One of his most important students and colleagues was Seymour Melman,[4] who went on to be a professor in this department.
Rautenstrauch, together with Howard Scott, formed the Committee on Technocracy in 1932, which advocated a more rational and productive society headed by technical experts.
Rautenstrauch was more moderate, wishing for Engineers to only be in charge of industrial and economic decisions and the government to maintain some level of democracy.
[1][6] Partially due to his involvement in Technocracy (despite his break up with the increasingly erratic Scott) and partially due to his other political views, Rautenstrauch gained animosity from more conservative staff members at Columbia up to his retirement in 1943.
He contributed to scientific journals and authored books on engineering up until his death.