The Oregon State University Sesquicentennial Oral History Project

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Theme: Astronomy

Jack Higginbotham Oral History Interview - November 3, 2015

Jack Higginbotham Oral History Interview

Life history interview conducted by Chris Petersen.
November 3, 2015
Jack Higginbotham (b. 1958) has been a member of OSU's Nuclear Engineering faculty since arriving in Corvallis in 1987, and has led the Oregon Space Grant program since 2002. During his years at Oregon State, Higginbotham has also served as Senior Reactor Operator and Senior Health Physicist at the OSU Radiation Center; chair of the Radiation Health Physics program; Associate Dean of the Graduate School; and President of the Faculty Senate. In a wide-ranging interview, Higginbotham discusses his education and academic work in nuclear science and engineering; his institutional memories of Nuclear Engineering and Radiation Science at OSU; and the activities of Oregon Space Grant during his years of association.

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Don Pettit Oral History Interview - March 26, 2014

Don Pettit Oral History Interview

Life history interview conducted by Janice Dilg.
March 26, 2014
Don Pettit (b. 1955), a native of Silverton, attended OSU from 1973-1978, graduating with a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering. After completing his Ph.D. at the University of Arizona, Pettit began work at the National Laboratory in Los Alamos, New Mexico. In 1996 he was selected to become a NASA astronaut and, in 2002, he participated in his first spaceflight, Expedition 6, during which he spent over five months on the International Space Station. While at NASA, Pettit has logged more than a year in space, during which time he has filmed and televised experiments from space for a series titled "Saturday Morning Science." His interview focuses on his upbringing in Oregon, his undergraduate experience at OSU, and highlights from his career as an astronaut.

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