Igor J. Karassik () (December 1, 1911 in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

Pennsylvania, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1795-1931: Malvina Adolphine Juliane Barjansky Karassik
/ref> – July 2, 1995 in

Maplewood, New Jersey Maplewood is a township in Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is an inner-ring suburban bedroom community of New York City in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's popula ...

)Igor J. Karassik (1911–1995)
by J. T. McGuire, in ''World Pumps'' Volume 1995, Issue 349, October 1995, Pages 49–50 was a Russian-American

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

known for his pioneering work with

pump A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes Slurry, slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic or pneumatic energy. Mechanical pumps serve in a wide range of application ...

s, a field in which he was "world-renowned"Pump User's Handbook: Life Extension, Fourth Edition
by Heinz P. Bloch and Allan R. Budris, published October 14, 2013 by Fairmont Press and an "outstanding authority".Current Engineering Practice - Volume 3, Issues 3-12 - Page 98
published 1960

Early life

Karassik was born to a wealthy Russian-Jewish family.Russian Empire 1897 census: Odessa: Malvina Barjansky DAOO 2-8-1131-1163 > image 24 of 249
/ref> His father, a mechanical engineer, John (Ivan) Karassik (1880—1969) was a son of a

Kharkov Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

Nukhim-Perets (Peter) Karasik (c. 1849—1906). His mother Malvina nee Barjansky (1882—1967) was a daughter of an

Odessa ODESSA is an American codename (from the German language, German: ''Organisation der ehemaligen SS-Angehörigen'', meaning: Organization of Former SS Members) coined in 1946 to cover Ratlines (World War II aftermath), Nazi underground escape-pl ...

1st guild merchant, composer, and pianist Adolf Barjansky (c. 1850—1900). Igor had an older sister Helen (1909—1990). The family emigrated from Russia to escape the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

and naturalized the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1923.Pennsylvania, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1795-1931 for John Karassik
/ref>Igor Karassik - the Pump User's Engineer
by Joe Evans, at ''Pumps & Systems''; published April 2014; retrieved January 20, 2017 His father went to America alone first, naturalized (with the whole family) after 6 years of residence, and then sent for his family. The rest of the family arrived to the United States in 1928, after living five years in Turkey and five years in France.A snapshot of the article "Her Edgewood home is where her heart is now" from ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
shown in ' findagrave' pag
Malvina Juliane Barjansky Karassik
/ref> He attended

Carnegie Institute of Technology Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became the Carnegie Institu ...

,A Name Well Chosen: Proceedings of the 12th International Pump Users Symposium
by Igor Karassik; published March 1995; retrieved January 20, 2017 and also studied in Turkey and France.

Professional life

In 1934 or 1936, Karassik joined the

Worthington Corporation The Worthington Corporation was a diversified American manufacturer that had its roots in Worthington and Baker, a steam pump manufacturer founded in 1845. In 1967 it merged with Studebaker and Wagner Electric to form Studebaker-Worthington. Th ...

; by 1974, he was a vice-president.Power, Volume 118, Part 2
published 1974 by Hill Publishing Company He subsequently worked for

Dresser Industries Dresser Industries was a multinational corporation headquartered in Dallas, Texas, United States, which provided a wide range of technology, products, and services used for developing energy and natural resources. In 1998, Dresser merged with its ...

. In 1980, he became the first recipient of the

American Society of Mechanical Engineers The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing edu ...

' Henry R. Worthington Medal for achievement in the field of pumping.Henry R. Worthington Medal
at the

; retrieved January 20, 2017 He wrote over 1100 technical articles and papers on pump use and maintenance, as well as several books, including ''Centrifugal Pump Selection, Operation and Maintenance'', ''Engineers' Guide to Centrifugal Pumps'', and ''Centrifugal Pump Clinic''; he also co-wrote ''Pump Questions and Answers'', and co-edited ''Pump Handbook''. In 1996, the Thirteenth Pump Users Symposium was dedicated to his memory.A Life Well Traveled: Igor J. Karassik (1911-1995)
by JT McGuire; at SplitFlowPumps.com; published March 1996; retrieved January 20, 2017

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Karassik, Igor J. 1911 births 1995 deaths Carnegie Mellon University alumni Fellows of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers American people of Russian-Jewish descent 20th-century American engineers American engineering writers People from Maplewood, New Jersey *List Russian emigrants to the United States