UCLA Engineering: Oral History Collection

The Oral History program at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science began in 1993, when a series of interviews with distinguished alumni, faculty, and staff from the School’s early history were recorded to help preserve the School’s legacy for future generations.

The project documents the considerable influence of the School’s first Dean, L.M.K. Boelter, and the engineers and scientists who shaped its research and educational programs. Released as the School celebrates its 60th anniversary, these interviews offer a portrait of several notable scientific breakthroughs, as well as the people, facilities, and resources in the early days of engineering at UCLA.

The interviews were conducted by dean emeritus Russell O’Neill and professor emeritus William Van Vorst, and later transcribed. The collection currently includes 24 interviews with leaders in academe and industry.

Oral history interviews are a means of collecting first-hand historical information through tape-recorded interviews. They are memories, offered by the interviewee in response to questions, and as such are often reflective, deeply involved, and sometimes biased. But they offer an invaluable look at the School’s storied past—the foundation upon which we continue to build the School’s bright future.

I would like to recognize our friends and the staff who helped compile this extraordinary collection. In particular, Mr. Edward K. Rice who was was instrumental in his support of the project.

We hope you enjoy reading them.

Sincerely,

Vijay K. Dhir
Dean

Table of Contents

These manuscripts are covered by legal agreements between those interviewed and The Regents of the University of California. All literary rights, including the right to publish, are reserved to the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. No part of the manuscripts may be quoted for publication without the written permission of the Dean of the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Requests for permission to quote for publication should be addressed to the Office of the Dean, UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, 7400 Boelter Hall, Box 951600, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1600. Please include identification of the passages to be quoted, anticipated use, and identification of the requestor.