New England. Part of 2. Ivy League and the US Navy Submarine Museum
380 years ago, about five hundred English Protestant-Puritans arrived on the shores of the Long Island Strait, at the mouth of the Quinnipiak River. They did not recognize the authority of the official English church, they had discipline, passionate religiosity, and a desire for spiritual rebirth.
At home, the Puritans were subject to repression, and many were forced to leave England. Some of them went to North America, and it was from their settlements that the English colonization of this part of the world actually began. Puritans were distinguished by courage, perseverance, asceticism, confidence in their exclusiveness, and prudence in economic matters. “He who suffers, conquers” (Vinci qui patitur) is their motto. They laid here the city, called New Haven.
Today, the city has a large port, there are enterprises for the production of firearms weapons: OF Mossberg & Sons, Winchester Repeating Arms. (The Winchester brand is now owned by Olin Corporation, and the name is licensed by two subsidiaries of the Herstal Group: Fabrique Nationale (FN) of Belgium and the American Browning Arms Company.) The chemical industry, instrumentation, electronics, tools and industrial equipment are developed.
And of course, here is the famous Yale University. He enters the Ivy League, a community of eight of the most prestigious private American universities: Brown (1764), Harvard (1636), Yale (1701), Colombian (1754), Cornell (1865), Pennsylvania (1740), Princeton (1746) as well as Dartmouth College (1769).
Education in universities of the League is considered elitist, “status”, because the quality of education received in the League is recognized worldwide.
In addition, "ivy" are considered one of the richest educational institutions, which allows them to invite the best students and teachers. The league is notable for its exceptional nature in terms of the quality of education, choice in admission and the applicant's belonging to the social elite.
Together with Harvard and Princeton Universities, Yale University makes up the so-called “big three” - the best of the best universities in the country.
It is clear that from scratch such a "one-two" you can not create.
The origins of Yale go back to the 1640 year, to the activities of priests-colonists, whose ideas formed the basis of university education and go back to traditions and principles of education in medieval European universities, as well as the ancient academies of Greece and Rome, where the principle of liberal education was developed for the first time volume, the "correct" understanding of the meaning of this word, from the Latin "liber" - a free citizen). Such education was aimed at the intensive development of the general intellectual competence, virtue and merit of the student's character. In those days, this principle was implemented through training in seven areas of the so-called. liberal arts: grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, astronomy, geometry and music.
The founders of Yale created a college hostel where students could learn from each other while living together on the campus. They studied, lived and attended church in the company of their mentors. With such a system, education became not just a training of the mind and preparation for a particular profession, but also experience aimed at developing various aspects of a student’s character, including moral virtue.
This is not Hogwarts. This is a student cafeteria
The criteria for the selection of students were oral exams, which were taken by the university president himself. The basic exams of Latin, Hebrew and Greek, various classical sciences, such as logic, rhetoric and arithmetic, were tested at the entrance exams. Moreover, Latin was the official language of the college, which not only meant learning Latin, but also a strict mode of communication in which Latin was the only language that students were allowed to use in conversations outside classrooms and after class. The use of English was prohibited by the rules of the college.
Hebrew motto on the emblem of the university: אורים ותמים, as well as in Latin: “Lux et Veritas” (“Light and truth”).
Today, the university consists of twelve divisions. Among them, Yale College, a four-year education which ends with a bachelor's degree; postgraduate studies in various specialties, including exact, natural and humanitarian sciences, 10 professional faculties, training specialists in the field of law, medicine, business, environmental protection, as well as theologians, architects, musicians, artists and actors. More 2000 courses are offered annually by 65 faculties. The four-thousand teaching staff is distinguished by the highest qualifications in their fields of knowledge. The central campus occupies 125 hectares. The university teaches more than 50 foreign languages and more than 600 courses, one way or another connected with international relations.
It should be mentioned that five American presidents graduated from Yale: William Taft, Gerald Ford, George W. Bush (senior), Bill Clinton, George W. Bush (junior). By the way, he was born in New Haven when his father, George Bush (senior), a retired sea pilot, a member of 2MB, studied here at the university.
Countless statesmen, from state secretaries to ministers of finance, army, and commerce studied here: Hillary Clinton, Cyrus Vance, John Kerry, and others. Among the graduates are many businessmen, cultural figures, art and sports: Meryl Streep, David Duchovny, Lewis Sinclair, Paul Newman et al.
