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Plannet named after Purdue professor

When people poke fun of chemistry professor Michael Lipschutz's last name, he reminds them that he has a planet named after him and they don't.

Lipschutz's planet is a minor planet located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Having a planet named after you is a mark of distinction for those in his field, and a testament to Lipschutz's longtime involvement in teaching and meteor research.

Lipschutz came to Purdue in the late '60s and has taught here ever since. But before his teaching career, Lipschutz was part of a strategic intelligence unit for the Army. When he came to Purdue, he realized he needed to keep students interested in his lectures and referred to his army experience for inspiration.

He spent part of his military experience at Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga., where it was hot causing the men to get tired after lunch.

"We would have lunch out in the field and then we would have a (boring) lecture afterwards," he said.

Lipschutz recalls a time when a lecturer brought an easel covered with a cloth to class.

"He started off saying, 'Gentleman, I know it's a hot day and you just had lunch. And I know there's a tendency for you to go to sleep. But if I notice too many people going to sleep I'll just flip this sheet.'"

When the officer uncovered the easel they were greeted with a centerfold picture from Playboy.

"Everybody stayed awake because they wanted to see what would happen," he said. "And that taught me a lesson � if you do something that the audience will find interesting or amusing, they'll stay awake."

One of the things Lipschutz uses to keep his chemistry students awake is a Web site dedicated to warning people of the dangers of Dihydrogen Monoxide, a substance found in virtually everything and can cause death if over consumed.

Dihydrogen Monoxide is water.

Lipschutz, who speaks more than a dozen languages reasonably well, fell into chemistry because of his love of science fiction as a child.

"I like working with the idea of what is out there," he said. "As a chemist, I could answer some questions."

Lipschutz became an Apollo 11 investigator and examined moon rocks. After he didn't get the answers he was hoping for he swore off lunar samples, though he eventually went back on that promise.

In the �70s, Lipschutz warned his students of global warming, but he gave up in disgust when nothing was done about the problem.

"When it could have made a difference, I spoke out," he said. "By now, I'm not going to worry about it anymore. I wouldn't buy any land in Florida."

Now, Lipschutz is a year away from a retirement that will be spent with his grandchildren and traveling the world. However, he looks back at his 40+ years of teaching fondly.

"What I enjoyed most about it was seeing a mind light up and that is not an easy thing to do," he said. "A lot of people come to university totally ignorant of what life is all about."

David McMillin, professor of chemistry, has been Lipschutz's friend and co-worker since 1975.

"We exercised together at