The College of Engineering and Computer Science recently lost an esteemed faculty member and mentor. Isaac Weiss, Ph.D., age 49, passed away on December 15, 1999. Dr. Weiss had been with the Depart-ment of Mechanical and Materials Engineering since 1980. His students stated "he was a demanding task-master, but it was always evident that he truly cared about each student." He took the time to mentor several graduate and undergraduate students.

During his tenure as Professor, Dr. Weiss taught numerous courses in materials science and engineering and published more than 80 technical articles, which appeared in nationally and internationally renowned publications. His educational and research accomplishments garnered him many awards including the Excellence in Research Award from the College of Engineering and Computer Science (1992), Presidential "Leg of the Stool" Award for Excellence in Research from Wright State University (1993), and Outstanding Engineers and Scientist Award from the Affiliate Societies Council of the Engineering and Science Foundation of Dayton (1995). He was also honored by Tau Beta Pi National Engineering Honor Society, Alpha Sigma Mu International Materials Honor Society, and Sigma Xi Research Honor Society. His name was recognized both nationally and internationally as an expert on titanium alloys.

Dr. Weiss was very active in both University and College governance and was a founding member of the University Faculty Senate. He was also very active in The Metallurgical Society (TMS) and the American Society of Materials-International (ASM-International), serving as the faculty advisor for the WSU student chapters of these societies.

Prior to joining Wright State, Dr. Weiss received degrees from the Israel Institute of Technology and McGill University (Canada) and was a Research Fellow at University of Pittsburgh. He also collaborated extensively with the Air Force Research Laboratory and local and national industry.

Faculty, staff, students, professional colleagues, and friends will remember Dr. Weiss as a genuinely warm and caring person who took great interest in the welfare of his students and those around him. He will be greatly missed.

Dr. Weiss is survived by his wife, Shelly, and his young son, Lee.

Ms. Kay Howell, Director of the National Coordination Office for Computing, Information and Communications spoke at AFCEA’s Infotech’99 on October 21, 1999. Ms. Howell is responsible for coordinating research and development activities in computing, information, and communications across numerous agencies of the federal government. As CCIC head, Howell is also responsible for President Clinton’s research initiative on the Next Generation Internet. Her office reports to the Office of Science and Technology Policy of the President.

High performance computing is particularly useful for businesses involved in resolving problems that require highly complex solutions or equations necessary in forecasting, modeling and performance simulations. It is an incredibly powerful tool for the future. Ms. Howell brought a broad, national perspective on the future of information technology research and applications and is uniquely qualified to help the Miami Valley better understand the power and usefulness of high performance computing.

Dr. Bruce Berra presented his invited paper Fast and Efficient Searching of Multimedia Databases Using Holographic Memory at The Eleventh IEEE International Conference on Tools with Artificial Intelligence in Evanston, IL November 9-11, 1999. Dr. Berra was also invited to chair the "Panel of University Partnership and Collaboration: Best and Worse" sponsored by the University of Arizona’s Center for Advanced TeleSysMatics (CAT) Workshop on Next Generation Network Centric Systems: Research Challenges and Opportunities. His talk "Some Experiences with University/Industry/ Government Research and Development Centers" preceded the panel discussion. The Workshop was held at the Marriott University Park Hotel in Tucson December 2-3, 1999.

There is an ongoing problem with vehicles parking in the Russ Center Courtyard at the rear of the building and in the access/fire lanes in the parking lot at the front of the building. Vehicles have been parked and left unattended for considerable lengths of time throughout the day.

Vehicles should only access the courtyard to make deliveries and to load and and unload heavy items. Furthermore, there are no loading zones at the front of the building. All deliveries should be made to the rear courtyard. Leaving a vehicle parked and unattended in the courtyard is dangerous as this blocks access to the basement crane. Should the crane need to be used, it is possible that damage might occur to your vehicle. In addition, there is a $25 fine if ticked for parking in a fire lane and a$10 fine for parking beyond the time limit in a loading zone.

The Dayton Chapter of ASM International is celebrating the new millennium by introducing a symposium aimed at providing students in materials and related fields with a forum for presenting their work and ideas.

Both oral and poster presentations will be scheduled in this event on February 9, 2000, and will be followed by the Student Night Dinner (free for students). There will be a competition for the best paper in each category and for the overall symposium. Several awards are planned including cash prizes, free trip to the National ASM Meeting, and free memberships.

Important Dates To Remember . . .

January 7 – Last day to register, add classes, or receive 100% refund in person

January 9 – Last day to register, add classes, or receive 100% refund by Raider Express

January 10 – 70% refund of fees begins; Faculty Senate meeting at 2:30 p.m.

Jaunuary 17 – Martin Luther King Day–No Classes, University Closed

January 19 – Last day for 70% refund of fees

January 21 – Last day to drop a class without a grade; Spring Class Schedules due out

January 27 – Co-op Recruiting Day, 1:30—4:30 p.m., Russ Center Lobby

January 29 – Senior registration begins for Spring Quarter 2000

January 30 – Graduate/unclassified registration begins for Spring Quarter 2000

February 4 – Last day for all but freshmen to drop a class with a grade of "W"

February 5 – Junior registration begins for Spring Quarter 2000

February 7 – Faculty Senate meeting, 2:30 p.m.

February 12 – Sophomore registration begins for Spring Quarter 2000

February 15 – Winter Quarter General Faculty meeting, 3:30 p.m.

February 19 – Freshman registration begins for Spring Quarter 2000

February 20-26 – National Engineers Week

February 25 – Last day for freshmen to drop a class with a grade of "W"

February 25 – Last day to apply for June Graduation