Townes, the nobel prizewinning physicist who developed the theory that led to the laser, believed that science and faith were similar and ought to. Charles douglas townes 1890 1976 charles douglas townes, 1890 1976. Charles townes historical records and family trees. This exciting event was sponsored by an old friend, joe dentremont president and owner of lenox laser who was celebrating his 50th year anniversary with the 1st annual light seminar. The fact that the book is short is a tipoff that something is wrong. Nobel prize winner charles townes on evolution and. He shared the nobel prize in physics during 1964 with nikolay basov.
Townes on nonlinear optics article pdf available in ieee journal of selected topics in quantum electronics 66. Townes worked on the theory and application of the maser, for which he obtained the fundamental patent, and other work in quantum electronics associated with both maser and laser devices. Townes 20 and 21 may 1987, american institute of physics, niels bohr library and archives. Townes center for science, furman university, november 1, 2008. Charles hard townes july 28, 1915 january 27, 2015 was an american nobel prizewinning physicist and educator townes is known for his work on the theory and application of the maser, on which he got the fundamental patent, and other work in quantum electronics connected with both maser and laser devices he shared the nobel prize in physics in 1964 with nikolay. One year later, in 1936, he got his masters degree at duke university three years after that, in. Charles townes 1916 south carolina charles townes in 1920 united states federal census charles townes was born circa 1916, at birth place, south carolina, to henry k townes and ellen townes. Townes, a visionary physicist whose research led to the development of the laser, making it possible to play cds, scan prices at the supermarket, measure time precisely, survey planets and galaxies and even witness the birth of stars, died on tuesday in oakland, calif.
Townes, inventor of the maser and coinventor, with arthur schawlow, of the laser. They also do some activities related to geocaching, wildfires, ro. He founded system worcx in 2004 to focus on commissioning as a thirdparty consultant. To earn this award, webelos must complete the adventures in science or engineer adventure. The nobel prize in physics 1964 was divided, one half awarded to charles hard townes, the other half jointly to nicolay gennadiyevich basov and aleksandr mikhailovich prokhorov for fundamental work in the field of quantum electronics, which has led to the construction of oscillators and amplifiers based on the maserlaser principle. He attended the greenville public schools, furman university where he received a double degree in physics and modern languages, duke university and cal tech, where he received his ph. Townes completed work for the master of arts degree in physics at duke university in 1937, and then entered graduate school at the california institute of. Charles hard townes, born july 28, 1915, greenville, south carolina, u. He is a physicist, which is someone who studies physics, or how the physical universe works. Townes was born in greenville, south carolina, on july 28, 1915.
From one of the most imaginative and daring scientific minds of this or any century comes a thoughtful, almost intimate account of a personal journey through his momentous discoveries achievements that have changed the face of medicine, industry, even weapons. Winner of the nobel prize for his role in the invention of the laser and maser, uc berkeley professor charles townes recounts his adventures as a scientist. Charles hard townes was born on july 28 1915, in greenville, south carolina. He shared the nobel prize in physics during 1964 with nikolay basov and alexander. Townes received the 1964 nobel prize in physics for his work. Townes, a nobel laureate in physics who helped lay the theoretical foundation for the laser, a device with applications in fields as diverse as medicine, commerce, communications and. Townes, massachusetts institute of technology provost and institute professor, presented his ideas on science and religion first to a bible class in 1964, the year in which he won the nobel prize for physics. Learn about a career that depends on knowledge about science, technology, engineering, or mathematics. Townes studied at furman and duke universities, then headed west to cal tech. Charles townes charlie to his family, friends and close colleagues was born on july 28, 1915, in greenville, south carolina, the fourth of six children of henry townes, a smalltown lawyer, and ellen hard. Along the way, youll learn about how townes came upon his surprising findings and how he managed to avoid obstacles in his path. Download a pdf of towness essay, the convergence of science and religion, first published in ibms think magazine, marchapril 1966. Townes one has ideas, does experiments, meets people, seeks advice, calls old friends, runs into unexpected remarks, meets new people with new ideas, and in the process finds a career of shifts and often serendipitous meanders that may be rewarding and rich, but is seldom marked by. Charles hard townes article about charles hard townes by.
