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Distinguished Lecture by Joe Minor Sept. 10 at 4 pm in Fraizer Pavilion

Abstract:  Malcolm Gladwell in his book “Outliers” advances a proposition that success is often achieved through factors other than genius alone.  Even Bill Gates concedes that he would not have been wildly successful had it not been for his timely access to a remote computer at age 13 made possible by his wealthy family.  In my case, the factors supporting achievements were fortuitous timing and incredible people, principally ASCE people.  I was fortunate to have benefited from a succession of opportune events that shaped a career: an explosion, the man on the moon project, a world’s fair, a major tornado, an Australian cyclone, a hurricane, and a fundamental change in a building code.  When each event occurred, I was privileged to be associated with professional people in forward looking organizations that were, in themselves, extraordinary.  Acting together, we had significant impacts on the practice of engineering, the built environment, and the wellbeing of society.  These achievements illustrate the value and rewards of team play.  

Biography: Dr. Minor joined the faculty at Texas Tech University in 1969, coincident with the University name change and a commitment by the administration to becoming a first tier research university.  He came from Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio where he had met Dr. Ernst W. Kiesling who had taken the position of Chair of Civil Engineering at Texas Tech the previous year.  While conjecturing with new Ph.Ds. Mehta and McDonald as to what research pursuits should be undertaken, their ship came in -  in the form of the May 11, 1970 Lubbock Tornado. Dr. Kiesling offered the support, and the young faculty members formed Institute for Disaster Research with Dr. Minor as Director. The Institute morphed in to multi-disciplinary Wind Science and Engineering Research Center; now the National Wind Institute. The internationally recognized research endeavor that is visible today is the result of Dr. Minor’s vision of research enterprise.  Dr. Minor completed the Ph.D. in 1974 and pursued a career interest in the behavior of window glass systems in windstorms.  He was awarded a Fulbright Senior Scholarship to Australia in 1978 where he studied Australian practices in natural hazard management and subsequently became internationally known in the field of wind engineering.  He was awarded the title of Horn Professor by Texas Tech University in 1984.  He left Texas Tech University in 1988 to become Chairman and Thomas Reese Professor at the Missouri University of Science and Technology.  In 1995 he left Missouri and moved to Rockport, Texas where he continues to teach, research, and consult in the field of window glass performance in high winds.

For more information contact Kishor Mehta at kishor.mehta@ttu.edu

Posted:
8/31/2018

Originator:
Susan Sechrist

Email:
susan.sechrist@ttu.edu

Department:
Civil Environ Construct Engineering

Event Information
Time: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Event Date: 9/10/2018

Location:
Frazier Alumni Pavilion


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