Victor Frederick Weisskopf papers

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Victor Frederick Weisskopf papers

1922-2002

https://archivesspace.mit.edu/repositories/2/resources/1063

The collection documents the professional life and career of Victor Frederick Weisskopf (1908-2002) from the 1920s through 2002. Educated in Europe in the 1920s and 1930s, Weisskopf made important contributions to the quantum theory of radiative transitions, the self-energy of electrons, the electrodynamic properties of the vacuum, and the theory of nuclear reactions. In 1943, several years after his move to the United States, Weisskopf was invited to join the Manhattan Project, where he served as deputy chairman of the theoretical division. He was a member of the faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the Department of Physics starting in 1945, Institute Professor from 1965, and Institute Professor Emeritus from 1974. In addition to his research and teaching activities, Weisskopf played a major role in shaping the development of high-energy particle physics in the US and in Europe, serving as director general of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) between 1961 and 1965 and chair of the High Energy Physics Advisory Panel (HEPAP) from 1967 through 1973. Throughout his life he was involved in activities of many professional organizations including the Federation of Atomic Scientists, Pugwash Conferences, American Physical Society, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Pontifical Academy of Science. The bulk of the collection dates from the 1960s through the 1990s, reflecting Weisskopf’s role as a physicist, educator, administrator, scientific statesman, and advocate of social and political causes.

60.0 cubic feet; in 8 record cartons, 146 manuscript boxes, 6 half manuscript boxes, 3 flat boxes, 1 phonograph record box

eng, Latn

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Libraries

Information

SNAC Resource ID: 6358274

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Libraries

Related Entities

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Gunkel, Patrick M., 1947-2017

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American Academy of Arts and Sciences

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Bohr, Niels, 1885-1962

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Niels Bohr was a Danish physicist who made tremendous contributions to his field, transforming accepted notions of atomic structure, helping to develop nuclear fission, and advocating for international cooperation in crafting responsible nuclear policy. Bohr was born in Copenhagen in 1885 into a family that encouraged his academic pursuits. Christian Bohr, his father, was professor of physiology at the University of Copenhagen. Bohr credited his father for awakening hi...

Pauli, Wolfgang, 1900-1958

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Pysicists (theoretical, atomic, and nuclear physics). On the physics faculty at Kobenhavns Universitet (1922-1923); Universität Hamburg (1923-1928); and Eidgenössische Ttechnische Hochschule Zürich (1928-1958); and visiting professor, Institute for Advanced Study (1935-1936, and from 1940). From the description of Letters. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 83030815 Physicist (theoretical, atomic, and nuclear physics). On the physics faculty at Kobenhavns Universitet, 1922-19...

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Center for Theoretical Physics.

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Weisskopf, Victor Frederick, 1908-2002

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Victor F. Weisskopf, Ph.D., University of Gottingen, Germany, 1931, was professor of Physics at MIT from 1946 until his retirement in 1974. He was director general of the European Center for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland, from 1961 to 1965. Weisskopf's research focus was theoretical work in quantum electrodynamics and nuclear particle physics. Other major affiliations include: University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA, 1937-1943; Los Alamos, NM, USA, 1943-1947. Fro...

United States. High Energy Physics Advisory Panel

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HEPAP was founded in 1967 to make recommendations on the national interests of the high-energy-physics research program. Although set up by the Atomic Energy Commission, National Science Foundation (NSF) officials frequently attend meetings and solicit recommendations on their program, especially when NSF receives proposals that potentially affect the overall national effort in high-energy physics. From the description of Minutes, 1967-1991. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 82798830 ...

European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)

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International Union of Pure and Applied Physics.

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Pontifica Accademia delle scienze

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