AERONAUTICS TAUGHT AS AN EXACT SCIENCE.

Shannon News, 5 July 1929, Page 2

AERONAUTICS TAUGHT AS AN EXACT SCIENCE.

IN HIGHER INSTITUTIONS OF UNITED STATES. REGULAR COURSES ARE AVAILALLS TO STUDENTS. • ' All over the Uuited States, colleges au.! universities have come to realise t-l.at the science of aeronautic* us aiexact one and cannot be studied :u part of a general course in engineering Due to lack of funds, many of .the instutions of learning, such as> Princeton, Columbia, Dartmouth, and Har yard do not offer a regular course 01 study in aeronautical engineering. In the 'mechanical engineering- course a; Harvard, for instance, considerable instruction is given on aeroplane motors As a graduate course, internal com Bus ti-on motors are studied, but no definite living hours are assigned; unless th-.-student takes to the air. of his own volition. At the Massachusetts Institute ot Tcchnology a distinct course in aero nautical engineering is given to tlvo-s-i----students who have first proven their fitness for such work. In line with the progressive policy of the institute this course was founded in 1915, bu -until 1920 not very many student:realised the possibilities of commercia; aviation. More advance in aeronautics has been made within the past two vears than during the entire 12 previous to 1927. The colourful achievements of Lindbergh have opened the eves of the entire world to the. wonderful opportunities which aviation offers to the youth of to-day. Flying Taught by Reserve Ofiivers. The backing of the Guggenheim Foundation at Technology has been re sponsible for the great progress made in the study of aeroplanes, engines, the mathematics cf the air channels ti' rough flying ships must pass to reach their destination safely. Inasmuch as the institute does not give flying instruction, sonic opportunity for this kind of work is offered to regular students by enrollment in the Air Corps E.0.T.C., or in the "U.S. Naval Reserve. ' Such enrollment.is entirely voluntary, and because'of-the severe requirements not all students are able''to take ad vantage of- the privilege. ' Mr Charles H. Okatficld, associate professor of aeronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in speaking about the aeronautical de'partment, says : "It may be mention •ed in connection with,; the laboratory equipment that before the end of the, present tenn the institute will have in operation three wind tunnels, one of four foot, one of foot, and one of seven and one-half foot diameter. There is also a meteorological laboratory in full operation, and under a grant from the Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics, Inc., a very complete course in really scientific meteorology is being given under the droctdon of Professor C. G. A. Rossbv He is assisted by Mr H. C. Willett, wh has been added to the staff this term. "Another addition to the laboratory \-- a/new building,.a considerable part of which will be devoted to research , i?i the problems of aircraft powe; pjants. This building is nearing cornaction and will be occupied before long." In line with the thoroughness op every course at the institute, it can very readily be seen that both the actual equipment and instructors necessary for the study of aeronautical engineering are now available to the student body.

Not every student at the- institute is eligible for" this course, as can be realised by the words of Professor Chat field, quoted here verbatim: "The institute has adopted a definite policy of limitation of students in aeronautical eagitte'Cring, preferring to emphasise quality rather than quantity.' The !.irritation is imposed upon the number of first-year students who are permitted to continue i.a the course. Las? year there were twice as many appli-es-nts as there were vacancies, and this yr-ar.thc number of applicants promises t/ be considerably larger. Students aiv admitted to the course by transfei fioiv other colleges only when they have convinced us by a year of work at the institute that they are at least as good as the average students already in the course." Prominent Alumni. It is interesting to note that among the alumni of the institute who arc prominent in aeronautical engineering way be mentioned Mr T. P. Wright, thief engineer of the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company; Messrs. Donald W. D'oug:las, president of the Douglas Company; and George J. Mead, vice-president of tthe Pratt and Whitney Aircraft Company. All the air corps officers who have held the position of chief engineer at McCook Field and Wright Field, which were and are the engineering erganisatipns of the air corps, and all the naval officers in charge of design for the Bureau of Aeronautics have also been -graduates of the institute. The head of the course as. the institute is Mr Edward Warner, who has been granted leace of ab si'irce to fill the position of Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Aeronautics. These men have all proven their fitness to instruct from practical experience in the siliop and in the air, and are available for consultation at any time. The University of Michigan offers an interesting course in aeronautical engineering, which loads to the degree of bachelor of science-. They also have graduate courses in connection with the graduate school, which load to the degree of master of science in aero-nautd-cal engineering, doctor of science, and the full professional degree of .aeronautical engineer. Much the same as in - other universities Michigan does mot teach flying di-. rectly, but any aeronautical student <vho enters the E.O.TjC. there, is en-

titled to be sent to an army flying field for flying instruction during the summer vacation. This is a Special privilege granted by the War Department. The course in naval aviation is open to all senior students in the university and consists of so-called "ground work" only, .aught by,members of the faculty .and several navy officers. Upon completion of this course students are giveir flying training at one of the navy flying stations. In addition'to these two courses there is a private* flying school in Ann Arbor operated by. two reserve officers of the Army Air | Corps for those students who are unable to pass the rigid tests for army and navy fliers, yet have enough qualifications to become successful coinmeirschould line up to the town clerk's eial fliers. Aero Club. At the University of Pennsylvania, which students of the university are eligible. This organisation offers instruction- in actual flying, entirely outside the jurisdiction cf the Engineering School, yet operates with the approval of the instructors. More and more} both students and engineers are realising the need for aeronautical training both in the workshop and in the air, and the different universities, following the load of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, arc ttying to match strides with the engineering courses offered there. Aeronautical engineering is reaching out into the unknown, and the students who become aeronautical engineers, instead of simply fliers, will reap a harvest in the next cycle' of years that cannot be estimated in figures at the present time. Just the same as in the automobile field, almost anyone can learn to drive a car, but not everyone is given the opportunity to engineer the manufacture of-it. However, it.is safe to assume, that what it has taken the automobile business 25 years to learn, aeronautical-engineers, with this experience at their back, will no doubt assimilate in the next five.