The Rossing factor: How I benefited from being his student
Daniel A. Russell · The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · 2017
From 1998 to 1991, I had the privilege of pursing a master’s degree with Dr. Thomas D. Rossing, exploring a thesis on the nonlinear behavior of piano hammers at Northern Illinois University. I later earned a Ph.D. degree in Acoustics from Penn State, but my experience as Rossing’s student was instrumental in helping me develop a diverse set of research skills and interests which have to be proved extremely beneficial throughout my academic career. Dr. Rossing involved me in several side projects (like optical holographic interferometry, experimental modal analysis, mode scanning), that were extracurricular to my thesis research but which led to several publications on a variety of acoustics topics, both while his student and later on my own as a physics and acoustics faculty member. The experimental skills acquired in Rossing’s acoustics laboratory generated the inspiration for many of my own classroom demonstrations and research projects with my own students. This talk will summarize the many ways that Dr. Rossing’s example as a teacher, researcher, and author have had a significant influence on my own academic career and success.