The names of 49 Nobel Prize winners are somehow connected with this university: some have studied here, others have done research, and some have taught.
Since Yale is widely known for his achievements in the humanities, many do not realize that the university is also one of the leading research centers in the United States. The Yale Departments of Biology, Chemistry, Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Physics, Astronomy, Mathematics, Computer Science, Geology and Geophysics, Environmental Protection and others are constantly among the best university programs in America. Here optimal conditions are created for teaching students in such areas as biomedicine, applied chemistry, electrical engineering and other engineering sciences, first-class laboratories are equipped with the latest technology. Strengthening and developing his achievements, Yale invests more than 500 million dollars in the expansion and improvement of the laboratories and classrooms of the Faculties of Exact Sciences and Engineering.
This is what Yale University looks like these days:
In the coming years, the university will make additional investments in the amount of more than 500 million dollars in the development of the material base for research in the field of medicine and biotechnology. University Trust Fund - 23 billion. This is a private, but not a commercial educational institution. The cost of study ranges from 20 to 65 thousand dollars a year, depending on the faculty, specialty, etc. 51% of students receive a scholarship, 10% study for free.
12 thousands of students study here. For the sake of one of them, I arrived today at this abode of knowledge. Under some kindly pretext, he was invited to 10: 00 to the dean's office. I am entrusted with a very pleasant and honorable mission: on behalf of the company, which I have the honor to represent today, invite him to work with us on the relevant profile for the next 5 years with the possibility of extending the contract.
As is known, Yale has many traditions, both old and fairly new. Ivy League is generally famous for its legends and secrets. According to one of the legends, Ivy League has ruled America, because for several decades now Yale graduates have become presidents of the United States. The most mysterious link in this legend is Yale's secret student organization, Skull and Bones. History The secret brotherhood begins in 1832, when secretary Yale Russell and his associates organized a secret society. At first, the society was called the “Eulogia Club” (in honor of the Greek goddess of eloquence). But later the fraternity was renamed Skull and Bones. Little is known about the symbolism and rituals of the Skull and Bones; most of the information is unreliable and even absurd.
And this is Theodore Dwight Woolsey (Theodore Dwight Woolsey, 1801-1889), the former president of Yale.
His bronze statue is located on the campus in the part called the Old Campus. According to legend, if a student rubs the statue’s left shoe before the exam, it will bring him good luck.
I am accompanied by two specially hired attorneys (contract specialists). They have with them a leather bag, which is a draft contract, bound in a velvet binding. That is the tradition. According to her, I was dressed today in an old-fashioned black tuxedo. My attendants are also dressed. They are preoccupied and solemn, but for some reason I feel like a birthday boy and I worry a little, although I don’t need to do anything, just take the draft agreement out of their hands and hand it over to one kid. Lawyers will do the rest.
The management of the company decided that in the coming years they would need a specialist in some very narrow field. On the basis of the correctly compiled assignment of such a person, a special consulting firm calculated for us. It turns out that the boy is working precisely on this part, he already has a pack of practical developments and scientific publications in relevant journals, is noted by a number of quite credible experts on the topic, etc. In a word, they build far-reaching plans for him for a fairly long term.
And here he is! I imagined him to be such a pale and thin eyed bespectacled nerd. Nothing like this! Normal sports guy. Seeing us, turned pale, reddened and a bit shy. Carefully listened to my erasers. Sweat, when I learned what exactly he is offered. In fact, there are very decent conditions: payment for the last year of study + any two additional courses of his choice. The amount of salary, bonuses, growth prospects and many more things, not counting lift ones, are clearly spelled out ... Everything is clear there. The company in which I worked for almost a quarter of a century, on trifles is not too tight. Fooling these guys - it will cost you more. A person should feel satisfied with the conditions, otherwise it will not be work for the common good, but some kind of anguish. The boy said that he should think and consult with his girlfriend. They are going to get married soon. I think that she will support him. Women in such matters are practical. Moreover, she is a research assistant of some great qualifications, and for her, too, there is a job.
We said goodbye and left the walls of the university.
I traveled around the world, I saw everyone, but among the cities and cities there were not even half a dozen places where I would like to find myself again. New Haven I liked. Once again, I am ready to return here, as in a place close to my heart, where the soul rests, where you just want to live, walk along the shore of the strait and do your favorite things aside from unnecessary worries ...
