[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 830 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 830
Recognizing the 150th anniversary of Purdue University Engineering.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 19, 2024
Mr. Braun (for himself and Mr. Young) submitted the following
resolution; which was considered and agreed to
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the 150th anniversary of Purdue University Engineering.
Whereas, in 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Act of July 2, 1862
(commonly known as the ``First Morrill Act'') (12 Stat. 503, chapter
130; 7 U.S.C. 301 et seq.), which granted land to States that agreed to
use the land to teach ``agriculture and the mechanic arts'';
Whereas the Indiana General Assembly--
(1) in 1865, voted to participate in the Act of July 2, 1862 (commonly
known as the ``First Morrill Act'') (12 Stat. 503, chapter 130; 7 U.S.C.
301 et seq.), and planned to build an institution; and
(2) in 1869, chose Lafayette, Indiana, in Tippecanoe County, for the
new institution, Purdue University;
Whereas, in 1874, the first engineering student at Purdue University began
taking engineering classes with an engineering instructor;
Whereas, in 1882, 1888, and 1904, Elwood Mead received degrees from Purdue
University, and, in the 1930s, Elwood Mead directed the development of
the Hoover Dam;
Whereas, in 1891, the 85,000-pound test locomotive Schenectady, the original
``Boilermaker Special,'' arrived at Purdue University to be used in the
first locomotive testing lab of its kind;
Whereas Reginald Fessenden--
(1) from 1892 to 1893, while at Purdue University, initiated
experiments for wireless transmission of the human voice-radio; and
(2) in 1900, succeeded in sending the first wireless transmission of
the human voice-radio;
Whereas, in 1921, Donovan Berlin graduated from Purdue University and later
designed important World War II planes, the P-40 and P-36, the only
numerous battle-ready fighters available in the United States at the
outbreak of the war;
Whereas, in 1921, Games Slayter graduated from Purdue University and later
developed coarse fibers that facilitated the commercial production of
the first fiberglass product;
Whereas, in 1927, Roscoe George graduated from Purdue University and later, with
colleague Howard Helm, became the inventor of all-electronic television
receivers;
Whereas, in 1929, Charles Ellis, a professor of civil engineering at Purdue
University from 1934 to 1946, drew the blueprint design for the Golden
Gate Bridge and oversaw test borings for, and the surveying and setting
of, the towers of the Golden Gate Bridge;
Whereas, in 1933, Edward Purcell graduated from Purdue University and, in 1952,
with Felix Bloch, won the Nobel Prize in Physics for finding a way to
detect the extremely weak magnetism of the atomic nucleus;
Whereas, from 1935 to 1937, Amelia Earhart was a visiting professor in the
aeronautical engineering department of Purdue University;
Whereas, in 1907 and 1948, John Atalla earned degrees from Purdue University and
later co-developed the metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect
transistor, the most widely used type of integrated circuit in the world
and the most manufactured human artifact in history;
Whereas Iven C. Kincheloe, Jr.--
(1) graduated from Purdue University in 1949;
(2) in 1956, became the Air Force test pilot that flew the Bell X-2 to
126,000 feet, becoming the first person to reach space; and
(3) was selected to fly the X-15 to become first citizen of the United
States in space, but was killed in another test flight on July 26, 1958;
Whereas, in 1947, 1948, 1950, and 1981, Robert C. Forney earned degrees from
Purdue University and later led the development of many new polymeric
resins, most notably Dacron polyester fiber;
Whereas Virgil ``Gus'' Grissom--
(1) graduated from Purdue University in 1950;
(2) in 1959, was in the first group of astronauts in the United States;
(3) in 1961, was the second citizen of the United States in space,
piloting Mercury-Redstone 4;
(4) was the command pilot for Gemini 3, the first 2-person space flight
of the United States; and
(5) would eventually die while serving the United States on January 27,
1967, in the Apollo 1 flash fire at Kennedy Space Center;
Whereas, in 1955, Neil Armstrong graduated from Purdue University and later
became the first person on the Moon;
Whereas, in 1956, Gene Cernan graduated from Purdue University and became the
last person to set foot on the Moon as of 2024;
Whereas, in 1960, Paul McEnroe graduated from Purdue University and developed
the globally ubiquitous barcode;
Whereas, in 1969, Purdue University founded the Women in Engineering Program, a
first-of-its-kind program in the United States and model for other
universities that aimed to recruit women into the engineering field, and
to help retain women while at the Purdue University campus;
Whereas, in 1974, Les Geddes began a distinguished teaching and research career
at Purdue University that spawned life-saving innovations including--
(1) burn treatments;
(2) miniature defibrillators;
(3) ligament repair; and
(4) tiny blood pressure monitors for premature infants;
Whereas, in 1974, the Purdue University Black Society of Engineers invited every
Black engineering society to a conference at Purdue University and, from
that meeting, the National Society of Black Engineers was created and
became the largest student-managed organization in the United States,
with more than 20,000 members and more than 790 chapters on college and
university campuses;
Whereas, Purdue University is known as the ``Cradle of Astronauts'', as 27
graduates of Purdue University have been selected for space travel and
nearly \1/3\ of United States spaceflights have included a graduate of
Purdue University;
Whereas, Purdue University is home to various academic programs that rank in the
top 10 in the United States, including programs for--
(1) agricultural and biological engineering;
(2) industrial engineering;
(3) aeronautics and astronautics;
(4) civil engineering;
(5) mechanical engineering;
(6) electrical and computer engineering; and
(7) environmental and ecological engineering;
Whereas, as of 2024, Purdue University produces more than 5 percent of
engineering students in the United States, and continues to expand; and
Whereas Purdue University has produced several Nobel Prize laureates,
astronauts, and numerous ideas that have advanced humankind: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) recognizes--
(A) the 150th Anniversary of Purdue University
Engineering;
(B) the consequential impact that Purdue University
Engineering, and other programs at Purdue University,
have had on the United States and the world, due to the
engineering research, study, and feats of their
graduates;
(C) that Purdue University Engineering--
(i) continues to provide nationally
recognized programs for its students; and
(ii) is a treasured resource for
individuals in the great State of Indiana, the
United States, and the world; and
(2) encourages individuals in the United States to
celebrate Purdue University Engineering and its graduates on
their accomplishments and contributions to the world.
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