51³Ô¹ÏÍø

Around 50 alumni and their guests gathered in Los Angeles on Sunday 26 October to network and hear the latest news from 51³Ô¹ÏÍø.

delivered a presentation which highlighted key College developments. This included the welcome news that 51³Ô¹ÏÍø's new President Professor Alice Gast, who was once an undergraduate at the nearby University of Southern California, had commenced her leadership of the College at the beginning of August.

Alumni were also updated on the groundbreaking at 51³Ô¹ÏÍø West and the launch of the Althea-51³Ô¹ÏÍø programme.

Following the efforts of local alumnus Richard Chamberlain (Mechanical Engineering 1980), alumni were encouraged to step forward to assist with the formation of an association in the area.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø knowledge

Following the presentation, teams of six tested their impressive knowledge of the College with a pub quiz that capitalised on the competitive spirit in the room.

The multichoice quiz included a question on the height of the Queen’s Tower. As the answers were given the group burst into laughter when a heckler, who had guessed incorrectly, called across the room, “It wasn’t that tall when I was there!”

A question on the sister publication of 51³Ô¹ÏÍø’s student newspaper prompted another surprising revelation - an alumnus present had written an article in 1951 which explained how to transmit television signals using a cat’s whisker.

The conversations continued over drinks and dinner, with alumni from across the Los Angeles area enjoying the chance to meet fellow 51³Ô¹ÏÍø students, and to extend their professional and social networks.

Professor David Gann said, “It was exciting to have so many alumni gather in Los Angeles for an excellent evening exchanging ideas about 51³Ô¹ÏÍø's future, of fun and reminiscing. We look forward to seeing a new association take shape to help guide the growth of 51³Ô¹ÏÍø’s collaborations and the growth of it's reputation in the USA.”

See a slideshow of images below, or