NASA astronaut, alum describes time at International Space Station

Garrett Reisman has not only been to space - he may be the first astronaut to bring the familiar red and blue Penn pennant with him.

Reisman spoke to a full crowd in Levine Hall's Wu and Chen Auditorium last night. His speech was part of the School of Engineering and Applied Science's "Technology, Business and Government" series, which brings distinguished speakers to Penn to discuss the interrelationships between the three sectors.

Throughout the evening, Reisman continuously demonstrated his love for his alma mater. He described not only hanging a Penn pennant in the International Space Station, but also bringing a knob from ENIAC - the world's first general-purpose computer, created at Penn in 1946 - along for the ride.

"If ENIAC hadn't been invented at Penn, man would have never gone to space," he declared.

While Reisman did not plan to become an astronaut, he said he was inspired to apply after realizing he had the same experience as previous mission specialists.

"It was a long shot - no pun intended," he joked.

And the jokes continued throughout the evening.

"This is what we call 'One Giant Heap of Mankind,'" he quipped about a photograph of his team assembled in a dogpile.

Reisman also showed a video of himself somersaulting through a space module and playing with floating Swedish Fish, which made the audience roar with laughter.

"He's a typical engineer in that he really knows what he's talking about ... yet he's very playful and fun," Christine Kappeyne, an Engineering freshman, said.

Despite his sense of humor, Reisman was able to impart serious advice to the crowd.

"If you want to be an astronaut, do what you love to do," he told students. As a member of the NASA selection committee this year, he added, "At some point we look beyond GPAs and think, would I want to go camping for six months with this person?"

Joseph Bordogna, an Engineering professor, said the intent of the series is to teach "the soft skills of leadership and creativity that we do not know how to teach at the blackboard."

Wharton and Engineering junior Nicholas Stevens, who attended the event, said, "I was inspired by how he thanked his professors, and how you have to stand on the shoulders of those before you."

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