Norman Hilberry | |
|---|---|
 Norman Hilberry (left) withLeo Szilard atStagg Field in the mid 1950s | |
| Born | Horace van Norman Hilberry (1899-03-11)March 11, 1899 Cleveland, Ohio, United States |
| Died | March 28, 1986(1986-03-28) (aged 87) |
| Alma mater | Oberlin College, A.B. University of Chicago Ph.D. |
| Known for | Director ofArgonne National Laboratory |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Physics |
| Institutions | New York University Argonne National Laboratory University of Arizona |
| Thesis | Extensive cosmic-ray showers and the energy distribution of the primary cosmic rays (1941) |
Norman Hilberry (March 11, 1899 – March 28, 1986) was an American physicist, best known as the director of theArgonne National Laboratory from 1956 to 1961. In December 1942 he was the man who stood ready with an axe to cut thescram line during the start up ofChicago Pile-1, the world's firstnuclear reactor to achievecriticality.
Horace van Norman Hilberry was born inCleveland, Ohio, on March 11, 1899. He received hisBachelor of Arts (A.B.) degree fromOberlin College in 1921, and then became an assistant in physics at theUniversity of Chicago. In 1925 he became an instructor in physics atWashington Square College in New York, where he rose to become anassistant professor in 1928.[1][2] He earned hisDoctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) from the University of Chicago in 1941, writing his thesis on "Extensive cosmic-ray showers and the energy distribution of the primary cosmic rays".[3][4]
In 1941, Hilberry joined what would become theManhattan Project, the effort to create anatomic bomb duringWorld War II. He moved to the University of Chicago to helpArthur H. Compton in any way possible.[5] Hilberry became associate director of Compton's Metallurgical Project.[6] On December 2, 1942, he was present for the start up ofChicago Pile-1, the world's firstnuclear reactor to achievecriticality. Because of fears that the reaction could "run away", Hilberry stood ready with an axe to cut thescram line, a manila rope connected to control rods that could quickly shut the reactor down.[7][8] He was also present for the start-up of theX-10 Graphite Reactor in November 1943, and the reactors at theHanford Engineer Works the following year. He returned to the Metallurgical Laboratory in Chicago in 1945.[9]
Hilberry became assistant director of theMetallurgical Laboratory in 1943.[1] On July 1, 1946, the Metallurgical Laboratory becameArgonne National Laboratory, the first designated National Laboratory, withWalter Zinn as director,[10] and Hilberry as associate director. He became the deputy director in 1949, and the director in June 1956,[1] on Zinn's departure. He was the first director of Argonne's International School of Nuclear Science and Engineering, an important part of theEisenhower Administration'sAtoms for Peace program, from 1955 to 1956.[1][9] He stepped down in November 1961, and was replaced byAlbert Crewe.[11] He remained at Argonne as a senior scientist until 1964, when he accepted an appointment as professor of nuclear engineering at theUniversity of Arizona. He retired and became aprofessor emeritus in 1985.[1]
Hilberry was the recipient of theAmerican Nuclear Society's Arthur Holly Compton Award, and received a citation for meritorious service from theAtomic Energy Commission.[2] He was elected a fellow of theAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science in 1933.[12] He was president of the American Nuclear Society from 1965 to 1966. He was a member of the board of directors of the Atomic Industry Forum from 1961 to 1968, of the Advisory Committee on US Policy Toward theInternational Atomic Energy Agency in 1962, and of theNational Academy of Sciences' Advisory Committee to the United States Office of Emergency Preparedness from 1968 to 1973.[1]
He died from complications arising frominfluenza on March 28, 1986, at the Humana Desert Hospital inPhoenix, Arizona. He was survived by his wife Ann and daughter Joan.[2] His papers are in the University of Chicago Library.[3]
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