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(09/18/13 8:32pm)
For those just arriving as well as those preparing to leave in a few months, the fall at Middlebury is the perfect time to explore all that Vermont has to offer. Since the beginning of 2013 alone, over 2.2 million cars have passed into the state, many of them tourists coming to experience the very things we Midd Kids have all around us every day. Vermont is famous for its fall foliage, but there are always hidden gems to explore. Below are some must-do items to place on your bucket list this fall.
Vermont Flannel Store: Nothing, and I mean nothing, says Vermont like flannel. A quick drive up route 7, and on your left as you leave Middlebury, the Vermont Flannel Store offers some of the best you can get, and was even inducted into the 2010 “Made in the USA” hall of fame. Not only are the products good, but the store sits next to an iconic covered bridge covered in tasteful lights that will give anyone who goes an authentic Vermont vibe. But be warned - shirts go for around $50 a piece.
Fiddlehead Brewery & Folino’s Woodfired Pizza: If you’re 21+ and appreciate amazing beers, head on up to Fiddlehead Brewery in Shelburne. Even if you can’t yet legally drink or prefer other beverages, the brewery also features a pizza restaurant that is incredible. It’s well worth the drive to taste some Vermont native beer and enjoy some of the best pizza around with a group of good friends.
Morgan Horse Farm & Museum: For avid runners, you may have trotted past the Morgan Horse farm and admired the buildings, but not given it much thought beyond that. I urge you to make a special trip not past the farm but onto it. The Morgan Horse farm is on the National Register of Historic places and the University of Vermont has cultivated one of the best lines of the Morgan Horse in the world there. A short walk from campus, you’ll never regret it. Careful though! The farm closes to visitors on Oct. 31.
Shelburne Farms: Their website asserts that the Shelburne farm is “a nonprofit education organization whose mission is to cultivate a conservation ethic for a sustainable future.” At 1,400 acres, the farm offers an incredible view of Lake Champlain and is a National Historic Landmark in Shelburne, Vt. You’ll have to take a car, but if you’re on Route 7 headed towards Burlington, you shouldn’t miss it.
Champlain Orchards: Fall is apple picking season and nowhere hosts a better selection and atmosphere than Champlain Orchards in Shoreham. A 20-minute drive from campus, Champlain Orchards offers all manners of apple picking from the tree as well as apple cider, cider donuts and other apple-themed tasty treats.
The Skinny Pancake: The iconic creperie of Burlington, Vt. is a key stop any time you’re in the city. The Skinny Pancake features sweet and savory crepes as well as some of the best fries I’ve ever had – seriously. Set on a corner near Lake Champlain, the atmosphere is young and geared towards foodie appreciation. They are now collaborating with “Localvore Today” to host an après-work get-together at the restaurant from 5:30 - 9 p.m. every Thursday night.
Church Street, Burlington: If you haven’t already been to Burlington, find a car (or take public transportation – its easy!) and head on up. Church Street is a pedestrian only causeway that runs through the heart of Burlington. Featuring shops as unique as Burlington Records for your LPs and 45s and as convenient as an Apple store, Church Street is perfect for meandering and missions to purchase specific items. There are also street performers to dazzle and delight.
“The Big Picture”: This café/theater in Waitsfield, Vt. is, according to their website, “the Mad River Valley’s unofficial cultural center and café.” The Big Picture is perfect for dinner and a movie, serving locally grown vegetables and herbs from the Small Step Farm as well as local meats and cheeses. They have show times available online as well as nightly specials and music too!
Burlington Bagel: If you like to eat at Middlebury Bagel, you will be blown away by Burlington Bagel. The small building sits in South Burlington, right off of Route 7. Its size doesn’t do justice to the big taste packed into each bagel. It’s well worth the drive on its own, but it’s also a great addition to any excursion to Burlington.
The Organic Farm: Students at the College have a wide range of relationships to the Organic Farm. A great way to change your previous experience of the college’s student maintained plot of land is to watch the sunrise over the hill and Meade Chapel one morning. If you’re not an early riser, there are Adirondack chairs and a fire pit positioned perfectly to watch the sun go down over the mountains on the other side.