May 01, 2008 winner of the nobel prize for his role in the invention of the laser and maser, uc berkeley professor charles townes recounts his adventures as a scientist. I especially liked the title, how the laser happened. In how the laser happened, nobel laureate charles townes provides a highly personal look at some of the leading events in twentiethcentury physics. Charles hard townes july 28, 1915 january 27, 2015 was an american physicist and inventor of the maser and laser. Charles hard townes july 28, 1915 january 27, 2015 was an american nobel prizewinning physicist and educator townes is known for his work on the theory and application of the maser, on which he got the fundamental patent, and other work in quantum electronics connected with both maser and laser devices.
Townes, inventor of the maser and coinventor, with arthur schawlow, of the laser, takes us on a behindthescenes tour of his unique and startlingly productive and creative way of working. Townes a few years ago dick anderson had the honor of a private dinner and breakfast with nobel prize winner dr. Earn the scholar and scientist and engineer webelos scout activity badges. Charles townes charlie to his family, friends and close colleagues was born on july 28, 1915, in greenville, south carolina, the fourth of six. Charles passed away on january 27 2015, at age 99 in oakland, california. Four lessons in innovation from the inventor of the laser. Charles townes supernova award can be earned by webelos who want to learn more about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Webelos cub scout helps and ideas april 11, 2019 leave a comment the dr. Bell laboratories, courtesy aip emilio segre visual archives, hecht collection townes s vision was vindicated, but few in the scientific community saw any application for maser technology. He was the son of ellen sumter townes and henry keith townes, an attorney. Speak with your teachers at school or your parents if you are homeschooled or one of your cub scout leaders about your interest in earning the webelos scout supernova award. Townes, charles born july 28, 1915, in greenville, s.
Townes, with 42 highly influential citations and 208 scientific research papers. More than a dozen subsequent nobel prizes have depended on the existence of lasers. Under the direct supervision of your mentor, do an experiment that shows how the scientific method or scientific process. Townes was urging that sci entific and religious thought, far from conflicting, are today finding more and more in common and are destined ultimately to merge. Charles townes supernova award, as described below. Townes, the nobel prizewinning physicist who developed the theory that led to the laser, believed that science and faith were similar and ought to interact with one another. Charles townes supernova award, as of january 1, 2018. Charles townes historical records and family trees myheritage. From 1939 to 1948 he worked at bell telephone laboratories, inc. Charles hard townes simple english wikipedia, the free. Charles hard charles townes was born on july 28 1915, in greenville, south carolina. He attended the greenville public schools and graduated from the furman university in 1935 with a bachelor of science degree in physics and a bachelor of arts degree in modern languages. Townes, coinventor of the laser, stands with a ruby maser amplifier, a device that paved the way for laser technology, in a 1957 photo.
Townes was born in greenville, south carolina, july 28, 1915, and grew up on a farm. Basov of the nobel prize for physics in 1964 for his role in the invention of the maser and the laser. Under the direct supervision of your mentor, do an experiment that shows how the scientific method or scientific process is used. Jun 17, 2005 download a pdf of towness essay, the convergence of science and religion, first published in ibms think magazine, marchapril 1966. He also made crucial contributions to astrophysics and infrared astronomy, and served as a us. Charles townes was the experimental physicist who invented the laser now indispensable in science, technology, and medicine. Charles hard townes transformed modern society by helping to invent the laser. Charles townes supernova award boy scouts of america.
Basov of the nobel prize for physics in 1964 for his role in the invention of the maser and the laser townes studied at furman university b. Townes, 99, a professor emeritus of physics at the university of california, berkeley, who shared the 1964 nobel prize in physics, died on jan. The subject was the relationship of science to religion, and dr. The convergence of science and religion townes 1966. Charles townes and his colleagues were the first to build a maser, which operated in the microwave frequency range. Researchers are advised to contact the manuscript reading room prior to visiting. Jan 27, 2005 charles townes and his colleagues were the first to build a maser, which operated in the microwave frequency range. Charles hard townes, corecipient of the 1964 nobel prize in physics for his coinventions of the maser and. Prepare a short report on the results of your experiment for your mentor. Townes was a student in greenville in the period 1937, and from 1937 to 1939 he did graduate work at the california institute of technology.
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