The mathematician

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James Braddock, an actuary and second vice president with New York Life Insurance Co., notes that there are only 900 fully qualified actuaries in the United States. He then explains how insurance is based on the mathematics of probability, the ratio of favorable ways over total ways, and demonstrates this concept with dice and poker hands. This applies to the actuary's responsibility of underwriting life insurance for people with hazardous jobs or high health risks. Such a career is a planning and administrative job requiring knowledge and judgment. Dr. Kelso Morrill, an associate professor of math at Johns Hopkins University, describes pure mathematics as the ability to think logically in abstract terms, but one also needs patience, enthusiasm, and creativity to teach it. He explains and compares the decimal and binary systems of counting. The binary system was introduced by the German mathematician Leibniz and is now the basis for computer calculations.Dr. Lewis Fulton, an applied mathematician, discusses the IBM high-speed computer's mathematical functions and decision logic. Even with the programming language FORTRAN (formula translation), a computer must still receive instructions or a program from a live mathematician in order to process information. A film shows a computer receiving binary-coded information from typed punch cards and storing it on magnetic tape, as for the Social Security Administration's records. Lynn Poole concludes the program by reiterating the opportunities in all areas of math.

Oral history of Gordon "Reds" Wolman

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Markley Gordon "Reds" Wolman was geomorphologist whose passion for his discipline, dedication to his work, and his uniquely creative ways of looking at problems, resulted in a wide-ranging career. Among the many hats he wore were scientist, environmental activist, teacher and mentor, university administrator, and government advisor on the local, state, national and international level. Wolman was born in 1924 in Baltimore the son of Anne and Abel Wolman. His father was a sanitary engineer whose accomplishments ranged from developing chlorinated water, to designing water supply systems for cities throughout the world, to advising on the safe use of nuclear power. The younger Wolman, known throughout his life as Reds, attended the Park School in Baltimore graduating in 1942. He began his college career at Haverford College, but left to join the U.S. Naval Reserves after his first semester. When discharged in 1946, Wolman enrolled at the Johns Hopkins University where his father was in the Department of Sanitary Engineering. Wolman graduated in 1949 with a degree in Geology and All-American Lacrosse honors. He then took an MA (1951) and PhD (1953) from Harvard University. In 1951, Wolman embarked on a career of nearly 60 years that combined research, service to the profession, and educating the next generation of scientists. In this interview, Wolman discusses his undergraduate career at Johns Hopkins, his memories of notable faculty and administrators including Hopkins president Isaiah Bowman, and the faculty culture he experienced at Hopkins. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Oral history of Michael Bloomberg

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Michael Bloomberg, born February 14, 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts, was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013. Bloomberg attended Johns Hopkins, receiving a B.S. in electrical engineering in 1964, and Harvard Business School, receiving an MBA in 1966. Bloomberg then worked on Wall Street at Salomon Brothers before founding his own company named Market Systems, which eventually became the highly successful and eponymous Bloomberg L. P. in 1987. Bloomberg became Mayor of New York City in 2002, shortly after the attacks of September 11, 2001. He is also a noted philanthropist through his Bloomberg Philanthropies Foundation, which has donated extensively to Johns Hopkins University among many others. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is named in his honor. In this oral history, Bloomberg discusses his student days at Hopkins in the 1960s and his philanthropic relationship with Hopkins. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Oral history of Jerome Schnydman

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Jerome Schnydman came to Hopkins as a undergraduate in 1963. A member of the lacrosse team, he served as co-captain of the 1967 national team and was chosen as a first team All-American in 1966 and 1967, earning him a spot in the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame. After graduating from Hopkins, Schnydman spent time working in the insurance and pension industry. He eventually returned to work in the Hopkins Office of Undergraduate Admissions, where he remained for eleven years. Following that, he took on the position of Executive Director of Alumni Relations, where he also served for eleven years, before becoming the Executive Assistant to the President. In this history, Schnydman discusses his time at Hopkins, both as a student and staff member, as well as his lacrosse career. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Oral history of Ernest Bates

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Doctor Ernest Bates, originally from Peekskill, New York, graduated from Johns Hopkins and the University of Rochester School of Medicine and founded American Shared Hospital Services, a company that leases medical equipment to hospitals across the United States. He has served on the Board of Trustees of the Johns Hopkins University, the Board of Visitors of the Johns Hopkins Medical Center, and on the Johns Hopkins Neurosurgery Advisory Board. In this oral history, Bates discusses his experiences at Hopkins as the first African-American student in the School of Arts and Sciences in 1954, the difficulties of segregation off campus, and his subsequent activities as a trustee with Hopkins. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Lacrosse, Hopkins report

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Lynn Poole gives a brief history of this "fastest game on two feet," which the Indians called Baggataway and the French lacrosse. Former player and member of the U.S. Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association, William Morrill, describes how the game's equipment and rules have changed and explains today's field layout, rules, players, and equipment. Robert Scott, head coach, and Wilson Fewster, assistant coach of the Johns Hopkins University lacrosse team, the Blue Jays, explain skills such as passing and cradling, personal and technical fouls, stick work, dodges, and face off strategies while team members demonstrate. The coaches give a play-by-play commentary of film footage from the 1957 Navy/Hopkins lacrosse game. Coach Scott interviews Hopkins's All-American player Mickey Webster, who explains why he enjoys lacrosse, its appeal to fans, and its difference from football. Lynn Poole lists other schools fielding lacrosse teams, describes the qualities lacrosse instills in players, and mentions that Hopkins is the current holder of the Wingate Trophy, named for Baltimore sports writer W. Wilson Wingate, and emblematic of the intercollegiate lacrosse championship.