Winter 2012 - Austin College Magazine

A C E N T U R Y
1980-1990
“Students in the ’80s were a little more uptight, more career-focused, than the students in
the ’70s,” Imhoff said. To adapt to the changing needs of students, the curriculum shifted
to the modern schedule. In 1984, the Heritage of Western Culture sequence was revised to
require a science-oriented course, which introduced students to four or five fundamental
scientific topics, such as evolution, modern physics, genetics, and the environment. For
the first time, students participated in molecular biology courses.
Construction is underway on the dome for the
new IDEA Center observatory.
eye on the future
1990-2000
By the ’90s, the Heritage course no longer was ideal. “It was a great course on principle, but
we just didn’t have the resources to do the reinforcement,” Imhoff said. “Two hundred
students introduced to the theory of relativity for the first time who are just hanging on …
you lose them when it gets more complicated.” The Heritage course ended, and students
took separate science requirements instead.
In 1995, faculty and campus offices were connected to the internet, and email became
a primary mode of communication. The student resident halls were modified over the next
few years to provide internet access in each room.
From the sounding of the digital alarm clock, science impacts modern society
every day. The clean—and hot—water in the shower is provided by scientific
process as is the electricity that powers the home, as well as its cooling and
heating methods. Fixing the eggs for breakfast is a chemical process (as is the
added toast and a microwaved sausage link.) A piece of fruit likely was
impacted by high-yield agricultural techniques. What plants are safe to eat?
What ones are most nutritious? What do you do when one creates
an allergic reaction? Check science.
Need the weather predictions? That’s science. The car—its
engine and gasoline and safe-as-possible carbon dioxide
emissions—plus the asphalt it drives on, the plastic lid on the
22 | Austin College Magazine Winter 2012