Harry J. Lipkin
Encyclopedia
Harry Jeannot Lipkin also known as Zvi Lipkin, is an Israel
i theoretical physicist specializing in nuclear physics and elementary particle physics. He is a recipient of prestigious Wigner Medal.
and attended high school in Rochester
, New York
. He studied electrical technology at Cornell University
, also attending physics courses by Hans Bethe
and Bruno Rossi
, and graduated in 1942. During the Second World War he worked as an engineer at the MIT
Radiation Laboratory, developing a radar receiver. In 1956 he was awarded a doctoral degree from Princeton
, where he studied under David Bohm
. Lipkin described his experiments as the first to show that positrons could be described by the Dirac equation
.
In 1950 Lipkin emigrated to Israel with his wife Malka, partly to become involved with the Kibbutz
movement. Instead of agricultural work, the Israeli government assigned him to spend a year at CEA Saclay, a French Atomic Energy Commission facility, to acquire knowledge to support the planned opening of Israel's first nuclear reactor at Dimona
. In 1954 he returned to work in Israel, establishing the country's first course in nuclear physics at the Weizmann Institute of Science
in Rehovot
. Between 1956 and 1958 he served as an advisor to the United Nations Atomic Energy Commission
. In later years he worked frequently with the Argonne National Laboratory
in the USA. In 2007 Lipkin was working at the Weizmann Institute and at the Sackler Institute of the University of Tel Aviv.
during the 1960s. His book "Lie Group
s for Pedestrians" was widely used and inspired a number of further essays and books in physics, its name anticipating a later well-known book series "For Dummies".
During the 1980s Lipkin began working with educational theorist
Nira Altalef to develop LITAF, a method for teaching children to read, in response to the particular challenges Israeli educators faced in teaching classes of children from multilingual immigrant populations to read.
In 1957 Lipkin and the virologist Alexander Kohn founded the science parody magazine Journal of Irreproducible Results
after convening the first international conference for nuclear physics in Israel. The journal inspired the rival Annals of Improbable Research
, from which were to emerge the IgNobel Prize awards.
Lipkin received the Rothschild Prize in 1973, the Kaplun Prize in 1980, a Sackler Scholarship in 1992-1993, a Weizmann Prize of the City of Tel Aviv in 1994, and the Wigner Medal in 2002.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i theoretical physicist specializing in nuclear physics and elementary particle physics. He is a recipient of prestigious Wigner Medal.
Biography
Lipkin was born in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and attended high school in Rochester
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He studied electrical technology at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, also attending physics courses by Hans Bethe
Hans Bethe
Hans Albrecht Bethe was a German-American nuclear physicist, and Nobel laureate in physics for his work on the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis. A versatile theoretical physicist, Bethe also made important contributions to quantum electrodynamics, nuclear physics, solid-state physics and...
and Bruno Rossi
Bruno Rossi
Bruno Benedetto Rossi was a leading Italian-American experimental physicist. He made major contributions to cosmic ray and particle physics from 1930 through the 1950s, and pioneered X-ray astronomy and space plasma physics in the 1960s.-Biography:Rossi was born in Venice, Italy...
, and graduated in 1942. During the Second World War he worked as an engineer at the MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
Radiation Laboratory, developing a radar receiver. In 1956 he was awarded a doctoral degree from Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, where he studied under David Bohm
David Bohm
David Joseph Bohm FRS was an American-born British quantum physicist who contributed to theoretical physics, philosophy, neuropsychology, and the Manhattan Project.-Youth and college:...
. Lipkin described his experiments as the first to show that positrons could be described by the Dirac equation
Dirac equation
The Dirac equation is a relativistic quantum mechanical wave equation formulated by British physicist Paul Dirac in 1928. It provided a description of elementary spin-½ particles, such as electrons, consistent with both the principles of quantum mechanics and the theory of special relativity, and...
.
