2011-2012 Program We hope you enjoy this year's program. Please note the day for our monthly meetings is Wednesday (in most cases), generally the second Wednesday of the month. Please use our online reservation form or contact Dave Shaner 508-984-2256. Please make your reservations no later than the Monday before each meeting. Contact one of the Chapter officers if you have suggestions for a meeting topic.

Our September 14, 2011 kickoff meeting will be a fun, social event. Join us for a 4:00PM tour of Thomas Tew Distillery in Newport, RI, followed by dinner at the Coddington Brewery, in Middletown, RI. Although details are sketchy, Thomas Tew was a pirate that called on Newport, RI, as a possible home base. This event offers a detailed tour of local rum making using the same ingredients and techniques used when Newport had a viable rum trade. The key ingredient is Blackstrap molasses and using the pot still technique with a multiple distilling process, and finally a single barrel age. After the tour, rum tasting will be available. Dinner will be followed at a ASM-RI favorite, Coddington Brewery at 5:30 PM.

Cost: Members $30, ASM Retirees $20, Guests $35

Professor Shouheng Sun received his Ph.D. degree in Chemistry from Brown University in 1996. He was a postdoctoral fellow from 1996-1998 and a research staff member from 1998-2004 at the IBM T. J. Watson Research Center. He joined the Chemistry Department of Brown University as a tenured Associate Professor in 2005 and was promoted to full Professor in 2007. He has been the Associate Director of Brown's Institute for Molecular and Nanoscale Innovation since 2008. He has almost 200 technical publications and holds 21 patents or pending patent applications, all in the field of nano-magnetic materials. He has been an invited lecturer at national and international venues in 9 countries.

Most of our members have never had much opportunity to learn details about magnet materials in general, much less NdFeB. A brief review of the history of NdFeB magnets, including some discussion of applications and the global rare earth materials market, an introduction to the common manufacturing methods, and then a brief discussion of the current research topics including the implications for potential applications will be included.

Cost is standard – ASM members - $25, retirees, students, etc - $15, guests - $30

November 9, '11
Microscopy and Optical Metrology Workshop
Speaker: Doug Kennedy of Olympus

Laser Confocal Technology
Digital Microscopy
Roughness Analysis
Principles and Application of Laser Scanning
Confocal Microscopy

A Few Items to note:
The Olympus LEXT OLS4000 3D Laser Measuring Microscope is designed for nanometer level imaging, 3D measurement and roughness measurement. Magnification ranges from 108x - 17,280x satisfy the needs of today's researchers.
Since the visual field is narrowed during high magnification observation, in many circumstances the operator will lose track of their location on the specimen. The LEXT OLS4000 is equipped with the macro map function to solve this problem. The screen always displays a wide-field image of the specimen under low magnification, displaying a rectangular marker to denote current location.
Differential Interference Contrast (DIC) is an observation method for visualizing sub-nanometer micro asperities, which are far beyond the resolving power of a typical laser microscope. This DIC method allows a user to obtain live images comparable to those of an electron microscope under relatively low power magnifications.

Dinner: At Spumoni’s

Time: Social hour 6:00-to 7:00; Dinner 7:00; Speaker 8:00.

Cost is standard – ASM members - $25, retirees, students, etc - $15, guests - $30

December 14, '11
Spouses Night
Location: Providence Art Club
Speaker: Linda Merk-Gould
Topic: LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Home - Balancing Aesthetics and Performance
Dinner Selection: Chicken Milan or Braised New England Cod, vegetarian available by request
Time: 6PM social hour & viewing Gallery & Exhibitions, 7PM Dinner, 8PM Presentation
Cost: Member $30.00, Member Spouse $20.00, Guest $35.00, Guest Spouse $35.00

Please make reservations by December 6.

Professionally, Linda Merk-Gould has had a career in historic monument and sculpture preservation with a focus on large scale projects that have both aesthetic and engineering challenges. She was Director of Conservation at Harvard’s Peabody Museum and then founded the business, Conservation Technical Associates in 1982.

Linda worked on the Statue of Liberty during its monumental restoration in the 1980’s. Her firm preserved the Statue of Freedom on the dome of the US Capitol Building in the 1990’s. That project involved helicoptering the 15,000 lb bronze statue to ground level. It was the first major restoration of the statue since it was installed on the dome during the Civil War. She has conserved over a hundred Henry Moore sculptures, being recommended internationally by the Moore Foundation.

She received a BA degree from Wellesley College with her Honors research being completed in MIT’s Ancient Materials Laboratory. Her research for her Master’s degree at the Queen’s University in Canada was published in the Journal of the International Institute for Conservation. Her development of methods for corrosion removal utilizing waterjet technology was undertaken in Professor David Summer’s laboratory in the 1990’s and presented at the NACE (National Association of Corrosion Engineers) Dialogue 94 Meeting.

