlin today named Peter Blair Henry – the Konosuke Matsushita Professor of Economics at Stanford University – as dean of NYU’s Leonard N. Stern School of Business.  He will assume the deanship effective January 15, 2010. A Rhodes Scholar; the leader of the Obama Transition Team’s review of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and other international lending agencies; and an economic advisor to governments from the Caribbean to Africa, Dean-designate Henry’s scholarship focuses on the impact of economic reform on emerging economies.

Peter Blair Henry, Renowned Int’l Economist, Named Dean of NYU’s Stern School of Business

ANNAPOLIS, MD July 2, 2009 – Governor Martin O’Malley today swore in four new members to the State Board of Education,  three members to the University System of Maryland Board of Regents, and also swore in two members to the College Savings Plans of Maryland Board, and a new State Board of Elections appointee.

Governor Martin O’Malley Swears in Members of the State Board of Education

MIT Professor Paula Hammond (Bayer Professor of Chemical Engineering, MIT) talks about the promise of solar energy and why MIT is uniquely positioned to help realize that promise. Interview recorded 4/27/2009.

Professor Hammond interview conducted by Christine Tempesta (Director, Strategic Initiatives - MIT Alumni Association)

April 27, 2009 -- In a speech at the National Academies today, President Obama announced the membership of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology—a stellar team of experts who will help advance the President’s bold agenda to reinvigorate the economy while building a new and innovative foundation for a 21st Century America.

PCAST consists of 20 of the nation’s leading scientists and engineers. They will advise the President and Vice President directly to help the administration formulate policy in the many areas where understanding of science, technology, and innovation is key to forming responsible and effective policy.

Included on the team are BAMIT members Shirley Ann Jackson, Ph.D., '68 the President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and former Chair of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (1995-1999) -and- S. James Gates Jr., Ph.D., '73 the John S. Toll Professor of Physics and Director of the Center for String and Particle Theory at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Many of the objectives of the Obama Administration—in the fields of energy, education, health, climate change, environment, security, and the economy—can be met only with a strong national effort in science and technology. President Obama will rely heavily on his Council of Advisors as he restores science to its rightful place in policy making.

UM Physics Professor Jim Gates Named to President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology
Shirley Ann Jackson Appointed to the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology
   PCAST_Release.pdf

April 14, 2009 - Philip G. Freelon '77, FAIA, speaking on behalf of the Freelon Adjaye Bond team, said "This is an incredible time for us as designers—and this museum represents a unique opportunity to give form and substance to the powerful vision that has been established by the Smithsonian leadership. We are truly honored to have been chosen as the architects from such a distinguished list of competitors."

The Smithsonian has chosen Phil Freelon to build the National Museum of African-American History and Culture in the heart of Washington, D.C.

April 6, 2009 - Honoring what Chancellor Phil Clay PhD '75 called "a deep and relevant history," members of Black Alumni at MIT (BAMIT) held a semi-formal dinner in the Picower Institute Atrium on Saturday to celebrate its 30th anniversary as an organization.

BAMIT 30th Anniversary Celebration   |   Photo Gallery

by Calvin Hennick (Diverse Issues in Higher Education - February 18, 2009)
When Dr. James L. Sherley began a hunger strike outside the Massachusetts Institute of Technology provost’s office in February 2007 alleging racism in his tenure denial, the then-associate professor of biological engineering re-ignited, in a very public way, concerns about the institution’s commitment to diversity.

The lack of diversity has been a recurring problem at MIT. At the time of Sherley’s protest, just 27 of MIT’s 740 tenured faculty members were American Indian, Black and Hispanic. Today, there are 34 underrepresented minorities out of 767 tenured faculty members.

Sherley never won tenure, and a Black faculty member and a Black former trustee broke their ties to MIT as well in protest over the manner in which the school handled the Sherley incident as well as its seeming lack of commitment to diversity. Two years later, the administration is taking steps to ensure the school is welcoming to faculty members of color — an effort some say is moving too slowly.

Creating a Sustainable Pipeline