Related papers: Personal History with MEF and Some Related Topics
I had the marvelous good fortune to be Ken Wilson's graduate student at the Physics Department, Cornell University, from 1972 to 1976. In this article, I present some recollections of how this came about, my interactions with Ken, and…
The only rational way of educating is to be an example. If one cant help it, a warning example. Albert Einstein. I had the good fortune and privilege of having Michael Fisher as my teacher, supervisor, mentor and friend. During my years as…
This is based on the after-dinner talk given at the 70th Birthday Conference for Michael E. Fisher at Rutgers in December, 2001. It is longer than the talk, incorporating additional text from the after-dinner talk I gave at Fisher's 60th…
This memoire covers my life history starting with my family's background and their immigration to the US. It continues with my childhood, my early education, and my introduction to science. It then covers my professional research included a…
I have the rare experience of being on both sides of the mentor--undergraduate student relationship in the same program (Caltech's Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship, or SURF, program). In this essay, I will discuss how this…
Life at Caltech with Murray Gell-Mann in the early 1960's is remembered. Our different paths to quarks, leading to different views of their reality, are described.
A look back at Kenneth Wilson's contributions to theoretical physics, with some reminiscences of the professor I encountered at Cornell during the 1980s.
My personal recollections are presented regarding my interactions with Steven Weinberg and the impact he had in my career from when I was his graduate student until the present.
This invited memoire describes my fortunate life, which has been enriched by meeting many wonderful people. The story starts at home and university, and continues with accounts of St Andrews and trips to the USA, together with musings on…
In the 80th anniversary book for Alex M\"uller I wrote a story of our scientific collaboration, Shared Fascinations. This time I will be more personal, about the human side of our collaboration and encounters, while also referring to…
While I was dealing with a brain injury and finding it difficult to work, two friends (Derek Westen, a friend of the KITP, and Steve Shenker, with whom I was recently collaborating), suggested that a new direction might be good. Steve in…
The origins of Sociophysics are discussed from a personal testimony. I trace back its history to the late seventies. My twenty years of activities and research to establish and promote the field are reviewed. In particular the conflicting…
This paper addresses issues related to the process of informal socialization into physics, particularly for senior graduate students and postdoctoral scholars. Many physicists' careers are built on the relationships they have and develop…
Recollections by the author about how his interactions with John Wheeler influenced his career in physics.
For many students, college physics courses have little or even negative impact on their beliefs about the connection between physics and the everyday world. One way to help students see this connection is to incorporate analysis of science…
I had the privilege of collaborating with Joel Scherk on three separate occasions: in 1970 at Princeton, in 1974 at Caltech, and in 1978-79 at the Ecole Normale Superieure. In this talk I give some reminiscences of these collaborations.
Many undergraduate and graduate physics students participate in some form of public engagement throughout the course of their studies, often through groups supported by physics departments and universities. These informal teaching and…
In this article, we reflect upon our positive experiences incorporating or working on extra credit projects in algebra-based introductory physics that asked students to connect physics with humanities, social sciences, and everyday life. We…
This work examines how experiences in one disciplinary domain (biology) can impact the relationship a student builds with another domain (physics). We present a model for disciplinary relationships using the constructs of identity, affect,…
This article gives a sketch of teachers and colleagues who have had strong influence on my becoming a particle physicist.