Biographical or Historical Note

Overview

Generally, MC collections will feature a Biographical Note; while AC collections will have an Historical Note.

The function of this description is to provide historical and other descriptive information about an individual or administrative unit. It supplements the scope and content by providing a comprehensive picture of the person or organization. (The scope and content note only describes the information represented in the collection or what is conspicuously absent).

Finding aids will be available in electronic form to a global audience, so identify Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)  specifically in descriptions, and also avoid abbreviations that may not make sense to researchers outside of the Institute.

Authoritative sources for biographies and historical notes are personnel records, MIT News Office articles, resumes or vitae, and biographical information in the collection itself. The MIT Annual Report to the President and department reports are also generally reliable. Use information in outside obituaries only if 3 agree on information. Information on MIT web sites (other than News Office) should be confirmed with another source.

Cite your sources: Be as thorough as possible with citing sources, but in general accepted factual information that can be found in many sources does not need to be cited. To use endnotes, number the notes and put them at the end of the narrative text. Within the narrative text itself, use the following syntax for referring to notes: (1)

Use Processing Manual Style Guidelines and the Chicago Manual of Style.

The length of biography or history should be appropriate to the size and significance of the collection. If it seems appropriate, a fuller biography can be written or included in a fully processed collection. Do not duplicate work by writing a lengthy biography or history, especially if the person is well known.

Initial Biography (Faculty Papers)

Write a summary paragraph that can stand alone, later subsequent paragraphs can be added to enhance as appropriate.

• Name and birth/death span or if person is still alive use this phrase: name, born 1911,
• last academic title at MIT (use title given in the News Office or department retirement or obituary notices, or staff directory)
• academic degrees in order
• academic appointments at MIT
• administrative service at MIT
• URL for MIT News Office memorial

Examples

Example 1: Faculty Biography with News Office memorial link

William Ted Martin, 1911-2004, was a professor of mathematics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He received a BA, 1930, from the University of Arkansas, MA, 1931, and PhD, 1934, from the University of Illinois. Martin was appointed an instructor at MIT in 1936 and assistant professor in 1938. After three years at Syracuse University, he returned to MIT as a full professor in 1946. He served as head of the Department of Mathematics, 1947 to 1968; chairman of the faculty, 1969 to 1971; and director of the Division of Study and Research in Education, from 1973 to 1975.

MIT News Office memorial: <extref href="http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2004/martin.html">http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2004/martin.html</extref>

Example 2: Initial vs. Fuller Biographies

Initial Biography

Harold Eugene Edgerton, 1903-1990, was a professor of electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He earned a BS degree in 1926, University of Nebraska; SM 1927 and ScD 1931 in electrical engineering at MIT. He joined the faculty at MIT as professor of electrical engineering, 1928 to 1966; Institute Professor, 1966 to 1968; and Institute Professor emeritus, 1968 to 1990.

Fuller Biography

Harold Eugene Edgerton, 1903-1990, was a professor of electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He earned a BS degree in 1926, University of Nebraska; SM 1927 and ScD 1931 in electrical engineering at MIT. He joined the faculty at MIT as professor of electrical engineering, 1928 to 1966; Institute Professor, 1966 to 1968; and Institute Professor emeritus, 1968 to 1990.

Harold Edgerton perfected the stroboscope and developed photographic techniques that allowed very rapid events to be observed and captured on film. He also developed techniques for underwater exploration, using sonar devices and flash photography, and participated in many oceanographic and archaeological expeditions.

In 1947, with former students Kenneth J. Germeshausen and Herbert E. Grier, he formed Edgerton, Germeshausen and Grier, Inc. Now known as EG&G, the company specializes in electronic technology.

The <extref href="http://web.mit.edu/edgerton/">Edgerton Center</extref> was started at MIT in 1992 and it carries on the legacy of "Doc" Edgerton's teaching career.

See National Academy of Sciences, <title render="italic">Biographical Memoirs</title>, volume 86, 2005 for a full Edgerton biography.