Snake Mountain: Standing 1,287 feet tall in Addison and Weybridge, Snake Mountain is great for the outdoorsy and less adventurous alike. The hike isn’t steep, takes about an hour and opens out into a panoramic view featuring lake Champlain and the mountains of New York. If you time it correctly, you can watch the sun set from the top – it is a moment you’ll remember for a long time, I promise, but be sure to bring a flashlight if you do a sunset hike!
Ben and Jerry’s Factory: Located in Waterbury, Vt., the Ben and Jerry’s factory offers a tour of the facility. With your ticket, you receive a discount on a t-shirt and a free pint of ice cream. I would also check out the “Ice Cream Graveyard” that features all the discontinued flavors Ben and Jerry’s had over the years, commemorated by poems on gravestones.
Shelburne Museum: Located, as many of these bucket list items are, along Route 7 as you head towards Burlington, the Shelburne Museum is another must-see. There are over 150,000 works of art in 39 different exhibition buildings. Buildings ranging from The Ticonderoga Steam Boat to a brand new facility completed last year give any tour of the museum a unique character that you wont find anywhere else.
Robert Frost Trail: In East Middlebury as you head towards the College’s Snow Bowl, the Robert Frost Trail offers an easy and picturesque hike. The loop is 1.2 miles and takes on average 45 minutes to an hour. The trail commemorates Robert Frost’s poetry by featuring mounted poems along the woods and fields for you to read and experience.
Magic Hat Brewery (21+): Although Vt. is home to many breweries, none have a tour quite like that found at Magic Hat in South Burlington. Something you have to see to believe, the tour is free and can be guided or self-guided. It includes views of the factory that cranks out 400 bottles of beer per minute, but transcends the typical tour by offering a film about their Mardi Gras event and punk-themed decorations throughout. The group is friendly and dedicated to their work, willing to chat about the process as they offer samples of classics such as #9.
Cookie Love: A tiny shack easy to miss on Route 7 North, Cookie Love has some of the best you’ll ever taste. It’s situated in North Ferrisburgh and features pre-made cookies, cookie dough and creemees. All the flavors are named after a type of love: “first love” is chocolate chip, “puppy love” is peanut butter chocolate chip and “it’s a wonderful love” is holiday sugar, for example.
The Camel: I can’t give much explanation beyond this: if you’re driving on Route 7 North towards Burlington, about 20 minutes away from Middlebury, you will pass a dilapidated looking farm that has a camel who hangs out with sheep like he’s a sheep. Pull the car over, take as many pictures as you possibly can. The camel has two humps and if anyone finds out his or her name, please let me know.
Vergennes: A short and beautiful drive or do-able bike ride from Middlebury gets you to Vergennes, a perfect weekend brunch destination. Restaurants such as 3 Squares and Vergennes Laundry (a bakery, not a Laundromat) are perfect to eat at and even to get a little homework done on a Sunday.
This is just a short list of the many opportunities available in the area. The most important thing is to pop the Middlebury College bubble and explore this glorious area we’re in for four years of our lives.
(04/24/13 1:00am)
MIDDLEBURY — Caroline Rose, a Long Island native, has recently made her way to Burlington to produce and release her first major musical album, America Religious. A collaboration between Rose and her musical partner Jer Coons, a musician native to Middlebury, the album will be released on June 11, with the first single already available as of April 23.
America Religious is the third record that Caroline Rose has produced, with the other two contributing to the sound and feel of this album.
“The first two were stepping stones to get to this one. No one has ever heard the first two because I didn’t want them to,” said Rose.
The first album lacked a good enough production sound and the second was just a bit too raw, but with America Religious, Rose felt she got it right.
She is happy with her current work and she is excited to release this new album to the public. The album is the product of Rose’s wide-ranging experiences and a great deal of effort. Before recording, Rose took a road trip across the U.S. that inspired many of her songs.
