Moe Young ’03 Spreads Joy With Marshmallows
When Maureen “Moe” Young graduated with a biology and biotechnology degree 20 years ago, she never knew her future would include a career that feeds her passions for science and food.
Read StoryA New Way to Engage
Readers of the online version of the WPI Journal may have noticed a new way to engage with some of the feature stories. We’ve introduced a curated comments widget that invites readers to add their thoughts, as long as certain criteria are met. If you are reading the print version and want to chime in as well, use the QR code at the end of a story to jump to the digital site and comment away.
While I love when people take the time to send an old-fashioned letter to the editor, I also recognize that sometimes a thought-provoking piece might move you to show an immediate reaction. Even with the soft launch of this widget, we received several comments on stories in the summer issue, most offering support to those featured. A shout-out to the reader who used ChatGPT to comment on the story about ChatGPT. I should have expected nothing less from the WPI community.
I have mixed emotions about online comments on stories on other media sites. I may read them to get a flavor of reader reactions; sometimes my understanding of the subject is expanded through thoughtful additions—and sometimes the opposite is true. Rest assured that WPI Journal comments will be reviewed by a moderator (me) and all must adhere to our posting guidelines. Stories are also promoted on WPI social media outlets, which offer other opportunities to give feedback.
It’s a Tough Job But…
I had the pleasure of doing some hard-hitting research on one of our featured alumni in this issue: Moe Young, founder of Moeshmallows. Early in the summer I caught up with her in Holden, Mass., where she had stationed her delightfully decorated retro food truck in the Chaffinville Floral parking lot. Because I just had to, I sampled her orange creamsicle Italian fizzy drink topped with an orange-flavored mallow. I can truthfully attest to its deliciousness.
Moe has strong support from her family, who are often the first to try out—and suggest—new flavors. I’m told that some experiments into savory marshmallows were quickly abandoned, but the pink and blue cotton candy flavor is a family favorite. Moeshmallows often make an appearance at Alumni Association events, so be sure to look for them when you return to campus.
Erratum
Sharp-eyed reader Gary Larson, MS ’68, electrical engineering, noted a problem in the story about the dedication of a plaque in Unity Hall that honors the life and accomplishments of William B. Gould III, one of the first African Americans to enroll in WPI in 1921 (Summer 2023, page 12). The story says the unveiling was held on the 100th anniversary of Gould’s death, which doesn’t make sense given that he served in World War II and went on to a distinguished career.
Turns out the unveiling was on the 100th anniversary of the death of his grandfather, the first William B. Gould, a skilled plaster tradesman who escaped enslavement in 1863 and joined the U.S. Navy during the Civil War. Gould kept a journal during his years in the Navy—the only known record of the war written by an escaped slave.
We regret the error, which has been fixed in the digital version.
Kris O’Reilly, Editor
