Discover
/
Article

An APS President Reflects on His Two‐Year Term

DEC 01, 1989
Reflections on a two‐year term as APS president include on appraisal of the society’s study on directed‐energy weapons, remarks on the importance of good technical advice in forming national policy and a few thoughts on challenges facing the physics community.

DOI: 10.1063/1.881187

Val L. Fitch

When Robert Oppenheimer was president of the APS, just 40 years ago, he observed that, fortunately for the society, it was impossible for a president to do any great damage in a one‐year term. We now have to reassess this observation. Because of the untimely death of my intended successor, George Vineyard, I have had two years to inflict havoc and chaos. Happily, the more permanent staff of the society—Bill Havens, Harry Lustig, Miriam Forman and Bob Park—are all deft at damage‐limiting techniques, and the society has survived, rather well I think, even two years of a transient president.

More about the Authors

Val L. Fitch. Princeton University.

This Content Appeared In
pt-cover_1989_12.jpeg

Volume 42, Number 12

Related content
/
Article
Technical knowledge and skills are only some of the considerations that managers have when hiring physical scientists. Soft skills, in particular communication, are also high on the list.
/
Article
Professional societies can foster a sense of belonging and offer early-career scientists opportunities to give back to their community.
/
Article
Research exchanges between US and Soviet scientists during the second half of the 20th century may be instructive for navigating today’s debates on scientific collaboration.
/
Article
The Eisenhower administration dismissed the director of the National Bureau of Standards in 1953. Suspecting political interference with the agency’s research, scientists fought back—and won.
/
Article
Alternative undergraduate physics courses expand access to students and address socioeconomic barriers that prevent many of them from entering physics and engineering fields. The courses also help all students develop quantitative skills.
/
Article
Defying the often-perceived incompatibility between the two subjects, some physicists are using poetry to communicate science and to explore the human side of their work.

Get PT in your inbox

Physics Today - The Week in Physics

The Week in Physics" is likely a reference to the regular updates or summaries of new physics research, such as those found in publications like Physics Today from AIP Publishing or on news aggregators like Phys.org.

Physics Today - Table of Contents
Physics Today - Whitepapers & Webinars
By signing up you agree to allow AIP to send you email newsletters. You further agree to our privacy policy and terms of service.