“I graduated from school then basically started driving, with no destination points,” said Rose. “I would call up friends and people that I could stay with and ended up going all over the place. Basically, when you have no destination point and there’s nothing you want to do except explore, you find yourself in much more interesting situations and you meet many more interesting people.”
Driven by the desire to do something that made her feel alive, Rose wandered from her home in New York all over the country before ending up back in the city some months later. A lot of the ideas for the songs also came from the day job she acquired upon returning to New York City.
“A lot of the ideas come from experiences and imagining what other people must feel — a lot of it is guessing,” said Rose.
The lyrics and vision are all Rose’s, but when it comes to sound, Coons came in to make the vision real. The pair recorded for four straight months starting last summer in Parhill studio in Burlington. Coons had recently acquired new equipment and moved locations to Main Street, which was ideal for the creation of the album.
“It really was perfect timing. He had just finished up with his solo career and was diving more into production and engineering aspects of making music,” said Rose.
The recording process was intensive, and Rose and Coons spent most nights asleep on the floor of the recording studio. Both artists committed considerable amounts of time to the project. They experimented with a lot of different sounds in order to get it right.
“Jer and I, our personalities, they’re kind of opposite in a lot of ways and it works really well together,” said Rose. “He’s much more technological than I am, I’m much more of a loner, thinking type, much more introverted than he is. I get up early, he gets up late, stays out late.”
Although Coons is responsible and given credit for the mixing, Rose is a self-proclaimed “tiger mama” when it comes to her music because she’s been thinking about what she wants out of the album for so long.
“I could tell you right now what I want my next three records to sound like,” said Rose.
Rose describes the recording process as serendipitous. The stars seemed to align in these young musicians lives to prime them for the creation of America Religious.
“I was kind of lost and didn’t have an apartment, etc.,” said Rose. “I’ll always look back on this and be like wow, that was just so perfect, such a perfect time.”
Rose believes that some of the appeal of the album stems from its hybridity. America Religious, according to Rose, is a mix between an Ethan Johns record and a T-Bone Burnett record. She feels as if she achieved the sound she wanted in the end, thanks to her collaboration with Coons.
“It’s basically like a Ryan Adams meets Jonie Mitchell meets John Lee Hooker or something like that.”
America Religious, to Rose, is a good place to start. She’s created her own sound, learned more about mixing from Coons, and has the drive to keep producing in the future.
For the moment, however, Rose, Coons and their manager are in the process of finalizing a tour. The pair has only been performing for about three months now, so things have yet to really solidify.
“I’d really like to be on the road with touring acts by the fall, but I don’t know what’s actually going to happen,” said Rose.
Rose and Coons love doing house concerts and private venues as well as public. Their single just came out on April 23, and was released simultaneously with the music video through Paste Magazine.
The full album comes out June 11, preceding the tour planned for this fall or the following spring. For more information visit carolinerosemusic.com
(11/29/12 3:16am)
The town of Middlebury has always been known for its small, homegrown feel. This atmosphere has been cultivated over the years by the many locally owned businesses that bring quality goods to Addison County.
Until 2002, however, those looking for the convenience of bulk shopping had the option of Ames, a large department store that operated where Hannaford’s now reigns in a plaza entering the town on Route 7. When the store went out of business at the beginning of the millennium, however, many citizens struggled finding a place to purchase their goods at an affordable price without having to drive to Burlington, Rutland or Fort Ticonderoga.
As a result of the loss of Ames and the boom of Wal-Mart and other such stores, concerns have arisen in Middlebury about the possibility of big-box stores moving in and ruining the atmosphere of the town. The situation has become more and more complicated as citizens voice their opinions surrounding the restriction of retail store size in Middlebury.
Ben Wilson, president of the Better Middlebury Partnership and assistant director of prospect research at the College, has been invested in this issue and underlines the importance of understanding the background story.
“In 2005, the Middlebury Business Association got a petition together to amend the zoning,” said Wilson. “They got over 1,100 signatures to put a 50,000 square-foot limit in the zoning.”