Example 3: Biography with Citation

John Bigelow Jr., 1854-1936, was a United States Army lieutenant colonel who taught at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as professor of military science and tactics from 1894-1898 and professor of french and Head of Modern Languages Department 1905-1910. He graduated from West Point in 1877 and was assigned to duty as instructor in the Department of Modern Languages at West Point in 1879. He served in Texas, Arizona, Washington DC, and the Department of Dakota as part of the military. (1) During his military career he led and wrote about the Buffalo Soldiers, regiments of African-American soldiers. (2) He resigned from teaching at MIT in October of 1910. (3)

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Office of the President. “Annual Report of the President and Treasurer, December 12, 1894,” 1894. <extref href="http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/62047">http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/62047</extref>

2. “Tenth Regiment of Cavalry, The Army of the US Historical Sketches of Staff and Line with Portraits of Generals-in-Chief, U.S. Army Center of Military History.” Accessed April 8, 2020. <extref href="https://history.army.mil/books/R&H/R&H-10CV.htm">https://history.army.mil/books/R&H/R&H-10CV.htm</extref>

3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Office of the President. “Reports of the President and Treasurer,” 1911. <extref href="http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/58994"> http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/58994</extref>

See how this looks published on ArchivesSpace below:

Klaus Liepmann, 1907-1990, was a violinist, conductor, and professor emeritus of humanities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). At MIT, he was assistant professor, 1947 to 1951; associate professor, 1951 to 1956; professor, 1956 to 1972; and professor emeritus, 1972 to 1990, in the Music Section of the Department of Humanities. Despite retiring, Liepmann continued an active role in teaching until 1977. From 1961 to 1972, he served as chair of the Music Section. Liepmann also served as director of music at MIT from 1947 to 1972, and was responsible for the Concert Band, Glee Club, Symphony Orchestra, and Choral Society. In 1975, Liepmann was awarded the Eugene McDermott Award “for major contributions to the arts as a means of human fulfillment.” (1)

1. <title render="italic">MIT Report of the President and the Chancellor</title> Issue 1975-1976, p. 391, <extref href="http://hdl.handle.net/1721.3/59057">http://hdl.handle.net/1721.3/59057</extref>.

Example 4: Staff Biography

Mark Edward Connelly, 1925-2017, was a Research Electrical Engineer in the Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems (LIDS). Connelly began his studies at MIT in 1942. From 1943 to 1945, he took a hiatus from his studies to serve in the military, where he was Second Lieutenant in the US Marine Corps. He returned to MIT in 1946 and completed the SB, 1948, in electrical engineering. He received an MS, 1950 from Brown University in physics. In 1950, he returned to MIT working in the research staff in the Division of Industrial Cooperation (DIC), later known as the Division of Sponsored Research (DSR), in the Servomechanisms Laboratory. In his early years at MIT, he briefly was transferred to the Division of Defense Laboratories (DDL) to work on Project Lincoln. He continued working in sponsored research at MIT through 1981, first with the Servomechanisms Laboratory, later the Electronics Systems Laboratory, and ultimately LIDS. Connelly also served as a lecturer in the Department of Electrical Engineering during the 1960s. He cotaught 6.215, Simulation Methods for Analysis and Control of Complex Systems, and 6.605, Simulation Methods for Analysis and Control. He also served as an advisor to graduate students on their research. Connelly's main areas of interest included hybrid computing, air traffic control, aircraft simulation, and mass transit.

Obituary available on <ref href="http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/wickedlocal-concord/obituary.aspx?n=mark-e-connelly&pid=186968071&fhid=9284">Legacy.com</ref>.

