Francis E. Low

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Frances E. Low (born 1921 in New York City — died 16 February 2007 in Haverford, Pennsylvania) was a theoretical physicist. He was an Institute Professor at MIT and served as provost there from 1980 to 1985.

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Early career 1.2 Career at MIT 1.3 Retirement 2 See also 3 External links

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early career

During the Second World War, Low worked on the Manhattan Project. He was based at what is now the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, working on the mathematics of uranium enrichment. He later entered the United States Army and served in the 10th Mountain Division.

After the war, Low completed his studies at Columbia University, earning a Ph.D. in Physics in 1950. He worked at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey after receiving his doctorate and went on to teach at the University of Illinois.

In 1948, Low married Natalie Sadigur.

[edit] Career at MIT

Low joined the MIT physics faculty in 1957. Among his students were Alan Guth and Mitchell Feigenbaum.

He was director of MIT's Center for Theoretical Physics and the Laboratory for Nuclear Science.

Low was one of the founding members of the Union of Concerned Scientists, in 1969, and briefly served as its chairman. He stepped down after a disagreement with other members, who refused to consider studying whether nuclear reactors could be made safe and reliable.

In 1980, Low was appointed provost of MIT. During his five-year tenure, he was instrumental in bringing the Whitehead Institute to MIT. He also enlarged the role of humanities education at the Institute.

Low retired from MIT in 1991, but continued to teach for another few years.

Low also wrote a book, entitled Classical Field Theory: Electromagnetism and Gravitation which was published in 1997 by John Wiley & Sons.

[edit] Retirement

In 2004, Low's wife Natalie died. Low lived in Massachusetts for two more years. After, moved from Belmont, Massachusetts to Haverford, Pennsylvania. Low has a son, two daughters, and six grandsons(which he always said was statistically rare).

[edit] See also

• MIT Physics Department

[edit] External links

• Physicist Francis E. Low, Former MIT Provost, Dies at 85. MIT News Office (2007-02-20). Retrieved on 2007-03-10.
• Francis E. Low Foundation
• Francis E. Low Memorial Fund
• Classical Field Theory: Electromagnetism and Gravitation at Amazon.com

v • d • e Provosts of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Julius Adams Stratton (1949) · Charles Hard Townes (1961) · Jerome Wiesner (1966) · Walter A. Rosenblith (1971) · Francis E. Low (1980) · John M. Deutch (1985) · Mark S. Wrighton (1990) · Joel Moses (1995) · Robert A. Brown (1998) · L. Rafael Reif (2005)