George R. Harrison

George Russell Harrison

Born| July 14, 1898

San Diego, California

Died| July 27, 1979 (1979-07-28) (aged 81)

Concord, Massachusetts

Awards| Medal of Freedom (1946)
Elliott Cresson Medal (1953)
William F. Meggers Award (1970)
Scientific career
Fields| Physics

George Russell Harrison (July 14, 1898 – July 27, 1979) was an American physicist.

Harrison became professor of experimental physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1930, and was appointed the school's dean of science in 1942; he also headed MIT's spectroscopy laboratory. During World War II, he was chief of the optics division of the National Defense Research Committee, and later head of the Office of Field Service of the Office of Scientific Research and Development.[1] Harrison was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1931.[2] He served as president of the Optical Society of America from 1945–46 and was awarded the Frederic Ives Medal in 1949.[3] He was presented with the Medal of Freedom in 1946 by President Harry Truman. [citation needed] He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1950.[4] He remained dean of science at MIT until his retirement in 1964.[1] His son David Kent Harrison was a professor of mathematics at the University of Oregon and a Guggenheim Fellow for the academic year 1963–1964.[5] His son is the composer and pianist Michael Harrison[6] and his daughter is Jo Ellen Harrison.

## Contents

* 1 See also
* 2 References
* 3 Sources
* 4 External links

## See also

* Optical Society of America#Past Presidents of the OSA

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sean Johnston (2006). Holographic Visions: A History of New Science. Oxford University Press. p. 124. ISBN 0-19-857122-4.
2. ↑ "George Russell Harrison" (in en). 9 February 2023. https://www.amacad.org/person/george-russell-harrison.
3. ↑ "Past Presidents of the Optical Society of America". Optical Society of America. Archived from the original on 2009-01-20. https://web.archive.org/web/20090120044158/http://osa.org/aboutosa/leadership/pastpresidents/default.aspx.
4. ↑ "APS Member History". https://search.amphilsoc.org/memhist/search?creator=George+R.+Harrison&title=&subject=&subdiv=&mem=&year=&year-max=&dead=&keyword=&smode=advanced.
5. ↑ "David Kent Harrison". https://www.gf.org/fellows/all-fellows/david-kent-harrison/.
6. ↑ "Michael Harrison". https://www.gf.org/fellows/all-fellows/michael-harrison/.

## Sources

## External links

Archives at

| Location| MIT Libraries, Department of Distinctive Collections

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Source| George Russell Harrison papers
How to use archival material

* Articles Published by early OSA Presidents Journal of the Optical Society of America

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