David Woody, a member of the professional staff and assistant director of the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO), has been awarded the 2011 Thomas W. Schmitt Annual Staff Prize. The prize recognizes a staff member of the Caltech community whose contributions embody the values and spirit that enable the Institute to achieve excellence in research and education.
Woody has led the instrumentation development effort at OVRO for
more than three decades—an internationally recognized effort
that has included antenna design and verification, advances in
receivers and optics, correlator design, atmospheric phase
correction, and control and monitoring. He played a crucial role in
completing the original Owens Valley millimeter-wave array, taking
over from Professor Bob Leighton to construct the final three
antennas. More recently, he masterminded the move of all six
antennas to the new high site at Cedar Flat, where they form part
of the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-Wave Astronomy
(CARMA). Moreover, during the past five years, he has helped lead
the design and construction at OVRO of the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich
Array, whose specific purpose is to search for clusters of galaxies
throughout the universe. Beyond that, he has still found time to
play important technical advisory roles in the design and
construction of both the Cerro Chajnantor Atacama Telescope (CCAT)
and the Atacama Large-Millimeter Array in the high desert of
northern Chile. And, for the last six years, he has traveled to
Uganda to teach mathematics and other subjects through the
Kampala-based organization Missionaries of the Poor.
Here are excerpts from the nominator's comments:
"It would be an understatement to say that David Woody
. . . has made a significant contribution to the lives of
those working here at the Owens Valley Radio
Observatory. . . . 'Iconic' is a word that aptly
portrays the man, as reflected through his enduring dedication and
character."
"As our Assistant Director, Dave's responsibilities at OVRO are
vast and, frankly, mind-boggling. On any given day one might see
him immersed in the planning of a building remodel, navigating his
way through discussions with an upset staff member, talking shop
with our onsite vehicle mechanic, working with the machine
department lead on a particularly challenging fabrication project,
sharing insights with a CARMA guest observer, or engaged in
numerous phone conferences with his CARMA . . . or CCAT
. . . colleagues. Sprinkle a significant dose of travel
throughout each month and one easily gets the impression this is a
very busy man!"
"Dave brings a sense of humor to his job and resists taking himself
or others too seriously, a characteristic that helps keep us
grounded."
"Once on staff at Caltech, he spent time at the prestigious Bell
Labs research facility in New Jersey working with Thom Phillips to
develop the SIS mixer technology that is now the preferred
technique for coherent millimeter and submillimeter detection at
observatories around the world. The first application of this in
radio astronomy was at Caltech's Millimeter Array in the Owens
Valley of California."
"As a manager, Dave inspires staff to pursue independent research
and professional development. His presence serves as a buffer
between observatory operations and higher-level project concerns,
which contributes greatly to positive staff motivation and
morale."
About the Prize
All staff members are eligible for this award, and are nominated by
a member of the Caltech community. A committee of six faculty and
staff members makes the final selection based on the following
criteria. The selected staff member should
• enjoy uncommon trust and respect among her
or his peers,
• directly or indirectly support the
Institute's research and teaching mission in a singularly
effective, professional, and passionate manner, and
• engender a spirit of enthusiasm about
Caltech and its values among everyone with whom he or she
interacts, both on campus and off.
Former Associate Vice President for Human Resources Tom Schmitt
created the annual staff prize shortly after he arrived at Caltech
in 1997. Financial support for the prize is provided by Ted
Jenkins, an alumnus and trustee. He was president of the Alumni
Association from 2001 to 2002 and served as the president of the
Caltech Associates in 2004–2005.
