President's Message

摘要

As scientific glassblowers and members of the ASGS, we are the fortunate beneficiaries of those who have gone before us. It has not always been this way however. Three of my mentors have told different stories from the time they started glassblowing. In one instance, the beginning glassblower swept the floors for a year, watching and listening to learn what he could. In another, the experienced glassblowers would put down their work when someone came by they did not want anyone else to learn their "secrets." In a third, the older glassblowers would not share information on technique, you had to "steal with your eyes" in order to learn and advance. One thing is certain: under those conditions, the desire to be a scientific glassblower would have to be strong! The founders of the ASGS did not see things that way. J. Allen Alexander and other scientific glassblowers of like mind saw the ASGS as a Society dedicated to education and the dissemination of knowledge. They saw it as an opportunity to share and learn those techniques and ideas which would benefit everyone.