Engineering Entrepreneurship Lecture featuring Jerry Kaplan, Co-Chairman of Egghead.com

SEAS proudly presents the Engineering Entrepreneurship Lecture sponsored by Microsoft Corporation and featuring Jerry Kaplan, Co-Chairman of Egghead.com. Dr. Kaplan's lecture is entitled "So You Want to be an Entrepreneur?" and will be held on Wednesday, April 25, 2001 at 4:30 p.m. in Heilmeier Hall.

Jerry Kaplan is co-chairman of Egghead.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: EGGS), a leading Internet retailer. Previously, Dr. Kaplan served as chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Onsale, Inc. Dr. Kaplan co-founded Onsale in 1994, and is widely known in the computer industry as an entrepreneur and technical innovator.

Prior to Onsale, he was co-founder and chairman of GO Corporation, which developed PenPoint, a pen-based operating system. Before joining GO, Dr. Kaplan was the principal technologist at Lotus Development Corporation, where he co-authored Lotus Agenda, the first personal information management software. In 1981, he co-founded Teknowledge, a public artificial intelligence company.

Dr. Kaplan wrote a best-selling book about his experiences at GO Corporation entitled, Startup--A Silicon Valley Adventure, published in May 1995 by Houghton-Mifflin. Mr. Kaplan received a Bachelor's in History and Philosophy of Science from the University of Chicago (1972), a Doctorate in Computer and Information Science from the University of Pennsylvania (1979), and was a research associate in Computer Science at Stanford from 1979 to1981.

"So You Want to be an Entrepreneur?"

Sleepless nights. Squandered savings. Broken hearts. Is it all worth it? Deciding to become an Entrepreneur is a little like deciding to become a Rock Star: most people have nothing to show for it but blisters. So what does it take to start your own business? B-Schools only tell you half the story. Here's the other half from someone who's been there, done that.

About the Engineering Entrepreneurship Program

Penn is at the forefront of the country's leading engineering schools with its Engineering Entrepreneurship Program. Dr. Tom Cassel, director of the program, has introduced a curriculum designed for students with a passion for technological innovation. This popular program focuses on the roles of inventors and founders in successful high-tech startups. Through "real world" case studies and prominent guest speakers, it teaches the skills needed to bring high-tech ideas to the market place. The curriculum stresses the risks and determinants of success in entrepreneurial ventures. With the skills of entrepreneurship, Penn students markedly enhance their potential contributions to society and their career opportunities through their ability to create value and harvest significant personal reward. For further information, please contact: Dr. Thomas Cassel at tcassel@seas.upenn.edu"

In addition, the Technology Entrepreneurship Club was created to give bright students on this campus, who have a wide array of backgrounds, and a genuine interest in technology-related entrepreneurship ventures, an opportunity to come together to network, brainstorm, and/or learn about the entrepreneurial process. Guest speakers provide a realistic window into the entrepreneurial world for students, faculty and staff.