Department of Mathematical Sciences
Cadet and Faculty Present Research at 27th International Conference on Technology in Collegiate Mathematics (ICTCM). On 12 -15 March, CDT Benjamin Minden, Dr. Frank Wattenberg and MAJ Matthew Mogensen attended the 27th ICTCM in Las Vegas, Nevada, and hosted a series of sessions on real-world applications of mathematics in the areas of robotics and drones. Cadet Benjamin Minden presented part of his research for his honor’s thesis as a Mathematics Major, entitled “MacGyver on the Hudson”. As part of a broader research effort, the team is looking into how the increasing availability of robotics “do-it-yourself” kits can be used to enhance the learning process in the classroom. The team also ran a hands-on workshop where educators were exposed to the Arduino ecosystem and were able to build and program several application projects.
In addition, Dr Wattenberg and MAJ Mogensen hosted a series of talks on mathematics and public policy. Dr. Wattenberg gave a talk on the ethics and future of self-driving vehicles, while MAJ Mogensen gave a talk on problems involving public policy that are discussed in MA103, Mathematical Modeling and Introduction to Calculus, the first year core mathematics course.
Department of Law
Cadets taking Advanced Constitutional Law visited the US Supreme Court and the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. After observing oral argument concerning the Takings Clause of the US Constitution’s Fifth Amendment, the cadets met with Chief Justice John Roberts and then with Justice Samuel Alito. The cadets also toured the Capitol.
Department of English and Philosophy
Ethics Debate Team competes in Military Ethics Competition. The Ethics Debate Team traveled to Annapolis on April 25th to compete in the second-annual Military Ethics Competition. Cadets Arita Araceli, Sam Kolling, and Dean Feinman presented a legal and moral argument relating to “snap” vehicle checkpoints, which were first implemented in Iraq in 2004. The USMA team finished third. Also participating in the competition were Air Force, Navy, the Merchant Marine Academy, and VMI.
Cadets visit the Museum of Jewish Heritage (Battery Park, NYC). On April 22nd, Cadets from 3 sections of PY201 (Philosophy) traveled to New York City to visit the Museum of Jewish Heritage to learn about the museum’s tour: Meeting Hate with Humanity: Life During the Holocaust. Cadets were exposed to the impacts of World War II and the Nazi genocide on Jewish lives. The museum tour guides discussed issues of cultural identity, moral responsibility, as well as states’ reactions and/or inactions to the Holocaust. In addition, Cadets listened to Ms Toby Levy, a Holocaust Survivor, speak about her struggle during Nazi Germany’s occupation of Poland and its implementation of the ‘final solution.’
Cadets from Creative Writing Forum Read at Sarah Lawrence College Poetry Festival. CDTs Jonathan Kelly (2015, F-3), Racheal Sawyer (2018, B-3) and Annalee Tokarsky (2018, E-4) found a welcoming audience for their original poetry at the Sarah Lawrence College Poetry Festival on Saturday, April 25, at the Bronxville, NY, campus . The Cadets joined students from Bennington College, NYU, Sarah Lawrence College and SUNY Purchase in one of the Festival’s special sessions showcasing the creative achievements of younger poets. The event was curated by Jeffrey McDaniel, author of five books of poetry and a member of Sarah Lawrence’s creative writing faculty, who visited West Point in October 2014 for a workshop with the Creative Writing Forum. Impressed by the group’s talent and enthusiasm, he invited their participation at the student-run Sarah Lawrence Festival, an annual event since 2004. Seven other representatives of the Forum and the APL major cheered on our cadet-poets and joined them at other Festival events, including unforgettable readings by nationally recognized poets Jamaal May and Patricia Smith.
Members of the Jazz Forum attend the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. During 23-26 April, five Cadets and one officer of the Cadet Fine Arts Forum’s (CFAF) Jazz Forum traveled to New Orleans, LA to attend the annual Jazz and Heritage Festival. The festival is one of the most prominent in the world, featuring hundreds of musicians representing a myriad of musical genres. During the trip, Cadets also visited numerous historical locations vital to the birth of jazz including: Louis Armstrong’s birthplace, Buddy Bolden’s House, Sidney Bechet’s House, the Dew Drop Inn, Storyville, Congo Square, Professor Longhair House/Museum, the French Quarter, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, Jackson Square, Preservation Hall, Café Du Monde, St. Louis Cathedral, and famous New Orleans districts including the 9th Ward and Treme. The trip proved invaluable to meeting the club charter's intent of "spread[ing] and expand[ing] cultural open-mindedness throughout the Corps by exposing Cadets to the aesthetic world of jazz."
Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering
Civil Engineering Cadets Host the 2015 ASCE Upstate NY Regional Competition. The West Point Student Chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers hosted the 2015 ASCE Upstate NY Regional Student Competition from 16-18 April 2015. Over 400 students from 14 schools from the Upstate NY Region and Canada attended the competition. The annual event is the regional qualifier for the ASCE national competition for the concrete canoe team and the steel bridge team. The teams consist of First Class Cadets who designed, built, and competed against students from the other universities in the region. Additionally, two cadets competed in the Mead Ethics Essay competition with a written essay and an oral presentation. Civil Engineering cadets and ASCE club members organized all of the events to include the Steel Bridge competition at Christl Arena, Concrete Canoe races in Lake Popolopen at Camp Buckner, an EST range, and a photo scavenger hunt of West Point. West Point performed exceptionally during the three days of competition, winning awards in all categories including Steel Bridge Presentation, Concrete Canoe Design Paper, Mead Paper Presentation and coming in 4th place out of 14 schools in the overall competition standing.
Department of History
On 18 April 2015, members of the Class of 2018-guided by the faculty and upperclassmen of the History Department—extended the classroom onto Range 5 where instructors and friends of the department taught select Plebes how to fire an array of historic weaponry from Civil War-era rifled muskets to Special Forces Combat Assault Rifles. The morning began with a demonstration of “Firepower through the Ages.” Paul Ackerman, the curator from the West Point History Museum narrated as re-enactors fired period weapons. Cadets observed weapons which ranged from early colonial-era matchlock muskets to the M-16 Rifle used in the Vietnam War. Cadets saw how firepower of the infantryman changed over the three centuries. Cadets fired the M1903A4 Springfield; M1 Garand, M1 Carbine and M14 Rifle as well as the FN FAL (L1A1) Rifle, the Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) and the Special Forces Combat Assault Rifle (SCAR-Heavy). Also fired were a variety of WWII submachine guns including the British Sten, the German MP 40 “Schmeisser,” the American M1A1 Thompson “Tommy Gun” and the M3 Grease Gun. Every cadet fired these weapons, and each squad of cadets identified a gunner and assistant gunner to fire the M1919 .30 cal Light Machine Gun.
While not firing these twentieth-century weapons, the cadets were instructed on firing Civil War-era rifled muskets by local re-enactors, led by Chuck LaRocca, who volunteered their time, ammunition and powder to share with the cadets. These men instructed the cadets on the manual of arms for their weapons, guided each cadet through firing the muskets and drilled each squad through a volley fire. Interaction with the equipment and camp gear of the re-enactors was the objective while cadets waited to move onto the firing line. WWII re-enactors presented equipment and weapons to include a fully restored Willys Jeep mounted with an M2 Browning .50 cal machine gun. Among these displays was a presentation by the Soldiers of the 20th Special Forces Group from the Massachusetts and New York National Guard who partnered with the History Department to instruct cadets on proper firing techniques for the M14 and SCAR rifles and provided medical coverage. Through participation in the Historic Weapons Shoot, cadets gained a greater appreciation for those who have gone before them and for the study of history as a discipline. It was a great opportunity to blend training and education while inspiring cadets through a deeper understanding of the profession of arms.
The History Department hosted another great evening of trivia at the Firstie Club on 21 April. Over 80 cadets filled the club to play three rounds of trivia including questions in American history, world history, military history, history of the arts, history of sports, and history of science. The top team, the "Trophy Pointless," went home with $100 in DCA gift certificates. The team "Drinking Team with a Trivia Problem" won the prize for most creative team name. Another lucky cadet won the raffle for $40 in gift certificates at the West Point Association of Graduates Gift Shop.
Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership
Cadets visit Burke Rehabilitation Hospital. On Monday, 20-April, Engineering Psychology majors visited the Burke Rehabilitation Hospital in White Plains, NY to observe and learn about the latest methods and research used to enhance human neuro-rehabilitation from injuries such as stroke and traumatic brain injury.
