Physics at 2,500 feet
In 1934, a group of enterprising young Turks pooled their money and bought construction plans for a glider. Pioneers in the infancy of aviation, they built it by hand, out of wood and fabric, and when the time came for its maiden flight, they drew straws. “My grandfather pulled the short stick, so he had to be the test pilot on that glider without much knowledge,” recalls T. Fettah Koşar, a principal scientist and facilities manager at Harvard’s Center for Nanoscale Systems. “He didn’t have a license — had been on planes, but I used to hear stories about how he was so nervous.” “But he flew and landed without any trouble.” That’s the story Koşar grew up with, first as an aspiring astronaut, then as a budding pilot, following in his grandfather’s footsteps. From the age of 5, he built model airplanes from balsa wood and read aviation magazines. “I never got my...