Founders

Since its founding 150 years ago, Purdue University's College of Engineering has profoundly shaped and improved the world, amassing breakthroughs spanning nearly all facets of society. Highlighting the indomitable spirit, ingenuity, and achievements of more than 100 Boilermaker alumni and faculty members, 150 Years of Purdue Engineering describes the program's journey to become one of the most consequential engineering colleges in the United States. Richly illustrated with archival and contemporary images, this book includes stories that focus on Purdue innovators who have created everything from the barcode and the electronic TV receiver to the soft-serve ice cream machine and artificial kidney. It also shares the story of "John" Mohammed M. Atalla, the co-inventor of the MOSFET, the most produced and used digital circuits in circulation today. Indeed, a Purdue alumnus played a key role in the development of the most replicated engineered device in human history. Other Boilermakers featured include Neil Armstrong, the first human to step foot on the moon; Charles Alton Ellis, a lead designer of the Golden Gate Bridge; and Amelia Earhart, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. While celebrating the past, 150 Years of Purdue Engineering also provides a glimpse into the next century and a half as the university continues to cultivate talent, promote research, and share its engineering acumen with the state of Indiana and the world.