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Richard Franklin Humphreys

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Richard F. Humphreys
Born16 May 1922
Greenville, Ohio, United States
Alma materDePauw University
Syracuse University
Yale University
Scientific career
Fieldsatomic physics
acoustics

Richard Franklin Humphreys (May 16, 1911 – August 8, 1968)[1] was a physicist and President of Cooper Union.

Early life and career

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Humphreys was born in Greenville, Ohio and in 1933 earned a bachelor's degree from DePauw University. This was followed by a master's degree in 1936 at Syracuse University and a Ph.D. at Yale University in 1939. He eventually became an associate professor of physics at Yale, where he was the acting director of Yale's Sloane Physics Laboratory and carried out underwater sound research for the US federal government. In 1949, he joined the Armour Research Foundation at the Illinois Institute of Technology and worked in the field of atomic physics.

Together with Robert Beringer, another professor at Yale,[2] in 1950 he was a co-author of the physics textbook First principles of atomic physics.[3]

During his time as Cooper Union's president (1961-1968), the college expanded the school's academic programs.[4] The first degrees in art and architecture were awarded by Cooper Union in 1963, and the master's degree in engineering was also established during his tenure. In 1967, he began planning for the construction of an academic building at 50 Astor Place, but passed away in 1968 before these plans came to fruition.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Cook, Robert Cecil (1966). Presidents and Deans of American Colleges and Universities Who's who in American education. p. 247. Retrieved 25 February 2015. HUMPHREYS, Richard Franklin (Ph.D.). Pres., The Cooper Union, Cooper Sq., N.Y., N.Y. 10003 Home Add.: 70 E. 10th St,. N.Y. 3, N.Y. b. Greenville, Ohio, May 16, 1911. s. Robert Thomas and Tunia (Cunningham) H. Edn.: B.A., DePaul Univ., 1933; M.A. Syracuse Univ., 1936; Ph.D. Yale Univ., 1939; D.Sc. (hon.)
  2. ^ "Memorial Service for Yale Physics Professor To Be Held in the Fall". Yale News. Yale University. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
  3. ^ Humphreys, Richard Franklin; Beringer, Robert (1950). First principles of atomic physics. New York: Harper. LCC QC21.H985 1950.
  4. ^ Eric Nnemetski (2002-10-01). "Faculty Speaks: An Interview with Chairman of Civil Engineering Jameel Ahmad". Cooper Pioneer 81 (1). Archived from the original on 2011-09-27.
  5. ^ "Dr. Richard Humphreys Dies: President of Cooper Union, 57". New York Times. 9 August 1968. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
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Academic offices
Preceded by President of Cooper Union
1961—1968
Succeeded by