László Tisza (July 7, 1907 – April 15, 2009) was a Hungarian-born American physicist who was Professor of Physics Emeritus at MIT. He was a colleague of famed physicists Edward Teller, Lev Landau and Fritz London, and initiated the two-fluid model of liquid helium.

United States

In 1941, Tisza immigrated to the United States and joined the faculty at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

. His research areas included

theoretical physics Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict List of natural phenomena, natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental p ...

and the history and

philosophy of science Philosophy of science is the branch of philosophy concerned with the foundations, methods, and implications of science. Amongst its central questions are the difference between science and non-science, the reliability of scientific theories, ...

, specifically on the foundation of

thermodynamics Thermodynamics is a branch of physics that deals with heat, Work (thermodynamics), work, and temperature, and their relation to energy, entropy, and the physical properties of matter and radiation. The behavior of these quantities is governed b ...

and

quantum mechanics Quantum mechanics is the fundamental physical Scientific theory, theory that describes the behavior of matter and of light; its unusual characteristics typically occur at and below the scale of atoms. Reprinted, Addison-Wesley, 1989, It is ...

. He taught at MIT until 1973.

Publications

Tisza was the author of the 1966 book, ''Generalized Thermodynamics''. The 1982 publication, ''Physics as Natural Philosophy: Essays in Honor of László Tisza'', was written by Tisza's colleagues and former students in honor of his 75th birthday.

Affiliations

He was a Fellow of The

American Physical Society The American Physical Society (APS) is a not-for-profit membership organization of professionals in physics and related disciplines, comprising nearly fifty divisions, sections, and other units. Its mission is the advancement and diffusion of ...

and

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

, a John Simon Guggenheim Fellow and had been a visiting professor at the University of Paris in Sorbonne.

References

External links

MIT site – notice of Tisza's death

John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship site
1907 births 2009 deaths Scientists from Budapest Hungarian emigrants to the United States 20th-century American educators American science writers 20th-century Hungarian physicists Hungarian men centenarians Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science faculty Writers from Cambridge, Massachusetts Thermodynamics Academic staff of the University of Paris 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American physicists Fellows of the American Physical Society Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 20th-century American male writers American male non-fiction writers American men centenarians Leipzig University alumni Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology people {{US-physicist-stub

United States

Publications

Affiliations

See also

References

External links