Carl Wesley Garland, 1929-2017, was professor emeritus in the Department of Chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He earned a BS in chemistry at the University of Rochester in 1950 and PhD in chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley in 1953. (1) He taught at MIT as an instructor in the Department of Chemistry, 1953-1955; assistant professor, 1955-1959; associate professor, 1959-1968; and full professor from 1968 until his retirement in 1996. (2) While at MIT, Garland served on the Committee on Freshman Advising, 1977-1979. (3) He was also a member of the Internal Advisory Committee for the Center for Materials Science and Engineering, 1989-1996.(4)

Most known for his research in physical chemistry, Garland co-authored the laboratory textbook, Experiments in Physical Chemistry (1st edition, 1962), with fellow MIT Chemistry Professor David P. Shoemaker. Garland’s early work, 1953-1965, investigated absorption on metal surfaces by means of the infrared spectra of absorbed molecules. From 1965-1980, his work focused on order-disorder phenomena in fluids and crystals, and second order phase transitions in liquid crystals from 1980-2010. (5)

1. Danielle Randall, “Carl Garland, professor emeritus of chemistry, dies at 87,” MIT News, July 18, 2017, http://news.mit.edu/2017/carl-garland-professor-emeritus-of-chemistry-dies-0718.

2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, President’s Report Issue, 1955, http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/59037; Massachusetts Institute of Technology, President’s Report Issue, 1959, http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/59041; Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Report of the President 1968, 1968, http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/59049; and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Reports to the President for the Year Ended June 30, 1995, 1995, http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/59074.

3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Report of the President and the Chancellor 1977-78, 1978, http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/59059; and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Report of the President and the Chancellor 1978-79, 1979, http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/59060.

4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Reports to the President 1989-90, 1990, http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/59069; and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Reports to the President for the Year Ended June 30, 1996, 1996, http://dome.mit.edu/handle/1721.3/59075.

5. Randall, “Carl Garland, professor emeritus of chemistry, dies at 87.”

Historical Note for Administrative Records

Write a high level overview of the creating office of the records. Basic description should include the creating office's details of the establishment, any name changes or significant organizational changes (e.g. changes in administration), and an overview of the mission, projects, or research of the creating office. A director or program head list may be included as a chronology subnote.

Examples

Technology and Development Program

The Technology and Development Program was established at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1971, with a grant from the United States Agency for International Development (AID) to work in developing countries. The program continues to assist with projects worldwide to facilitate the establishment of research based science and technology infrastructure.

<extref href="http://web.mit.edu/mit-tdp/www/about-TDP.html">http://web.mit.edu/mit-tdp/www/about-TDP.html</extref>

Technology and Culture Seminar

The Technology and Culture Seminar (TCS) series began at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1964 when Myron Bloy, Episcopalian chaplain at the Institute, brought together a group of about 40 faculty members to discuss the impact of science and technology on American culture. His successors continued to sponsor TCS events, with financial assistance from the MIT administration. TCS events have addressed issues including world hunger, the arms race, Star Wars, the impact of technology on work, gender and science, AIDS, global development, and the environment. MIT sponsorship of TCS ceased in 1995, but the program continues on campus through donor support.

Laboratory for Nuclear Science

The Laboratory for Nuclear Science and Engineering was established at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in April 1946 as an interdepartmental laboratory to bring together scientists and engineers in the fields of experimental and theoretical nuclear physics, cosmology, inorganic chemistry, and civil, mechanical, and nuclear engineering to conduct research in nuclear and particle physics. Jerrold R. Zacharias, professor of physics at MIT, was the first director. The laboratory's early research was funded by the Office of Naval Research and the Atomic Energy Commission. In 1953, when the Department of Nuclear Engineering took over responsibility for the laboratory and for the MIT reactor and other work on applied nuclear science, the name of the laboratory was changed to the Laboratory for Nuclear Science (LNS). In the 1960s work on cosmic rays moved to the Center for Space Research, and programs in nuclear chemistry were phased out. The Center for Theoretical Physics was dedicated in March 1968, and operates under the auspices of the laboratory. Since 1974 the laboratory has also operated the Bates Research and Engineering Center (formerly the Bates Linear Accelerator Center).

