Norman Ramsey
- Born: August 27, 1915 (Washington, DC)
- Died: November 4, 2011 (Wayland, Massachusetts)
Education
- 1935: AB, Columbia University
- 1937: AB, Cambridge University
- 1940: PhD, Columbia University
- 1941: MA, Cambridge University
- 1953: DSc, Cambridge University
Major Positions
- 1939–1940: Carnegie Institution of Washington, Carnegie Fellow
- 1940–1942: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Associate in Physics
- 1942–1945: Columbia University, Assistant Professor of Physics
- 1945–1947: Columbia University, Associate Professor of Physics
- 1947–1950: Harvard University, Associate Professor of Physics
- 1950–1966: Harvard University, Professor of Physics
- 1966–1981: Universities Research Association, President
- 1966–1987: Harvard University, Higgins Professor of Physics
- 1987–2011: Harvard University, Higgins Professor of Physics Emeritus
Other Positions
- 1940–1943: MIT Radiation Laboratory, Research Associate
- 1942–1945: United States Department of War, Expert Consultant to the Secretary of War
- 1943–1945: Manhattan Project, Los Alamos Laboratory, Group Leader and Associate Division Head
- 1945–1945: Manhattan Project, Tinian Island, Chief Scientist
- 1946–1947: Brookhaven National Laboratory, Head, Department of Physics
- 1948–1950: Harvard University, Director, Nuclear Laboratory
- 1952–1952: Harvard University, Director, Nuclear Laboratory
- 1953–1954: Oxford University, Guggenheim Fellow
- 1958–1959: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Assistant Secretary General for Science
- 1969–1981: Harvard University, Senior Fellow, Society of Fellows
- 1973–1974: Oxford University, Eastman Professor
- 1978–1978: American Physical Society, President
- 1986–1987: University of Colorado, Boulder, Visiting Professor, Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics (JILA)
- 1988–1988: University of Chicago, Visiting Professor
- 1989–1992: University of Michigan, Visiting Professor
Selected Part-Time Positions
- 1948–1954: Member, Scientific Advisory Board, United States Air Force
- 1952–1955: Member, Board of Trustees, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Associated Universities, Inc.
- 1953–1958: Member, Panel on Atomic Energy, United States Department of Defense
- 1960–1972: Member, General Advisory Committee, United States Atomic Energy Commission
- 1963–1966: Member, Board of Directors, Varian Associates
- 1968–1969: Temporary Chair, General Advisory Committee, United States Atomic Energy Commission
- 1977–1978: Chair, Physics Section, American Academy of Arts and Sciences
- 1980–1986: Chair, Governing Board, American Institute of Physics
Selected Awards and Honors
- 1952: National Academy of Sciences, Member
- 1974: American Physical Society, Davisson-Germer Prize in Atomic or Surface Physics
- 1988: National Medal of Science
- 1989: Nobel Prize in Physics
Archival Resources
Harvard University Archives, Pusey Library, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Oral History Interviews
- 1960: Columbia University, Oral History Research Office
- 1960: American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library and Archives (a copy of the Columbia interview)
- 1983: American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library and Archives
- 1991: Available Online
- 1995: Available Online
- 2006-7: Available Online
Resources on the Web
Published Resources
Norman F. Ramsey, "Early History of Magnetic Resonance," Physics in Perspective 1 (1999): 123-135
Daniel Kleppner, "Norman Ramsey and His Method," Physics Today 66 (2013): 25-26.
