60. O'Rear Professors. - by Dennis O'Rear
As the family has become larger, many more educated members of the family have achieved
Professorships in American Universities. Here’s information on two of them, Jay
Orear, a nuclear physicist at Cornell, and Edgar O’Rear of the University of
Oklahoma. I have a physics textbook of Jay’s and I’ve met Edgar (we’re both
Chemical Engineers).
Jay Orear
1
The Cornell Users Group is collaborating with CERN and Fermilab to measure the
proton-antiproton total cross section at 1800 GeV in the center-of-mass at the Fermilab
Tevatron. A previous run has shown that the total cross section has increased by almost a
factor of two at this energy. So far it is a big mystery why the size of the proton
increases with energy. The Cornell group has constructed and tested a small scintillating
fiber detector for use in the new run. The first run used a less sensitive detector and
ran from June 1988 to May 1989 with a group of about 15 PhD's plus 2 students. This is one
of the simplest and smallest experiments in present-day high-energy physics. The new
detector was installed in the Tevatron beam pipe in Dec. 1993 and has been tested using
beam halo. The tests have been completed and data taking should take place in fall-winter
95-96. This run will measure the total cross section with improved accuracy as well as the
real part of the forward scattering amplitude and large angle elastic scattering.
Associated with Prof. Orear are: Cedric Guss, Research Associate, Carlos Avila, Graduate
Student.
Edgar O’Rear
2
My research interests are in the two principal areas of surfactant science and biomedical
engineering. Using an interfacial polymerization process very similar to emulsion
polymerization, we are modifying the surfaces of commercially important materials and also
exploring the technique as a means of forming unusual polymers. Our efforts focus on
leaming the range of versatility of the method and on characterizing these thin polymer
films. Other projects in the surface science group involve surfactant-based separations
and the synthesis and study of novel surfactants. One of these is a double tail surfactant
with a hydrocarbon chain and a fluorocarbon chain. We believe this extraordinary
surfactant will form striated reverse, rod-like micellar aggregates, which we have called
"candy cane" micelles. Within biomedical engineering, my students and I are
interested in biotransport phenomena and particularly in biorheology. We are investigating
thrombolysis or the dissolution of blood clots by plasminogen activators. Aspects of this
research include developing a rheologic test for the study of thrombolysis and examining
another possible mechanism for the so-called "no-reflow" phenomenon. This work
may be important in the treatment of acute myocardial infarction and other cardiovascular
disorders.
Considering how the early family members were illiterate, we’ve come a long way.
Notes:
1. From: http://www.physics.cornell.edu/physics/PROF.PAGES/Orear.html
2. From: http://www.ou.edu/cems/OKChE/orear.html
Last Revised: 08/01/2002 13:12:00
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