At that point in time, the zoning was indeed amended and has been enforced ever since. Ames was 50,000 square-feet, as is the current Hannaford’s store. The Better Middlebury Partnership was acting on a concern born from the eruption of super-stores such as Wal-Mart and Target.
The issue has arisen again because the same language used in zoning has been applied to drafts of the new town plan, created once every five years. The plan differs from the zoning in that once approved, the town plan becomes law. The zoning can never exceed it – it acts as a ceiling that would ensure that retail stores would be restricted to a reasonable size, regardless of any changes made to zoning policy in the future.
This language was consequently removed because citizens present at initial public hearings did not want the restriction in the document.
“This is nuanced in the sense that people have different reasons for not wanting it in,” said Wilson. “It wasn’t a block of people who want one thing or another; people have all different reasons for arguing against it.”
Reasons for being against the restriction ranged from not wanting to seem anti-business, to believing the town plan should be a visionary document and not include something already taken care of in zoning, to wanting to have large superstores in the area.
The select board, hearing these complaints, took out the provision. The subsequent drafts of the town plan have not included the 50,000 square-foot bar. However, the issue is still pertinent because of the pushback against removing such language. There are fears amongst the other faction of citizens that without the restriction in the town plan, a superstore could move in and change the feel of Middlebury, create unfair competition for smaller stores, and eliminate the intimate and quaint feel of the town.
Robin Scheu, Executive Director of Addison County Economic Development Corporation and Middlebury resident, understands the predicament and the need to come to a solution that works best for the area.
“It could be a great thing for Addison County if done well,” said Scheu. “As long as things are fully discussed, we’ll make good decisions.”
Beth Corey, owner of Red Clover Farm Market on Route 7 in Middlebury, sees both sides of the issue.
“I wouldn’t want our town to turn into a town with box stores,” said Corey, “but a moderate sized Target would draw people in and help the community. I don’t think it necessarily means that we’re going to have “super” anything – I don’t think anybody wants that.”
As both a resident and small business owner, Corey has a relatively unique position. She doesn’t want too much competition or her business won’t survive, but also with the demands of her job it is hard to find time to travel to get items at the best prices. Overall, however, Corey is in support of leaving the language out.
“I lean more towards not having the cap,” said Corey. “I don’t want to see strip malls and box stores in Middlebury more than anyone else, but one reasonably sized store would be a benefit to the community.”
Her customers are loyal, and she sees that as a testament to the mentality of Middlebury residents in general. Having a convenient place to get items ranging from baby strollers to senior citizen appropriate clothing would not necessarily mean a drop in sales for local stores because of the dedication shown by residents. It is also worth considering the possibility that a convenient retail store such as Target would draw people from surrounding towns into Middlebury, creating more economic flow and hopefully new customers to local stores.
Although opinions about the retail store restriction are varied and it has caused contention among people all over Addison County, communication remains the focus of the discussion.
“I think it’s important to talk,” said Wilson. “You can’t have a community where you aren’t listening to the other side. We should walk in our neighbors shoes for a bit and understand that both sides clearly love this town.”
The Better Middlebury Partnership will be facilitating those conversations in the upcoming months, in the hopes to come to a consensus about what is best for the town of Middlebury. At this point in time, it is unclear as to what the result will be but with the cooperation of businesses, citizens and the planning commission, all voices will be heard as the town strives to simultaneously maintain the feel of the town and promote economic growth.
(11/14/12 4:51pm)
Vermont Gas Systems (VTGas) and International Paper, a company whose mill sits on the banks of Lake Champlain, have come to an agreement this month and plans are being presented to legislators regarding the construction of a pipeline across the lake. The proposed pipeline will run from Addison County to Ticonderoga, allowing the International Paper mill to switch from fuel oil to natural gas. This change would reduce fuel costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
An important factor for the pipeline installation is that the lake is held in public trust. This means that technically the lake is a resource owned by everyone, making the addition of a pipeline through the bottom of the lake complicated from a policy point of view.
In an interview with Vermont Public Radio (VPR), David Deen, who chairs the House Fish, Wildlife and Water Resources Committee in Vermont explained the complications of the body of water being in public trust.
