Gary Vliet, PhD, is Professor Emeritus at the University of Texas at Austin. He grew up in Alberta, and studied and worked in California before joining the faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin where he taught for 35 years. His other publications, besides a number of technical papers, are: a book on Solar Energy, a Biography of a family member, and the to be published Centennial History of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas. He is an Emeritus Professor or UT Austin and resides in Austin. From his four plus decades in Austin and the research for this book he has gained a broad knowledge of Texas history.