This column is excerpted from Excellence in Action: A Periodic Newsletter from President William B. Conroy, which can be found on the NMSU World Wide Web site at http://www.nmsu.edu/Administration/newsletter/

Those familiar with NMSU's Physical Science Laboratory know it has a long history of supporting NASA and U.S. defense agencies, and that is still a big part of the laboratory's workload. NASA's comet-chasing Stardust spacecraft, for instance, launched in February and headed now for deep space, is communicating with Earth using antennae designed and built by PSL.

Increasingly, however, the technologies developed for the space program or military purposes are finding other applications. Delphi Automotive Systems, the world's largest automotive supplier, recently forged a partnership with PSL to test automotive sensors that are critical to the safe and efficient operation of cars and trucks. Largely because of PSL's extensive experience in electromagnetic systems work with the U.S. Department of Defense, Delphi has invested about $400,000 in a custom-designed facility at PSL to test components to make sure they are immune to interference from electromagnetic fields the vehicles may encounter.

NMSU researchers continue to earn national and international recognition. NMSU ranked second among U.S. universities in the impact of engineering research published between 1993 and 1997, according to the Institute for Scientific Information. The ISI rankings are a measure of how important the research is, not just how many papers are published.

Horticulture Professor Paul Bosland, NMSU's "Mr. Chile," was featured in February on PBS television's "Scientific American Frontiers." Series host Alan Alda turned to Bosland to learn what makes chiles hot.

Psychology Professor Victor Johnston recently was featured in a segment of ABC/Discovery News, a half-hour program aired on the Discovery Channel. The Valentine's week segment on the science of beauty featured Johnston's research on perceptions of age and beauty.

Historical Tribute

Robert Skaggs, '58, left, and his parents Ralph, '33, and Martha, '47, Skaggs are the sponsors of this historical plaque on the former site of the Dairy Building, where NMSU's Engineering Complex III now stands. In January, NMSU honored the 51-year history of the Dairy Department, which was headed by O.C. Cunningham from 1918 to 1948 and Ralph Skaggs from 1951 to 1966. Martha, who is 88, worked as a secretary to Cunningham in the early 1930s until she married Ralph, who is now 96, in 1933.

Photo by Michael Kiernan

Hiram Hadley award recognizes leadership

Lyles Photo by Michael Kiernan

U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Lester Lyles, '69, director of the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization, received the Hiram Hadley Founder's Award of Excellence during an April visit to NMSU with U.S. Rep. Joe Skeen. The award recognized his "leadership in the development of America's aerospace capabilities in the spirit of NMSU's founding leader." Lyles and Skeen, who both have engineering degrees, also were inducted as "Ingenieros Eminentes" in the Sociedad de Ingenieros (Society of Engineers), recognizing them for distinguished careers in their fields. Lyles earned his master's degree in mechanical and nuclear engineering from NMSU through the Air Force Institute of Technology program.

FACULTY WOMEN'S CLUB

Photo by Morris Southward

Among those celebrating the Faculty Women's Club's 50th anniversary in April are many NMSU graduates. NMSU faculty and staff women and faculty wives have been meeting since the 1948-49 academic year. Originally called the Newcomers Club, the organization adopted its current name in 1952. Pictured front row, from left, are: Elinor Summers, '69; Hivana Leyendecker, '58, '70; Betty Hohn, '68; Jackie Clark, '68; Ruth Ford, '50; Nora Williams, '51, and Fern Dahlgren, '74, '79. Back row, from left,

are: La Verne Guice, '66; Pat Throneberry, '91; Sandy Abernathy, '68, '83; Lorraine Southward, '81; Betty Brooks, '60; Carolyn Cooper, '71, '75, '81; Nita Swartz, '67; and Nancy Anderson, '64, '68. Not pictured is Betty Stevenson, '72, '81.

Aggie Pride

Dear Aggie Panorama:

As an alumnus of NMSU, I just wanted to acknowledge the outstanding performance of the basketball team in the Big West tournament and the NCAA. The class exhibited by the team made me very proud to be an NMSU graduate. I watched the NCAA first round game in a sports bar in Dallas. As the only Aggie rooter among many, many Kentucky alumni who live in Dallas, I took some grief in the beginning but gained their respect by halftime and kept it through the end of the game.
Please congratulate the team for me.

Clyde Ziegler, '70
6502 Starcreek
Frisco, TX 75034
cwzjr@aol.com

Letters to the Editor

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