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John H Marburger Iii Robert P Crease Biography & Facts

John Harmen "Jack" Marburger III (February 8, 1941 – July 28, 2011) was an American physicist who directed the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the administration of President George W. Bush, serving as the Science Advisor to the President. His tenure was marred by controversy regarding his defense of the administration against allegations from over two dozen Nobel Laureates, amongst others, that scientific evidence was being suppressed or ignored in policy decisions, including those relating to stem cell research and global warming. However, he has also been credited with keeping the political effects of the September 11 attacks from harming science research—by ensuring that tighter visa controls did not hinder the movement of those engaged in scientific research—and with increasing awareness of the relationship between science and government. He also served as the President of Stony Brook University from 1980 until 1994, and director of Brookhaven National Laboratory from 1998 until 2001. Early life Marburger was born on Staten Island, New York, to Virginia Smith and John H. Marburger Jr., and grew up in Severna Park, Maryland. He attended Princeton University, graduating in 1962 with a B.A. in physics, followed by a Ph.D. in applied physics from Stanford University in 1967. After completing his education, he served as a professor of physics and electrical engineering at the University of Southern California beginning in 1966, specializing in the theoretical physics of nonlinear optics and quantum optics, and co-founded the Center for Laser Studies at that institution. He rose to become chairman of the physics department in 1972, and then dean of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences in 1976. He was engaged as a public speaker on science, including hosting a series of educational television programs on CBS. He was also outspoken on campus issues, and was designated the university's spokesperson during a scandal over preferential treatment of athletes. Stony Brook University In 1980, Marburger left USC to become the third president of Stony Brook University on Long Island, New York. At the time, state budget cuts were afflicting the university, and he returned it to growth with increases in the university's science research funding from the federal government. From 1988 to 1994, Marburger chaired Universities Research Association, the organization that operated Fermilab and oversaw construction of the ill-fated Superconducting Super Collider, an experience that is credited with convincing him of the influence government had in how science is carried out. During this time he also served as a trustee of Princeton University. He stepped down as President of Stony Brook University in 1994, and began doing research again as a member of the faculty. Chair of Shoreham commission In 1983, he was picked by New York Governor Mario Cuomo to chair a scientific fact-finding commission on the Shoreham Nuclear Power Plant, a job that required him to find common ground between the many viewpoints represented on the commission. The commission eventually recommended the closure of the plant, a course he personally disagreed with. Cuomo had formed the commission in mid-May 1983 to provide him with recommendations regarding the plant's safety, the adequacy of emergency plans, and the economics of operating the plant. The commission's consensus recommendations included unanimous findings that no emergency evacuation of the plant could be conducted without the cooperation of Suffolk County, which was refusing to approve an evacuation plan; that the construction of the plant would have been prevented if it had been started after new Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulations were put into effect after the Three Mile Island accident in 1979; and that operating the plant would not reduce utility costs. Marburger himself at the time emphasized that the governor had not been seeking a consensus but rather encouraged multiple viewpoints to be reflected, and characterized the consensus conclusions as not the only important section of the report. Marburger characterized his participation as a learning experience, and the experience was credited with profoundly changing his view on the relationship between the scientific community and the public. He had never been to a public hearing prior to his participation in the Shoreham commission, and he said that he had initially expected that the issues could be resolved by examining scientific data and establishing failure probabilities. However, he quickly became aware of the importance of the public participation process itself, stating that it was "one of the rare opportunities for the public to feel they were being heard and taken seriously." Marburger's conduct on the committee was praised by activists on both sides of the debate, with his focus on listening to all viewpoints and his ability to not take disagreements personally being especially noted. Brookhaven National Laboratory In January 1998, Marburger became president of Brookhaven Science Associates, which subsequently won a bid to operate Brookhaven National Laboratory for the federal government, and he became the director of the lab. He took office after a highly publicized scandal in which tritium leaked from the lab's High Flux Beam Reactor, leading to calls by activists to shut down the lab. Rather than directly oppose the activists, Marburger created policies that improved the environmental management of the lab as well as community involvement and transparency. Marburger also presided over the commissioning of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, expanded the lab's program in medical imaging and neuroscience, and placed more emphasis on its technology transfer program. The tritium leak, combined with other disclosures about improper handling and disposal of hazardous waste, had caused Secretary of Energy Federico Peña to fire the lab's previous manager, Associated Universities, Inc. Upon starting as the laboratory's director, Marburger noted the increased importance of health and environmental concerns since the beginning of the Cold War, stating that "getting the people at Brookhaven to understand that won't be simple, and there may be some disagreement on how we should do it, but that's my job." Marburger set up a permanent community advisory council and met with local environmental groups to increase communication between them and the laboratory's management. By 2001, when Marburger left to join the Bush administration, local environmental groups credited him with having largely dissipated the distrust that had existed between the groups when he started. In 2001 he was elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society for "his contributions to laser physics and for his scientific leadership as Director of Brookhaven National Laboratory". Bush administration In September 2001, Marburger became Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy under Geor.... Discover the John H Marburger Iii Robert P Crease popular books. Find the top 100 most popular John H Marburger Iii Robert P Crease books.