Further, my path lay on the River Thames, to the city of New London. Don't forget, this is New England!
There, in its suburb called Grotton, the submarine production of Electric Boat Corporation, a division of General Dynamics Corporation, is concentrated. About half of the submarines for fleet The USA is made here.
The Electric Boat Company was founded in 1899 by Isaac Rice, a man of diverse development and education. He is an entrepreneur, an investor, a musicologist, a writer and a chess patron of the arts (the author of the chess debut of Gambit Rice).
The first submarine built at this shipyard was the Holland VI submarine, which went down in history as USS Holland (SS-1) and entered into service on April 11 of the year.
The fleets of many other countries became interested in the design of the submarine. Among the countries that purchased a license for the construction of boats from Electric Boat Company were the United Kingdom, Japan, Russia and the Netherlands.
During World War I, Isaac Rice's companies built 85 submarines, 722 submarine hunter boats for the US Navy and 580 military boats for the British Royal Navy. The company was renamed General Dynamics Corporation in 1952 year. After the acquisition of Convair in 1953, the holding retained the name General Dynamics. And the shipyard again became known as Electric Boat.
The shipyard built the first USS Nautilus nuclear submarine and the first George Washington ballistic submarine. During the Cold War, the company employed 25 000 people. At the same time built up to 15 atomic submarines. The construction of submarines of the types "Ohio", "Los Angeles", "Sivulf."
The shipyard in Groton today employs 7 500 people, including more engineers and designers than workers. Since 2004, the shipyard has built Virginia-class submarines.
About twelve kilometers up the river is the New London Naval Submarine Base.
From this base 14 September 1912 of the year, the first diesel-powered American submarine USS E-1 (SS-24) went on its first trip.
She was commanded by Lieutenant Chester Nimitz. It will be years, he will become admiral, commander of the Pacific Fleet of the US Navy.
The aircraft carrier will be named in his honor: USS Nimitz (CVN-68).
It is based 15 nuclear attack submarines of the US Navy. The base also has a school of divers. The territory of the base 2,7 sq.km + 2,1 sq. km for family housing base employees.
The base is adjacent to the building of the Museum and library of the submarine fleet of the United States. The territory of the museum - about 3000 square. The museum exposition has about 33 000 exhibits, including the world's first nuclear submarine USS Nautilus (SSN-571). In addition to the collection of submarines and related objects, the museum also has a library of about 20 000 documents and 30 000 photos related to the history of the development of submarines.
By the way, during the preparation of the materials for the article it was found that the "Big Brother" does not sleep:
The exposition is very well decorated, interesting and diverse. The exhibits are provided with explanatory signs, there are always voluntary guides in the sections. If any of them can not answer your question, you can contact the duty scientific adviser. The first exhibits meet us right in the courtyard of the museum.
Super small submarine type A Ko-hyoteki
It was used during the Second World War. Could move under water to a depth of 30 m with a speed of 19 nodes. Crew - 2 person. Five boats of this type were used in the attack on Pearl Harbor, two of them managed to get into the harbor.
SS X-1 Submarine for Military Studies
Released on 1955 in one copy. Used before 1973.
Entrance to the museum building
Understanding how submarines have changed in size for 100 in recent years is easy: a small circle is the diameter of the first US submarine USS "Holland" (SS-1), and a large circle is the diameter of a modern Ohio-type submarine (SSBN 726).
By the wall on the stand UGM-84 "Harpoon" - anti-ship cruise missile, one of the most common in the world. Developed by McDonnell - Douglas, currently produced at the enterprises of the Boeing Corporation. This compact rocket has a subsonic flight speed, high-explosive fragmentation warhead weighing 225 kg, the maximum firing range depends on the carrier, the modification of the missile and target designation and ranges from 90 to 220 km.
Several photographs from the museum.
Admiral Hyman Rickover, father of the US Navy
Two-stage solid propellant ballistic missile UGM-27 “Polaris A-3”
Torpedoes of various modifications of MK-14, MK-48, etc.
The pride of the museum is the world's first nuclear submarine USS Nautilus (SSN-571)
About her not once and even not two wrote on "IN". I will tell about visiting this boat in detail in the next article.
To be continued ...
All reference data - from open sources.
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