“The use of a public trust resource is in the hands of the representatives of the people,” said Deen. “And in that case, we had to approve Burlington using that filled land, because the bottom of the lake is impressed with the public trust. It’s a public resource.”
VTGas proposes laying the pipeline under Lake Champlain using directional drilling, a method that allows the pipes to cross the lake without disturbing the bottom. Wenbo Zhang ’13, studies environmental policy at the College and acknowledges the potential negative effects a pipeline would have.
“On the one hand, building an under-water pipeline inevitably generates some sort of disturbance to the lake ecosystem,” said Zhang. “The long-term risk of the project is a potential leakage of the pipeline, which may cause a large-scale contamination of the lake.”
The potential danger of the situation seems to be outweighed by its long-term benefits, however. The pipeline under Lake Champlain and its extension through Addison County would be ecologically beneficial in many ways; Donna Wadsworth, International Paper spokeswoman, said in an interview with VTdigger that the pipeline is “an opportunity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 26 percent.”
Zhang also went on to acknowledge these possible benefits.
“The natural gas will be replacing oil, which means that in the long term, less greenhouse gases will be emitted,” she said. “Because it will be constructed on public land, Vermont residents should all have a say in the decision-making process. It is important to inform the public of the pros and cons of the construction, so that they can provide their representatives with an educated yes or no.”
Beyond public participation in the approval of this project, the pipeline would not be solely for International Paper’s use — this project intends to allow VTGas to upgrade their southern gas line into Rutland County, including Middlebury itself. International Paper has agreed to pay in full the $70 million the project will cost, and none of the residents tax dollars will go to it.
The proposed International Paper conduit “will support a larger and longer pipeline network, at no additional cost to our customers, and will help us achieve our goal of bringing natural gas serve to more Vermonters,” VTGas President and CEO Don Gilbert said in a press release.
Lynn Coale, a resident of Weybridge and executive director of the Hannaford Career Center in Middlebury, thinks the extension of the pipeline will be very beneficial for Middlebury. He sees natural gas as good from ecological and economic perspectives, as it burns more cleanly than fuel oil and is abundant and cheap, although not a renewable source.
“As an example,” Coale explained, “We were looking at putting a thousand gallon fuel tank on our campus but put the plan on hold in anticipation of the natural gas coming.”
On a more personal level, right now Coale uses a combination of fuel sources to heat his home, just a stone’s throw from the College. Aside from wood, the family also burns fuel oil to heat their home. When asked if he would take advantage of the new pipelines in Middlebury to purchase natural gas for their home, Coale replied with an enthusiastic “Oh absolutely!”
Coale is a supporter of natural gas on a national level as well, believing that “natural gas is a clean and efficient fuel that will quickly catapult the U.S. to energy independence. It’s not renewable and we’d need to feed pipelines into different states, but it’s abundant and can be produced fairly safely.”
On a local level, Coale expresses his relative confusion and concern over the placement of a pipeline across the bottom of Lake Champlain, and hopes that VTGas and the builders will communicate the full extent of the project to the public.
If approved by state regulators, the pipeline should begin servicing International Paper by 2015. More information on the costs, benefits and complications in building on land put in the public trust will come to light over the following months as VTGas, International Paper and Vermont state legislators make progress on this issue.
(10/25/12 3:48am)
Vermont is one of the leading states in organic agriculture and progressive movements; the people of this state are often trailblazers of nationwide trends. The movement of the moment is the labeling of genetically modified products (GMOs). Last year a bill was introduced to the Vermont House Committee on Agriculture that proposed requiring all products that included genetically modified ingredients be labeled as such.
Will Stevens, an agriculture committee representative from Shoreham, Vt. who has worked closely on the development of this bill, explained the main purpose of the bill.
“It’s basically a consumer awareness bill,” said Stevens. “Consumers are asking for information on the ingredients of processed products and this is how the bill was proposed.”
Ingredients are important to people all over Vermont, especially farmers themselves. Jack Lazor, of Butterworks Farm in Westfield, Vt. has been working to be as self sufficient as possible since the mid-1970s.