Her interest in energy efficient systems dates back to the early 1980’s with a focus on lighting and HVAC systems in museum settings. She published her research on energy efficient – and preservation oriented - lighting systems for storage areas in Technology and Conservation Journal in 1982.

Linda is currently a member of Westport (CT) Public Site & Building Commission. She has just returned from a preservation cultural exchange program in Cuba. Her talk in December with be on Balancing Aesthetic and Performance Criteria in a LEED Home – a project spanning the past three years.

January 11, '12
Topic: Geothermal Heating & Cooling for the Home
Speaker: TBD

Following-up on the subject of the December meeting we will hear about the benefits of geothermal climate control in the home...lower operating costs, lower emissions, reliable, comfortable, and quiet. Learn how ground source heat pumps work.

After the main speaker, Rick Blackall (ASM RI Chapter Treasurer) will offer his experiences with geothermal climate control in his home.

February 16, '12
Joint Meeting With RIASQ

Medical Products Quality Systems
Presented by Tom Hutchinson

In the global market for medical products, country and regional laws and regulations are in a constant state of revision. Requirements become more stringent as governments work to protect the public health of their citizens, improve healthcare, and in some cases protect their local industries against foreign competition. As medical technologies become more complex, how does an organization develop and revise the quality system to meet these dynamic and constant revisions without re-creating multiple quality system processes? How does an organization maintain an efficient and effective quality system? This discussion will provide some practical answers to these questions.

Tom Hutchinson is the Vice President of Regulatory Affairs at Davol Inc., a subsidiary of CR Bard. Previously, he was responsible for both Quality Assurance and Clinical Affairs. Prior to working at Davol, he held positions in the pharmaceutical industry - Senior Director, Global Manufacturing Compliance and Director, Devices at Pfizer Inc.; Director, Global Compliance Management at Pharmacia Corp. His initial work in the life sciences industry was as Director, Quality Management and Regulatory Affairs at the Medical Products division of Becton Dickinson and Co. Before entering the life sciences industry, he had a number of manufacturing and corporate quality assignments at Polaroid, Chomerics Inc., and Avery-Dennison. Tom has over 30 years of quality system experience. He holds an MS in Quality Management, a BS in Microbiology/Molecular Biology, has numerous ASQ credentials (Senior Member, QMOE, CQA, CBA), is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt, and participates actively in numerous professional organizations (RAPS, PDA, ISPE, CPC).

Time: 5:30 pm Registration & Networking, 6:00 pm Dinne,r 7:00 pm Program
Location: Hose Co. No. 6, 636 Central Avenue, Pawtucket, RI 02861

Directions: From South: I-95 N to Exit 29 (Cottage St). Turn left, then bear right onto Central Ave at 2nd light (just after cemetery entrance). Restaurant is 1/2 mile on left. From North: I-95 S to Exit 2A (Rte. 1A South). Turn right onto Newport Ave. At 3rd light, take right onto Central Ave. Restaurant is ¼ mile on right.

Menu: Home Style Chicken & Rice Soup, Tossed Green Salad, Carved Roast Beef w/ Burgundy Mushroom Sauce, Slow Roasted or Stuffed Breast of Chicken w/Cranberry Glaze, Mini Penne Rigate w/ Sauce, Meatballs & Sausages, Fresh Native Baked Scrod, Potatoes & Vegetables, Fresh Bakery Rolls, Coffee, Tea, and Cheesecake

Price: $30 Members & Guests $15 Unemployed Members

Reservations: Register online at www.riasq.org or e-mail Paula at (pjlusignan@gmail.com)

March 14, '12

Speaker: John Laurence Busch author of
“Steam Coffin: Captain Moses Rogers and The Steamship Savannah Break the Barrier”

This story chronicles the first strides of the first generation of "steamboats" in history, including those run by Moses Rogers himself, a son of New England. Steamboats represent the first technology that used an artificial power -- the steam engine -- to alter time and space to practical effect. This ability makes steam-powered vessels the first high technology in history. The Savannah truly was the first "steamship"; it is no exaggeration to state that every artificially-powered, ocean-going vessel in the world today is a descendant of the steamship Savannah.

The crossing of the Atlantic by Captain Rogers and the Savannah represented an epochal shift in history: the Savannah's ability to overcome nature to practical effect meant that steam-powered vessels were not just a provincial innovation, but a global one. This great accomplishment was made possible thanks to a group of innovators called "mechanics."

Visit www.steamcoffin.com to gain a sense of the depth and breadth of interest in this history.

Dinner: At Spumoni’s

April TBD, '12

May, TBD '12