H. Richard Crane

Horace Richard Crane
H. Richard Crane with an early synchrotron at the University of Michigan, 1949
Born(1907-11-04)November 4, 1907
Turlock, California
DiedApril 19, 2007(2007-04-19) (aged 99)
Chelsea, Michigan
Alma materCaltech (BS, Phd)
Known forRace-track synchrotron
AwardsDavisson–Germer Prize (1967)
National Medal of Science (1986)
Scientific career
FieldsAtomic physics
InstitutionsCaltech (1934–1935)
University of Michigan (1935–2007)
MIT Radiation Laboratory (1940–1941)
Doctoral advisorCharles Lauritsen

Horace Richard Crane (November 4, 1907 – April 19, 2007) was an American physicist, the inventor of the Race Track Synchrotron,[1][2] a recipient of President Ronald Reagan's National Medal of Science "for the first measurement of the magnetic moment and spin of free electrons and positrons".[3]

He was also noted for proving the existence of neutrinos.[4] The National Academy of Sciences called Crane "an extraordinary physicist".[5] The University of Michigan called him "one of the most distinguished experimental physicists of the 20th century".[6] Crane was a chairman of the Department of Physics[7] and a professor of physics at the University of Michigan,[8] a member of the National Academy of Sciences.[9]

Crane earned his Ph.D. in 1934 under Charles Lauritsen at Caltech. During World War II, he worked on radar at MIT and proximity fuses at the Carnegie Institution of Washington and the University of Michigan. He consulted for the National Defense Research Commission and the Office of Scientific Research and Development.[10]

From 1957 to 1960, Crane was president of the Midwestern Universities Research Association. In addition, he was president of the American Association of Physics Teachers in 1965, and on the board of governors of the American Institute of Physics from 1964 to 1975.[10]

Crane was a supporter of higher education all his life. He and his wife donated money and time to Washtenaw Community College, in Ann Arbor Township, Michigan, with a building being named after them. Their effort was to encourage making higher education accessible to all the residents in the county, and their efforts are documented on the campus itself.

Life and career

  • 1907: Born in Turlock, California on November 4
  • 1930: BS, California Institute of Technology[8]
  • 1934: PhD in physics, California Institute of Technology[8]
  • 1934–1935: California Institute of Technology, Research Fellow in Physics
  • 1935–1938: University of Michigan, Instructor and Research Physicist
  • 1938–1946: University of Michigan, Assistant Professor to Associate Professor of Physics
  • 1946–1978: University of Michigan, Professor of Physics
  • 1978–2007: University of Michigan, Emeritus Professor of Physics

References

  1. ^ "University of Michigan;Obituary;H. Richard Crane". Archived from the original on 2012-07-19. Retrieved 2012-01-25.
  2. ^ Ann Arbor News;Renown local physicist H. Richard Crane dead at 99;April 20, 2007
  3. ^ The President's National Medal of Science: Recipient Details, HORACE R. CRANE, Professor of Physics
  4. ^ The New York Times, "CLOUD-CHAMBER TEST FINDS NEUTRINO 'REAL'; Drs. Crane and Halpern Decide It Is No Mere Hypothesis", May 22, 1938
  5. ^ National Academy of Sciences;Biographical Memoir;H. Richard Crane by Jens C. Zorn
  6. ^ "H. Richard Crane". University of Michigan News Service. 16 May 2007. Archived from the original on 2011-06-10. Retrieved 2012-01-25.
  7. ^ The New York Times, "Physics Teachers Award Four Citations for Service", February 2, 1968
  8. ^ a b c "Array of Contemporary American Physicists;H. Richard Crane". Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2012-01-25.
  9. ^ The Physics Teacher, "Remembering Dick Crane", E. Leonard Jossem
  10. ^ a b Jones, L., et al. (2010). "Innovation Was Not Enough: A History of the Midwestern Universities Research Association (MURA)." World Scientific Publishing. http://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/6937
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