Lazor started out as a homesteader who wanted to grow all his own food.
“We started with wheat and barley in 1977,” said Lazor. “After that we got more and more cows and started our little yogurt business. We got our license from the state of Vermont in 1984.”
Butterworks Farm is principally a dairy farm, but also features its own corn meal. Lazor wanted to create a self-sufficient environment, and consequently began growing his own corn to feed to his cows in order to produce the best dairy. He did not start out with his own seed, but purchased it from various seed companies and used hybrid seeds.
“As time went on, I decided I wanted to grow all my own seed as well as my own grain,” said Lazor. “It was harder with corn because all the corn that was available, you couldn’t save your own seed.”
The available corn came from hybrid seed. Hybrid corn seed is made from two genetically very different parents, and because of their genetic differences if the seed from the corn crop is used again the next year, there is no way to predict which genes will be expressed or not. It is technically possible to save the seed, but is not an effective practice for farmers.
What Lazor decided to do, however, to make himself more self-sufficient, was use seed that grew through open pollination. Instead of forcing two very different types of corn together as with hybrid seeds, open pollination takes genetically similar corn and allows them to combine in a natural way. The idea was to “plant them all together in a patch and allow them to all cross on each other,” said Lazor.
This practice led him not only to have seed again for the next year through open pollination, but to experiment with which breed of corn functioned best for the cold Vermont climate. He now has seeds that he produces for himself and farmers all over the state. The open pollination seeds produce corn that “tastes better, has more minerals in it and picks up more stuff from the soil” said Lazor, as compared with genetically engineered corn.
Lazor open-pollinates his corn through a lengthy process of guess and check that has proved fruitful for him. Tom Stearns of High Mowing Seeds is focused much more specifically on the genetics and science of seed production.
“I wanted to focus on seeds specifically, the genetics and breeding was stimulating. Providing seeds to people helps people grow their own food. I have a behind-the-scenes role of helping farmers.”
High Mowing Seeds sells to gardeners in all 50 states and all over Canada. Stearns caters his company to organic farmers in general. Organic farmers all over the country have unique challenges and conditions to deal with. Generally, fertilization is done through an irrigation system with water-soluble nitrogen infusing the plants with the necessary nutrients. The soil plays no larger role than just keeping the plants where they are.
“On an organic farm,” explained Stearns, “the health of the soil is everything. Seeds that are selected and adapted to organic farms have a different way of relating to the soil so they can go get the nutrients.”
Stearns focuses on breeding new types of organic seed, which can take anywhere from two to six years to produce.
The pressure to have successful crops has led to experimentation with new seed varieties. While open pollination and hybridization are natural processes, scientists have reached new levels with genetically modified seeds.
“[Genetic modification] is something that would not happen in nature,” explained Stearns. “It happens in a lab, and is a process of inserting genes from one species into another species.”
A good example of genetic modification and its implications is an ongoing experiment in which scientists produce a strain of corn that is toxic to insects by cross-breeding corn and a bacterium toxic to insects.
Unfortunately, this bacterial insertion has also produced a host of problems. Benign insects have been killed while worms have built up a resistance to the bacteria over the course of the past decade, throwing off the natural balance.
“The EPA actually considers this corn to be a pesticide,” said Stearns. “It needed to go through all the licensing and regulations, just like Round-Up.”
Genetically modified seeds give a higher yield, but also raise a lot of concerns among farmers and consumers.
In Stearns’ opinion, there are four main reasons why someone would be against genetically engineering produce: religious and ethical issues (people not wanting to “play God”), environmental issues, human health issues and economic issues. There are a dwindling number of non-genetically engineered seeds, which limits farmers’ output possibilities.
“It absolutely costs more,” said Stearns. “But farmers need corn to plant, so when everything costs more, that’s just how it goes.”
Stearns and his team at High Meadow Seeds have been aggressively fighting genetically modified foods for 15 years. Two years after genetically engineered corn was first introduced, they published the Safe Seed Pledge in protest. Over 200 seed companies all over the United States have since signed the pledge.
