Wood, David Shotwell (Materials scientist)

Dates

• Existence: 1920 - 1998

Biographical/Historical

Background: Acting Associate and Associate Dean of Students, 1968-1974; Caltech Professor of Materials Science 1950-1988; Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering, 1949-1950; Professor Emeritus, 1988-1998; Caltech alumnus (BS, 1941; MS, 1946; PhD, 1949).

Biographical/Historical

Description: David S. Wood was born in Akron, Ohio, but grew up in Southern California. He went to school in Sierra Madre and Pasadena before entering Caltech in 1937. His early engineering work involved the behavior of metals under impact. Later, with his former student, Thad Vreeland, he did important work on dislocations in crystals. Wood was involved in numerous campus activities, from his role as Associate Dean of Students to his membership in the Caltech Stock Company, which performed original musicals on campus characters and events. He was also active in local politics and served a term as mayor of Sierra Madre.

Biographical/Historical

Collection Notes: Oral history, 1994. This 39-page interview with Shirley Cohen covers early life, education, including reminiscences of Caltech during the late 1930s and World War II; wartime work at Los Alamos; engineering at Caltech after the war; student affairs; Kent Clark musicals.

Found in 3 Collections and/or Records: