WORCESTER—A Worcester Polytechnic Institute student is being recognized for blending science, creativity and human expression in a project inspired by one of the universe’s most iconic images.
Ian Wood, a Worcester resident and computer science major in the Worcester Polytechnic Institute Class of 2026, has received the university’s Class of 1879 Prize for outstanding work in the Humanities and Arts for a project titled “Sonifying the Pillars of Creation,” according to an announcement from the university.
The award is presented annually by WPI’s Department of Humanities and Arts to students whose culminating Humanities & Arts Requirement projects demonstrate exceptional creativity, skill, and originality. The projects are intended to showcase students’ ability to conceive, develop, and express a theme within disciplines across the humanities and arts.
Wood’s project was selected as one of the winners for this year’s honor, which traces its origins back more than a century. WPI has recognized excellence in humanities and arts work since 1872, when the university’s English and Modern Languages department established an award for the best composition paper, according to the announcement.
The Class of 1879 later formalized the prize at its 1900 reunion, endowing the award for work “on a topic of general interest.” The endowment was continued by Spencer Miller, Class of 1879, who sought “to encourage graduates of the Institute to develop the art of clear and lucid English in the discussion of engineering subjects,” according to the announcement.
Over time, the prize has evolved alongside WPI’s academic model. Following the adoption of the WPI Plan in 1970 and subsequent curricular changes, the Department of Humanities and Arts began awarding the prize in 1983 to outstanding Humanities Requirement Projects.
Today’s winning projects often extend beyond traditional essays and reflect the interdisciplinary nature of WPI’s project-based learning approach, while still honoring the original goal of recognizing exceptional human expression, according to the announcement.
Editor Charlene Arsenault can be reached at carsenault@theworcesterguardian.org