Because of the activity of Lazor, Stearns and other farmers all over the state, government officials have been moved to propose a bill that would require every producer to label foods with genetically modified ingredients.
Will Stevens, an Agriculture Committee representative in support of the bill, explained that the House Agriculture Committee received the bill late in the session last year, and due to its late introduction the bill died at the end of the session.
“My hunch is that the bill will come back to the legislature,” said Stevens.
Unfortunately nothing is that simple. If Vermont were to be the only state to adopt this kind of legislation, many other farmers would be disadvantaged. Ideally this type of bill would be introduced nationally so that worrying about state lines would cease to be a concern.
Debates about the problems posed by GMOs continue. On one side, it has never been proved that genetically modified foods are bad for human beings. On the other side, there have yet to be any long-term studies on possible effects to human health.
“For me, it comes back to the fact that all the countries in Europe are complying with it,” said Stevens. “So why not? As Ben and Jerry say, ‘what’s the dough boy afraid of?’”
Almost all of Europe has instituted a highly successful labeling program, which may serve as a model for states in the U.S.
Right now all eyes are on California, where similar legislation is being examined. Proposition 37 would require one of the nations most agriculturally productive states to label their genetically modified food.
(09/26/12 2:57pm)
The 23rd annual Keck Northeast Astronomy Consortium, which took place this past weekend was a pivotal moment for the astronomical sciences community at the College. It signaled another fruitful year amongst Keck Consortium colleges for summer astronomy research, as well as the last year at the College for Gamallel Painter Bicentennial Professor of Physics Frank Winkler.
The weekend began on Friday evening at the Bread Loaf campus with a reception, dinner and stargazing. Students and professors from Williams, Wellesley, Wesleyan, Colgate, Swarthmore, Vassar and Haverford joined together for a social evening to discuss topics ranging from the drive up from New York to supernova remnants.
The following day was more scientifically focused, with 17 presentations over the course of an afternoon given by students in the consortium. Winkler participated in the symposium since its beginning in 1990. The first was held at Vassar College in November of that year. Since then, the event has developed and grown in expected and unexpected ways.
“The symposium has gotten a lot bigger over time as the number of students involved in astronomy has grown,” said Winkler. “The way people give the talks has also changed. Back when I first started we had transparencies with overhead projectors. The quality has improved; we had a number of outstanding talks this year – interesting from beginning to end.”
Winkler went on to highlight how the quality of the symposium is self-propagating. Often any student presenting at the event has already attended in previous years and, after seeing the level of achievement in the presentations, finds it incumbent upon him or herself to perform to that level, or higher.
Teddy Smyth ’15 worked alongside Winkler this summer logging data about supernova remnants so the information could be made public this fall. Smyth’s connection to the consortium was direct – Winkler contacted him after Smyth took his course, “Introduction to the Universe,” in the fall of 2011.
“This summer was spectacular,” said Smyth. The most valuable part of his involvement was “learning … what real astronomy research looks like and feels like.”
Winkler also allowed Smyth and Lucia Perez, a sophomore from Wellelsey and his partner for the summer, a lot of freedom with their work.
“The two of them did a fabulous job,” said Winkler. “I was not here in the lab working with them every hour. I gave them a little orientation and direction and they really ran with it.”
One of the great benefits of the funding for the Keck Consortium is that it allows students that freedom. The students are self-motivated and present their work during the symposium without direct help from their professors. They fielded questions and organized their presentations to effectively support and highlight their summer’s worth of work.
Smyth’s collaboration with Perez, for example, all culminated in an afternoon powerpoint highlighting the importance of understanding supernova remnants in the optical spectrum.
Another student presenting at the symposium was Katie Iadanza, a Colgate senior. She conducted research research on extrasolar planets this past summer, but did not receive funding from the consortium. Since Colgate is part of the consortium and learning how to defend a project is such a valuable experience, Iadanza decided to present at the symposium.