Department of Physics and Nuclear Engineering
Indian Point Trip Section: On 20, 21, and 22 April, COL Sones and MAJ Heider took 43 cadets over the three days to tour the Indian Point Energy Center (IPEC) nuclear power station. During the tour, cadets learned about the history of IPEC, some of the concerns of operating the station in New York and the procedures for educating, training and licensing personnel at the plant. Cadets were given the opportunity to ask questions of Patrick Falciano, the education and outreach coordinator to Entergy. Mr. Falciano has over 45 years of experience at IPEC. Cadets also had an opportunity to view the plant facility, including the conventional side of the power station, the cooling canals and the control room simulator for IPEC Unit 2. Cadets had an opportunity to observe a control room shift in training while they responded to “other-than-normal” conditions in a simulation exercise as well as interact with the Senior Reactor Operator Trainer. Through this experience, cadets were given a chance to reinforce classroom learning on nuclear power stations and gained an appreciation for some of the economic and political concerns with owning and operating a nuclear power station. They were also able to see firsthand the precision engineering in a power station.
Rensselear Polytechnic Institute Trip Section: On 21 April, Dr. Brian Moretti and fourteen cadets from NE355 (Nuclear Reactor Engineering) traveled to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Reactor Critical Facility (RCF) in Schenectady, NY. At the RCF, the cadets conducted two experiments that demonstrated the application of the material presented in class. The cadets, by hand, removed fuel rods from the reactor core under the supervision of the RCF senior reactor operator and, in the control room, electronically raised core control rods to make the reactor supercritical. The data gathered during these experiments illustrate the effect of the core hydrogen to uranium ratio, and the reactivity effect of core moderator temperature changes.
STERIS Isomedix Trip Section: On 23 April, MAJ Nestor Echeverria and cadets enrolled in Radiological Engineering Design (NE350) took a trip to local business, STERIS Isomedix, in Chester, NY to see an example of how radiation is used in industry. Cadets experienced first-hand how gamma rays from a Cobalt-60 radioactive source sterilize medical supplies and food, remediate mold, cross-link polymers, and perform many other applications. On that day, STERIS Isomedix loaded about 500,000 Curies of new Co-60 sources into one of their gamma-ray sterilization machines, reshuffled older sources, and removed the oldest ones which were no longer sufficiently radioactive. Cadets watched the shielded containers as they were lifted by crane off a flatbed truck and lowered into a 25-foot deep pool of water where they were safely opened and loaded into the machine. Mr. Mark Thomas, the director of operations, was very knowledgeable and a great teacher as cadets asked him many questions about the business aspects of using radioisotopes in industry.
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Final iRobot Project for EE487: Embedded Systems Development. Cadets in EE487, Embedded Systems Development, have begun work on their final project for the course. Given an iRobot Create (a Roomba without the vacuum), a Microsoft Kinect camera, and a laptop computer, the students must utilize localization, navigation, and mapping algorithms to allow the robots to autonomously traverse the hallways of Thayer Hall. These projects would not be possible without the expertise and dedication of the EECS Engineering and Computer Support Groups.
Preparation for an AIAD to the National Security Agency. On 23-24 APR, EECS ran a trip section to the National Security Agency (NSA) IOT prepare for upcoming summer AIADs. Cadets and midshipmen from all service academies were present; 38 cadets and 5 17A-select officers from USMA attended. On 23 APR, cadets met with their AIAD sponsors. On 24 APR, the cadets were in-processed through NSA security and received briefings from NSA and USCYBERCOM leadership. The 17A selects also had meetings with the 780th MI BDE leadership, the Cyber National Mission Force leadership (BG(P) Nakasone), and Army Cyber Command.
Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering
Geomorphology Trip Section. 15 cadets from EV388B, Geomorphology, explored coastal landforms and processes on Sandy Hook - Gateway National Recreation Area, New Jersey. Cadets were able to visualize coastal erosion and deposition created by longshore drift, and gained in-depth knowledge about coastal sediment budgets, complex response, and how coastal engineering and beach replenishment impact local communities. Cadets explored such concepts as beach profiles, sediment grain size analysis, barrier island migration, dune formation and migration, washover fan deposition, salt marsh ecology, and coastal erosion and beach migration. Mr. Tom Hoffman, the Gateway National Recreation Area historian, provided a guided tour explaining the strategic importance of Sandy Hook protecting NY harbor during the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and development of Fort Hancock and coastal artillery batteries during WWI, WWII, and Nike missile batteries during the cold war. The cadets enjoyed climbing the country’s oldest (and still operational) lighthouse.
Defense & Strategic Studies Program
The Defense & Strategic Studies Program took their graduating Firsties to Gettysburg from 24-26 April 2015; there were a total of 29 cadets and faculty involved on the trip. Having spent two weeks academically preparing for the Staff Ride, the cadets greatly enjoyed the experience. As always, it was a meaningful and relevant weekend of study and prepared the cadets to write their required reflection papers.