Chaim Leib Pekeris (June 15, 1908 – February 24, 1993)
was an Israeli-American physicist and
mathematician
A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems.
Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change.
History
On ...
. He made notable contributions to
geophysics
Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' so ...
and the spectral theory of many-electron atoms, in particular the
Helium atom
A helium atom is an atom of the chemical element helium. Helium is composed of two electrons bound by the electromagnetic force to a nucleus containing two protons along with either one or two neutrons, depending on the isotope, held together by ...
. He was also one of the designers of the first computer in Israel,
WEIZAC
WEIZAC (''Weizmann Automatic Computer'') was the first computer in Israel, and one of the first large-scale, stored-program, electronic computers in the world.
It was built at the Weizmann Institute during 1954–1955, based on the Institute for ...
.
Biography
Pekeris was born in
Alytus,
Vilna Governorate
The Vilna Governorate (1795–1915; also known as Lithuania-Vilnius Governorate from 1801 until 1840; russian: Виленская губерния, ''Vilenskaya guberniya'', lt, Vilniaus gubernija, pl, gubernia wileńska) or Government of V ...
on June 15, 1908. With the assistance of his uncle, Pekeris and his two brothers emigrated to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
around 1925. He entered the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
in 1925 graduating in 1929 with a B.Sc. in meteorology. Pekeris also took his graduate studies at MIT, studying under
Carl-Gustav Rossby
Carl-Gustaf Arvid Rossby ( 28 December 1898 – 19 August 1957) was a Swedish-born American meteorologist who first explained the large-scale motions of the atmosphere in terms of fluid mechanics. He identified and characterized both the je ...
. He married Lea Kaplan, a Lithuanian born woman in January 1933. He graduated with his doctoral degree in 1933 as well.
In 1934 Pekeris joined the faculty at M.I.T. as an instructor in
geophysics
Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' so ...
in the Department of Geology. He became a US citizen in 1938.
Pekeris remained at M.I.T until 1941 when he moved to the Hudson Laboratories of
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
to conduct military research. In 1946 he joined the
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), located in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States, is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent schola ...
.
Pekeris and his wife moved to Israel in 1948 where he joined the
Weizmann Institute
The Weizmann Institute of Science ( he, מכון ויצמן למדע ''Machon Vaitzman LeMada'') is a public research university in Rehovot, Israel, established in 1934, 14 years before the State of Israel. It differs from other Israeli univ ...
as head of its Department of Applied Mathematics in 1949. During the
1948 Arab–Israeli War he was involved in a clandestine program in
New York State
New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
developing munitions for the newborn State of Israel.
He received the Gold Medal from the Royal Astronomical Society in 1980, and the Israel Prize from the State of Israel in 1981.
Teddy Kollek
Theodor "Teddy" Kollek ( he, טדי קולק; 27 May 1911 – 2 January 2007) was an Israeli politician who served as the mayor of Jerusalem from 1965 to 1993, and founder of the Jerusalem Foundation. Kollek was re-elected five times, in 1969, 19 ...
, the mayor of Jerusalem from 1965 to 1993, said in 1990: "I have told you a lot about Chaim Pekeris tonight and there is much more that I could tell, but you will understand that there are reasons that I can’t. Let me simply say that Chaim Pekeris played a most significant role in the establishment of the State of Israel."
He died in
Rehovot, Israel on February 24, 1993.
Awards and honors
*
Rockefeller Fellow
The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Carneg ...
(1934)
*
Fellow of the American Physical Society (1941)
*
Guggenheim Fellowship (1946)
* Member of the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
(1971)
* Member of the
National Academy of Sciences (1972)
*
Vetlesen Prize The Vetlesen Prize is a prize in geology awarded jointly by Columbia University's Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory and the G. Unger Vetlesen Foundation. The prize is generally regarded as the highest distinction in geologic studies, and the " Nob ...
(1974)
* Member of the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
(1974)
*
Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society
The Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society is the highest award given by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS). The RAS Council have "complete freedom as to the grounds on which it is awarded" and it can be awarded for any reason. Past awar ...
(1980)
*
Israel Prize, for physics (1980).
See also
*
List of Israel Prize recipients
*
List of geophysicists
This is a list of geophysicists, people who made notable contributions to geophysics, whether or not geophysics was their primary field. These include historical figures who laid the foundations for the field of geophysics. More recently, some of ...
References
External links
Biographical memoir by Freeman Gilbert
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pekeris, Chaim Leib
1908 births
1993 deaths
American emigrants to Israel
20th-century American Jews
20th-century American physicists
Institute for Advanced Study visiting scholars
20th-century Israeli Jews
Israeli mathematicians
Israeli physicists
Israel Prize in physics recipients
Lithuanian Jews
Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science alumni
Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science faculty
Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
Recipients of the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society
Rockefeller Fellows
20th-century American mathematicians
Jewish physicists
Fellows of the American Physical Society
Lithuanian emigrants to the United States
Members of the American Philosophical Society