“It gave me lots of experience,” said Iadanza. “There is more to science than research. You have to be able to defend your work and publish the papers. It’s getting more and more important to have experience for graduate schools – it’s almost a requirement at this point.”
Iadanza also enjoyed the Breadloaf portion of the symposium, giving her an opportunity to reconnect with the friends she made in lab working over the summer: students from Wellesley and Wesleyan.She connected well with many students and joined in the festivities to hear the College’s a capella group Stuck in the Middle (SIM) entertain with themed songs such as “Fly Me to the Moon” by Frank Sinatra and other tunes.
“It was a really fun two days. Good place for consortium to meet and share interests and build a community of astronomical liberal arts types,” said Smyth.
Lia Den Daas ’16 did not present at the symposium this weekend but as a student of Winkler’s astronomy course, decided to go and learn more about research happening in the field of astronomy. Den Daas stated that the “star gazing was amazing,” being even better than that found weekly on the roof of McCardell Bicentennial Hall.
Den Daas made many connections on Friday night, saying that “it was really interesting to have other people to talk to” about astronomy.
As a student, the symposium made her even more enthusiastic for astronomy than before.
“I took away an overall better understanding of how research works. I have more ideas for myself … it was really cool to see how enthusiastic the students are,” said Den Daas. “Professors light up [during the symposium], but it was good to see it in students as well.”
From an different perspective, Smyth said of the Keck symposium that he “learned a lot – [most of] the presentations were outside the scope of things I learned in the astronomical field … in- depth study in very specific branches of the field [gave me] a better sense of the whole of the field.”
Overall the symposium was a great success. “I couldn’t be more pleased,” said Winkler. “We had great luck with the weather and a great turnout for Middlebury – 14 or 16 students, the most we’ve ever had. I’m delighted so many stayed at Bread Loaf.”
This was the third time the symposium was held at the College. On previous occasions, Middlebury hosted a dinner on campus, but by the third time all of the celebrations were shifted up to the Breadloaf campus in Ripton, which “created a summer camp atmosphere,”said Winkler.
Another singular feature about the symposium is that two out of the three times it has been held at the College, President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz, has spoken. Winkler was at a loss to name more than one other occasion when a president of the college spoke at an astronom symposium. Liebowitz gave a brief welcome speech at the beginning of the symposium this past weekend.
The first time the symposium was held at Middlebury, then-president John McCardell gave a few words as well.
“It says a lot about the support we’ve had from the administration ongoing over years,” said Winkler. All of us in the sciences really value that.”
Winkler has decided that this will be his final year teaching at College. Although he will maintain lab space and travel to campus occasionally, he will be much less of a presence in McCardell Bicentennial Hall after this year.
“It’s a very bittersweet feeling,” said Winkler. “I’ve felt very lucky to have spent my career here … when I came here I had never taught before. It’s something I’ve become very passionate about and wouldn’t have happened had I been somewhere else.”
His passion for the subject is evident in the reactions of students learning he plans to retire. Smyth, who has had the rare opportunity to spend a summer working with Winkler, said that he is “heartbroken.”
“He’s inspired so many kids through the years to discover the wonders of the universe,” he continued. “[I’m] thoroughly hoping he will still be around campus ... [but] I’ll miss him a lot in labs.
Smyth regrets that generations to come won’t be able to experience Winkler in class. “[Professor Winkler] is a really cool guy. I’m really sad to see him go – he’s the only one at Middlebury who seems to be truly passionate and into astronomy,” said Den Daas, who has only known him for a few weeks.
Barrett Smith ’13 has been working as a teaching assistant for Winkler for two years now.
“His passion for teaching really shines through,” said Smith. “Frank always wants to share the love of the night sky with everyone.”
This weekend highlighted the importance of the astronomical sciences at the College and in the Keck Consortium, as well as those professors that have dedicated their lives to progress in those fields.
The consortium made it possible to gather some of the brightest and best students who will one day continue on with the progress being made by the professors who believe in them.
“The greatest strength of the consortium is the work we do,” said Winkler. “The symposium is the linchpin that keeps it together.”