Chapter 8: Pennsylvania Academy of Science in the 1970s
Life for the Average Pennsylvanian
The 1970s in Pennsylvania continued to be a decade of change. Some societal changes occurred in music and fashion, but most changes were in economic and environmental awareness. The decade began in a recession, which many industries in Pennsylvania close, particular the steel mills of Pittsburgh and Bethlehem. In 1973 the energy crisis occurred, which many in the state to look more closely at their energy consumption. Right at the start of the decade, in 1970, the first Earth Day was celebrated, leading to interest in the environment and conservation.
The State of Science in Pennsylvania
In the 1970s, a lot of the major scientific achievements in the state occurred at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Stanley Dudrick, developed a way for patients to get all their nutritional needs intravenously, if they could not eat normally. This allowed many patients who would have starved to survive. The Hepatitis B vaccine was also developed by Dr. Baruch Blumberg at the University of Pennsylvania. Researchers at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh made some of the first advancements in Artificial Intelligence in the 1970s that laid the foundation to what we have today. In private industry, Bethlehem Steel developed higher strength steels that could used in taller skyscrapers.
Changes in the Pennsylvania Academy of Science
If the 1970s in the Pennsylvania Academy of Science could be summed, it would be called the decade of experimentation. During this time, the Academy was searching for alternative ways to do things, such as the format of the Proceedings, the annual lectures, and format of the meetings. The summer meetings, long a tradition of the Academy, ended in 1968 with the move of the Executive Committee meetings to the fall. In 1977, an alternate format of the meetings was tried by having a general session on Friday evening and a poster session. Poster sessions later became regular part of the meetings. Around this same time in 1977, a Special Committee on Affiliates was formed to look at bringing non-academic scientists into the Academy. Another “experiment” was having the 1979 meeting go from Sunday to Tuesday, a departure from the typical Thursday or Friday to Sunday format.
Annual Meetings in the 1970s
Below are the highlights of the Annual Meetings of the Academy, if they are known. The summer meetings of the past became Executive Committee meetings in 1969.
Juniata College — 1907 Rotograph Postcard, cropped, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
46th Annual Meeting – April 9-11, 1970 (Juniata College, Huntingdon, PA): A symposium on Hibernation was held during this meeting.
Carlow University — Daderot, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
47th Annual Meeting – April 1-3, 1971 (Carlow College, Pittsburgh, PA): A symposium on Eastern Triassic Geology was held during this meeting.
Lafayette College — Tomwsulcer, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
48th Annual Meeting – April 13-15, 1972 (Lafayette College, Easton, PA): A tour of Lafayette College and a Moravian Church was given during this meeting. Several symposiums on Invertebrates, Environmental, and Education were held during this meeting. The Annual Lecture was on “Eyeball on Nature”
Dickinson College — Tomwsulcer, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
49th Annual Meeting – March 8-10, 1973 (Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA): The Joseph Priestley Award Lecture was given by Dr. Philip Abelson, who is the Editor of Science. A symposium on “Issues and Innovations in Secondary School Science Education was held at this meeting.
Science Hall at Bloomsburg University — The Mebane Greeting Card Co., Wilkes-Barre, PA., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
.jpg){kind=link}
50th Annual Meeting – April 17-20, 1974 (Bloomsburg State College, Bloomsburg, PA): A symposium on “Behavior” was held during this meeting. Dr. Harold W. Brown, Professor Emeritus, of the Columbia University School of Public Health gave the Annual Meeting. The subject of the lecture is unknown.
Quad at Grove City College — The enlightenment at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
51st Annual Meeting – April 30 – May 3, 1975 (Grove City College, Grove City, PA): The address was given by Dr. Estell Ingenito, Chief of the Division of Toxicology Services, on “Drugs of Abuse.”
Shippensburg University — Cgboeree at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
52nd Annual Meeting – April 7-10, 1976 (Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, PA): The address for this meeting was given by Dr. Geromia K. Pasto, Associate Dean, of the College of Agriculture at Penn State University, on “The Role of Science in Agriculture.” This talk was a recreation of a presentation given by Dr. Evan Pugh, First President of Pennsylvania State University, in 1860.
53rd Annual Meeting – April 17-19, 1977 (Sponsored by East Stroudsburg State College at Mt. Airy Lodge in Mt. Pocono, PA): The address at this meeting was given by Bud Schuster of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Seven Springs Resort — Ron Shawley, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
.jpg){kind=link}
54th Annual Meeting – April 16-18, 1978 (sponsored by Duquesne University at Seven Springs Lodge in Champion, PA): The address at this meeting was given by Dr. Steven J. Gould of Harvard University on “Size and Shape – or – Why Flies Walk on Ceilings and Tall Churches are Narrow.” A symposium on the “History and Philosophy of Science” was also held during this meeting.
55th Annual Meeting – April 22-24, 1979 (Sponsored by York College at Mt. Airy Lodge in Mt. Pocono, PA): The address at this meeting was given by Brother Nicholas Sullivan of LaSalle College on “Role of Caves in the Evolution of Man.” A symposium on “Science and the Humanities” sponsored by the U.S. Steel Foundation was also given at this meeting.
Go to Chapter 9: Pennsylvania Academy of Science in the 1980s