Samuel Devons facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Professor Samuel Devons
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| Born | 30 September 1914 Bangor, Wales, United Kingdom
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| Died | 6 December 2006 (aged 92) Westchester, New York, USA
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| Nationality | British |
| Citizenship | United Kingdom |
| Awards | Rutherford Medal and Prize (1970) |
| Scientific career | |
| Influenced | Karen Barad |
Samuel Devons was a British physicist and a historian of science. He was born on September 30, 1914, and passed away on December 6, 2006. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society, which is a big honor for scientists.
Early Life and Education
Samuel Devons was born in Bangor, Wales. His father was an immigrant from Lithuania. His mother was from York, England.
When he was 16, Samuel won a special scholarship. This allowed him to study physics at Trinity College, Cambridge. He earned his first degree there in 1935. He then completed his PhD in 1939.
Family and Later Life
Samuel Devons married Ruth Toubkin in England in 1938. They moved to the United States in 1960. There, he worked at Columbia University in the Physics Department.
Samuel and Ruth had four daughters: Susan, Judith, Amanda, and Cathryn. They also had many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
In World War II, Devons used his science skills to help. He worked for the British government on important projects. These projects included anti-aircraft defenses, microwaves, and radar technology. He also worked with American scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After the war, he helped gather information from scientists in Germany.
In 2005, he was honored for being a Fellow of the Royal Society for 50 years.
Where He Worked
Samuel Devons taught and researched at several famous universities:
- He was a lecturer in Physics at the University of Cambridge from 1946 to 1949.
- He became a Professor of Physics at Imperial College London from 1950 to 1955.
- From 1955 to 1960, he was a professor and director of physics labs at the University of Manchester.
- He joined Columbia University in New York City in 1960. He was a Professor of Physics until 1985. He also led the Physics Department from 1963 to 1967. He was a Professor Emeritus until he passed away in 2006.
Books He Wrote or Edited
- The Excited States of Nuclei (1949)
- Biology and Physical Sciences (1969) (as editor)
- High Energy Physics and Nuclear Structure (1970) (as editor)
