From Basel to Madison and

My Friendship with HHB

My home town: Basel, Switzerland• University (founded 1460): in 1952 still a small Physics department:• One Professor Experimental Physics (Huber) , one Theoretical Physics (Fierz)• Two “extraordinary” professors. Grad students learned from library books!• Nuclear physics only 200 kV accelerator, much in demand.• Ph.D. summer 1952 • Some famous earlier Basel students and faculty: Jacob and Johann Bernoulli (mathematics) Daniel Bernoulli (son of Johann) (hydrodynamics), Leonhard Euler

Daniel Bernoulli1700-1782 Leonard Euler

1701-1783

Where is the heck is Basel?

Roman settlement on the Rhine river 2nd centuryMedieval city, cathedral 1019 Present population 500,000.Center of Pharmaceutical industry,Commerce, bankingRhine: shipping from Atlantic via Rotterdam to central EuropeRailroad connections France, Germany to Italy via Gotthard pass

cal

Taking off for the Mecca of Science: USA!Post doc offers from Stanford (Hofstatter) and Wisconsin (Herb)

Leaving from here Sept. 2, 1952 to Paris and LeHavre:

Arriving on the SS RjindamSept. 15, 1952

Buying a train ticket in New York to Madison is SLOW!

Explanation: a“Badger!” game

The Mecca??

Things are looking up!Meeting the faculty:Ray Herb the senior ProfessorHHB, HTR a youthful 34 old Windowless offices, basement!

But a most friendly reception by Heinz:A good lesson: no German spoken hereAlready on the second Sunday in Madison, September 29 invitation to visit New GlarusLater in Fall invitation for weekend trip north to see colorful treesAnd dinners at HHB’s apartment 2020 University Avenue.

At last in a real Nuclear Physics LabBut initially some confusion wanting to do the right thing, but what is the modus operandi? Soon straightened out.

Enjoying workA productive time, working late with students in Richard’s groupAll was well until…..

4.5 m column, 180 hoops 4.5 MV accelerator ,1940

But I learn from the disasterWe are devastated, but Ray Herb simply forms teamsto rebuild the accelerator organized in two daily shifts!

Fall 1942: time’s up! Off to Duke.

R. G. Herb

The The accelerator collapses

April 1954: Sitting on a bench with HHBAPS Spring meeting, Washington DCA DOE grant for a new 1M$ accelerator, and an offer I was glad to accept.

Fall 1954: Back in Madison - and teachingHHB a role model for my teaching! lecture, discussion section, lab – even grading homework!

And overall, my gentle mentor, including help with the vagaries of English pronunciation! Solder is “ˈsä-dər ”, circuit is”sər-kət” (Webster)

Shared research interests:

Examples: HHB (neutrons) e.g. Li7(p,n)Be7 a nuclear “reaction” WH (protons) e.g. He4(p.p)He4 “scattering”

spin dependence in nuclear collisions

1960: Invitation to both of us to present a review of this type of experiment at an International Conference in BASEL,One talk on Reactions, one talk on Scattering.

Basel 4-8 July, 1960

A problem…. but HHB solves it!In reviewing the literature we found that there was no agreement on what direction of polarization is taken as positive.Sign ambiguity.

his solution:Let’s propose that the conference adopt a sign convention !

Prof. Huber was pleased! He wrote…….

Ten years later……Preparing to host the Third International Symposium on Polarization in Nuclear Reactions, Aug. 31 – Sept. 4, 1970.

Some350 participants, 175 papers selected for oral presentation.HHB a superb organizer, but just one week before the conference…

Ten years later……Preparing to host the Third International Symposium on Polarization in Nuclear Reactions, Aug. 31 – Sept. 4, 1970.

Some350 participants, 175 papers selected for oral presentation.HHB a superb organizer, but just one week before the conference,at 3:42 am on August 24…..

meeting Heinz at 5 am wading through waterToo late to cancel the conference, need to reorganize.

Angered by lack of Department and Administration support.

Rebuilding of Laboratory

College and Research Libraries (November 1992)

The European Physical Society database contains 570 meetings of interest to European physicists in 1991

Still working together

My friend, supporter, teacher, colleague.