Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 10, 1962)
•■' r' : .:..^.-'-- : -^ :: ' , * : ' ; -':'-'l ry"r-^»«?«r!-r •r*jg?i , ^xaBtea^agr^»t . • ....,•,. iu~~assR«.ars^rr^^tjte.-iwy'arss;":'-. - •- ■ • " . - >*«•«»'**• ■ »*/f« W I * *t * M ~ I * • i [HE BATTALION Wednesday, January 10,1961 College Station, Texas Page 3 y our static y in- nough ses in \&M’s Outstanding Texan Began His Career Here d the a for- ses a lather, 'entral ins by in can r the , the e ade- mities i mis- lannot The road to success for Robert L Smith Jr., a short little man itA&M, has been brief—but per- a mite bumpy. Smith recently pocketed the title of one of five outstanding hat a pluses igated those i who ition. Wednesday - Thursday - Friday BY LOVE POSSESSED” with Lana Turner Plus THE MILLIONAIRESS” with Sophia Loren Club PALACE Bryan Z'SS79 STARTS TODAY ’an. 1. Day, an. 2, ilson, The Rocket Ship That Challenged Outer Space) Pul i', on thery, obles, an. 8. Vom- v, on THIS IS THE STORY THAT STUNS THE IMAGINATION! QUEEN FIESTA NITE TONIGHT 6 P. M. young Texans for 1961, an award sponsored annually by the Texas Junior Chamber of Commerce. The 34-year-old former Neder land resident has won national recognition for his development of a first class Data Processing Cen ter here, where he also serves as an associate professor in Indus trial Engineering. Smith was cited by the Texas Jaycees for the establishment of a mathematical technique for com puting radiation patterns pro- STARTS TODAY LPv/e ar»cf fljn In -the QobL/rbSf ************** M (j'M fftxrrts ••••••••••••••• ^2^ Bob Lana Hope • TureneR, . 1TC WHMNP BacHeLORjnRARap.se . JANIb RAISE \ CINEMASCOPE jimhutton pauia premiss , N duced by radium needles. The citation also mentioned Smith’s creation of computing methods for forecasting hurricane storm waves and traffic flow pat terns, in addition to development of a Data Processing Center sec ond to none on a college campus. Smith has only a bachelor’s de gree on a campus where doctor ates are commonly accepted as es sential, but he has no plans for advanced formal schooling simply because no degrees are offered in his line of work. Smith collected his bachelor’s degree in 1952 after he first en tered A&M as a 16-year-old fresh man in 1944. He withdrew from college in 1945 after a nervous “breakdown.” His flair for computing ma chines got its start during a tour of duty with the U.S. Army, where he learned to repair computing ma chines. So, when he returned to A&M in 1949 as a student and part-time worker in the IBM room of Agri culture Experiment Station, Smith’s major changed from civil engineering to electrical engineer ing. The day after he graduated, Smith was employed by A&M as a statistical supervisor with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station. Five years later, he be came head of the newly estab lished computing center, along with teaching duties in the Busi ness Administration Division. CIRCLE TONIGHT 1st Show 6:45 Rock Hudson In “LAWLESS STREET” & Robert Preston In “DARK AT THE TOP OF THE STAIRS” JANUARY CLEARANCE SALE OPEN THURSDAY NIGHT UNTIL 8:30 ENTIRE FALL STOCK • SUITS * TOPCOATS (ALLIGATOR NOT INCLUDED) © © © © © SLACKS SPORT COATS SWEATERS SPORT SHIRTS IVY SPORT SHIRTS (SPECIAL GROUP) JACKETS IVY VESTS PAJAMAS ROBES P E R C E N T O F F SPECIAL GROUP Vs OFF • SPORT COATS • JACKETS • SHORT SLEEVE SPORT SHIRTS IVY AND CONVENTIONAL • LONG SLEEVE KNIT SHIRTS • TIES CHOICE SELECTIONS AT A SAVINGS ‘W at-iSW TOWNSHIRE When the Data Processing Cen ter was established in 1958, Smith was placed in charge. In Septem ber 1959, he assumed an additional title as associate professor of In dustrial Engineering. Today, the Data Processing Cen ter, under Smith’s direction, solves computational problems of re searchers, students and industry throughout the south. The center itself is a modest, modern $300,000 building with rig id temperature and humidity con trols to assure against malfunction .of the intricate mechanism. The structure was designed specifically for a computing facility. The equipment on the inside, however, is a complicated collec tion of gadgets valued at more than $4 million. Included are IBM 709, 650, and 604 digital computers and an analog computer. Just what does one of the ma chines do? The 709 can store 32,768 facts or 10-digit numbers and can recall the items at the rate of 80,000 per second, Smith pointed out. The machines ‘thinks’ at a speed of 12 microseconds (12 millionths of a second) and can perform 40,- 000 arithmetic operations per sec ond. Computers at A&M, among oth er assignments, have provided Houston’s M.D. Anderson Hospital answers in a matter of hours re garding the dose of radiation ad ministered cancer patients. Without the computers, it would probably take weeks to get this information. The treatment proj ect is a pet project of Smith’s. Born in Houston and educated in Nederland, Smith considers the Data Processing Center unmatched by any other educational institu tion. Smith, however, dispells the theory that the computers are “mechanical brains” waiting to re place the human race. Computers seem to think, he said, but actually all they do is follow instructions. It takes a per fect question to get a perfect an swer. Outstanding Aggie and Texan Robert L. Smith Jr., associate professor in industrial engineering - and head of the Data Processing Center, has been named by the Texas Junior Chamber of Commerce as one of five outstanding young Texans during 1961. He was cited by the Jaycees for the establishment of a top notch computing center, along with research projects. (Texas A&M Photo) Here’s deodorant protection YOU CAN TRUST Old Spice Stick Deodorant.../as^es?, neatest way to ail- day, every day protection! It’s the active deodorant for active men...absolutely dependable. Glides on smoothly, speedily...dries in record time. Old Spice Stick Deodorant — most convenient, most economical deodorant money can, buy. 1.00 plus tax. iice STICK DEODORANT S H l_J l_ "T O M 0&! s’4 <7o°5 D o a ^ ©oC <?o„, JO, *Oo' t@©4Da|j • ®IKi®9 000 000 Some say we go overboard, the lengths^ we go to in testing Ford-built cars at ^‘Hurricane Road”—-our wind-and- weather lab in Dearborn, 'Michigan. ‘And for practical purposes—we doJ ^You might call it “testing in depth.” Ford scientists and engineers' have 'devised a gigantic test tunnel that creates monsoon rains and tornadic; winds in a matter of minutes. Super; sun lamps boost temperatures from 20: below to 160 above zero. Fog and; drizzle, snow and sleet—all at the twist of dials. Huge cylinders beneath test-j car wheels imitate every kind of road: from flat, smooth turnpike to rutted, mountain trail. 1 Out of it all comes knowledge of how tc> build better cars—cars that are built to last longer, require less care, and retain, their value better. This constant aiming, for perfection is just one more way in which research and engineering are' earning for Ford MotQr_CQrpf)a.nyJts\ place of_/eadership» _ MOTOR COMPANY ’The American Road, Dearborn, Michigan PRODUCTS FOR THE AMERICAN ROAD *THE FAfttit ^INDUSTRY* AN9 THR A66 QE8f A6^