The Laboratory for Nuclear Science currently supports the basic research in nuclear and elementary particle physics of faculty and research scientists in the School of Science. It supports research interests of faculty in the Department of Physics by maintaining and administering facilities adapted to studies in high energy and nuclear physics.

Among many projects supported by the lab are theoretical studies of nuclei and elementary particles; experimental programs using a variety of detector techniques to study strong, electromagnetic, and weak interactions of elementary particles and other high energy phenomena; application of high speed nuclear and elementary particle data analysis; nuclear studies using heavy-ion accelerators; and programs in medium energy nuclear research with electrons, photons, protons, and pions.

Department of Applied Biological Sciences

The Department of Applied Biological Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) was in existence under different department titles for 43 years from 1945 to 1988 when the department was phased out and faculty relocated to other academic units.

Courses in food science were first offered at MIT within the Department of Biology and Public Health. Professor Samuel Prescott taught the course Technology of Food Products, in 1923. Prescott's course was expanded, and additional food science courses were offered by his former student, Bernard E. Proctor. Increasing student interest in these courses led to the creation of Food Technology as a separate four-year program in the Department of Biology and Public Health. Food Technology and Industrial Biology was designated Course VII-B in 1939.

During World War II there was an urgent need for research in food technology related to feeding members of armed forces. This increased attention on food research helped to lead the establishment of Food Technology as a separate Division of the Department of Biology and Biological Engineering in 1944. In 1945, the Executive Committee of the Corporation voted to separate Food Technology from the Department of Biology and Biological Engineering and be established as a separate document, know as Course 20.

William L. Campbell was the first head of the Department of Food Technology. The curriculum was developed largely by Bernard Proctor, Director of the Samuel Cate Prescott Laboratories of Food Technology at MIT. Members of the department continued to conduct research on Army rations in cooperation with the Office of the Quartermaster General. Post-war research included work on food dehydration, sterilization and packaging.

After the resignation of Campbell in 1951, Proctor was acting head of the department and then head in 1952. In 1951, in response to demands from students and industry, the department created a program in biochemical engineering, to be administered with the cooperation of the Department of Chemical Engineering. At the same time, new graduate classes were offered in food bacteriology and food irradiation, reflecting growing changes in food research.

During the next decade, the department continued to grow and change. In 1961, Nevin Scrimshaw was named head of the department, and the department name was changed to Nutrition, Food Science, and Technology. In 1963 the name was shortened to Department of Nutrition and Food Science. Also in 1961 the undergraduate degree in Food Technology was discontinued and a new undergraduate program in Life Sciences, administered by the Biology Department, was instituted.

As the department grew, the research interests of faculty and students became more diverse. Work was being done in the fields of metabolism and human nutrition, neural and endocrine regulation, toxicology and biochemical engineering as well as food science and engineering. By 1985, it was felt that the name Nutrition and Food Science no longer reflected the range of research and educational activities within the department. By a vote of the Executive Committee of the MIT Corporation, on February 1, 1985, the department name was changed to Applied Biological Sciences.

The Department of Applied Biological Sciences was closed in 1988. Citing a "difficulty in achieving a coherent sense of mission and intellectual focus" within the department, Provost John Deutch and Dean of the School of Science Gene Brown announced the decision. The closing of the department was controversial. The Committee on Reorganization and Closing of Academic Units, led by Professor Sheila Widnall, investigated the facts of the closing. The committee concluded, among other findings, that while the reasons behind the closing may have been sound, there was inadequate communication between the Dean and the Department Head during the period the closing was being considered and that there was inadequate planning concerning the careers of faculty and students within the department.

The history of the department is treated at length in Samuel A. Goldblith's Of Microbes and Molecules: Food Technology, Nutrition and Applied Biology at M.I.T., 1873-1988, published by the Food and Nutrition Press in 1995.

Director, Heads List

Example of Director Chronology (from ArchivesSpace Public User Interface)

In ArchivesSpace use the “Add Sub Note” feature and for “Note Type” choose chronology to enter the list.