In 1950 Lipkin emigrated to Israel with his wife Malka, partly to become involved with the Kibbutz
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
movement. Instead of agricultural work, the Israeli government assigned him to spend a year at CEA Saclay, a French Atomic Energy Commission facility, to acquire knowledge to support the planned opening of Israel's first nuclear reactor at Dimona
Dimona
Dimona is an Israeli city in the Negev desert, to the south of Beersheba and west of the Dead Sea above the Arava valley in the Southern District of Israel. Its population at the end of 2007 was 33,600.-History:...
. In 1954 he returned to work in Israel, establishing the country's first course in nuclear physics at the Weizmann Institute of Science
Weizmann Institute of Science
The Weizmann Institute of Science , known as Machon Weizmann, is a university and research institute in Rehovot, Israel. It differs from other Israeli universities in that it offers only graduate and post-graduate studies in the sciences....
in Rehovot
Rehovot
Rehovot is a city in the Center District of Israel, about south of Tel Aviv. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 112,700. Rehovot's official website estimates the population at 114,000.Rehovot was built on the site of Doron,...
. Between 1956 and 1958 he served as an advisor to the United Nations Atomic Energy Commission
United Nations Atomic Energy Commission
The United Nations Atomic Energy Commission was founded on 24 January 1946 by Resolution 1 of the United Nations General Assembly "to deal with the problems raised by the discovery of atomic energy."...
. In later years he worked frequently with the Argonne National Laboratory
Argonne National Laboratory
Argonne National Laboratory is the first science and engineering research national laboratory in the United States, receiving this designation on July 1, 1946. It is the largest national laboratory by size and scope in the Midwest...
in the USA. In 2007 Lipkin was working at the Weizmann Institute and at the Sackler Institute of the University of Tel Aviv.
Research
Lipkin is noted for his applications of group theory in physics and his modelling of the quarkQuark
A quark is an elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nuclei. Due to a phenomenon known as color confinement, quarks are never directly...
during the 1960s. His book "Lie Group
Lie group
In mathematics, a Lie group is a group which is also a differentiable manifold, with the property that the group operations are compatible with the smooth structure...
s for Pedestrians" was widely used and inspired a number of further essays and books in physics, its name anticipating a later well-known book series "For Dummies".
During the 1980s Lipkin began working with educational theorist
Pedagogy
Pedagogy is the study of being a teacher or the process of teaching. The term generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction....
Nira Altalef to develop LITAF, a method for teaching children to read, in response to the particular challenges Israeli educators faced in teaching classes of children from multilingual immigrant populations to read.
In 1957 Lipkin and the virologist Alexander Kohn founded the science parody magazine Journal of Irreproducible Results
Journal of Irreproducible Results
The Journal of Irreproducible Results is a magazine of science humor. JIR was founded in Israel in 1955 by virologist Alexander Kohn and physicist Harry J. Lipkin, who wanted a humor magazine about science, for scientists. It contains a unique mix of jokes, satire of scientific practice, science...
after convening the first international conference for nuclear physics in Israel. The journal inspired the rival Annals of Improbable Research
Annals of Improbable Research
The Annals of Improbable Research is a bi-monthly magazine devoted to scientific humor, in the form of a satirical take on the standard academic journal...
, from which were to emerge the IgNobel Prize awards.
Lipkin received the Rothschild Prize in 1973, the Kaplun Prize in 1980, a Sackler Scholarship in 1992-1993, a Weizmann Prize of the City of Tel Aviv in 1994, and the Wigner Medal in 2002.
Selected publications
- Uses of Lieschen Groups in Physics, Mannheim, BI university paperback 1967
- Lie Groups for Pedestrians, North Holland 1965, 2nd edition 1966, Dover 2002
- Beta Decay for Pedestrians, North Holland 1962
- Quantity Mechanics - New Approaches to Selected Topics, North Holland 1973
- The Middle East for Pedestrians: A collection of letters written before, during and after the Yom Kippur War, 1974