imported>Truthanado: c/e, infobox

2025-06-29T23:52:24Z

c/e, infobox

New page

{{Short description|American astrophysicist}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Eric Chaisson
| image = 
| alt = 
| caption =
| birth_name = 
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1946|10|26}}
| birth_place = [[Lowell, Massachusetts]], [[United States]]
| death_date = 
| death_place =
| other_names = Eric J. Chaisson
| education = [[University of Massachusetts Lowell]]; [[Harvard]] (PhD)
| nationality = American
| occupation = astrophysicist
| years_active =
| known_for = research, teaching, and writing on the interdisciplinary science of [[Cosmic Evolution (book)|cosmic evolution]]
| notable_works = see [[#Bibliography|Bibliography]]
| awards = see [[#Awards|Awards]]
}}
'''Eric J. Chaisson''' (pronounced ''chase-on'', born on October 26, 1946, in [[Lowell, Massachusetts]]) is an American [[astrophysicist]] known for his research, teaching, and writing on the interdisciplinary science of [[Cosmic Evolution (book)|cosmic evolution]]. He is a member of the [[Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics|Center for Astrophysics {{!}} Harvard & Smithsonian]], teaches natural science at [[Harvard University]] and is an elected Fellow of the [[American Association for the Advancement of Science]].<ref>''Science'', p1010, November 30, 2018</ref>

He has published nearly 200 peer-reviewed articles in science journals on topics including [[interstellar clouds]] and [[nebulae]]<ref>"Inside Cool Interstellar Clouds," ''Nature'', p311, October 6, 1972</ref><ref> "Gaseous Nebulas", E. Chaisson, ''Scientific American,'' pp164-180, December 1978</ref> as well as the supermassive [[black hole]] at the center of the [[Milky Way Galaxy]],<ref>”Black Hole Reportedly Detected at Core of the Milky Way Galaxy,” W. Sullivan, ''New York Times,'' p24, March 15, 1979</ref><ref>Harvard Astronomer Announces Find of Possible Black Hole at Milky Way Galaxy's Core," ''The Harvard Crimson'', March 16, 1979</ref> [[complexity science]] utilizing the innovative concept of [[energy rate density]], <ref>''Big History and the Future of Humanity'', Spier, F., Wiley-Blackwell, London, 2011</ref><ref>”Energy Flows in Low-Entropy Complex Systems,” E. Chaisson, ''Entropy,'' v 17, pp8007-8018, 2015</ref> waste heating effects on [[climate change]],<ref>”The Other Global Warming,” B. Venkataraman, ''Boston Sunday Globe,'' page 1, January 25, 2009</ref><ref>”The Heat to come . . .” E. Chaisson, ''New Scientist,'' pp24-25, April 4, 2009</ref><ref>”How clean is green?” A. Ananthaswamy, ''New Scientist,'' pp35-38, January 28, 2012</ref> and [[astrobiology]] of life in the Universe.<ref>”The Ascent of Life,” M. Chorost, ''New Scientist,'' pp35-37, January 21, 2012</ref><ref>"A Unifying Concept for Astrobiology," E. Chaisson, ''International Journal of Astrobiology'', v 2, p 91, 2003.</ref> He also seeks to unify natural science<ref>”Unnecessary Complexity,” D. McShea, ''Science,'' v 342, pp1319-1320, 2013</ref><ref>"Rhythm of the Cosmos: Finding Unity among the Natural Sciences", E. Chaisson, ''Tufts Magazine,'' pp 16-22, Spring, 2001.</ref> and works to improve [[science education]] nationally and internationally.<ref>''The 13th Labor: Improving Science Education'': A collection of essays from a workshop at the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, T-C. Kim and E. Chaisson (eds.), Gordon&Breach Publishers, 1999</ref><ref>''Astronomy Today'', Chaisson, E. and S. McMillan, Pearson, 9 editions, 1993-2018</ref>

== Biography ==
Chaisson was born October 26, 1946 in [[Lowell, Massachusetts]]. He Chaisson graduated in physics from [[University of Massachusetts Lowell]] in 1968 and earned his PhD at [[Harvard]] in 1972. He has held professorial appointments at the [[Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics|Center for Astrophysics {{!}} Harvard & Smithsonian]], [[Johns Hopkins University]], [[Space Telescope Science Institute]], and [[Tufts University]], where he was for 20 years director of the Wright Center for Science Education while holding research professorships in the department of physics and in the school of education. He is now back at the [[Harvard College Observatory]] where, in semi-retirement, he teaches one course each year and works with colleagues at the allied [[Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory]].

He was commissioned an officer in the U.S. Air Force at [[Lackland Air Base]] in 1970, served on active duty and in the reserves mainly at Mildenhall RAF base and Hanscom USAF base until 1986, after which he was honorably discharged at the rank of captain. He took leave from academia in 1986 at [[MIT Lincoln Laboratory]] as staff physicist working on ballistic missile defense amidst occasional consulting and advising for many years with the military-intelligence community.<ref>"Military Planners View the Shuttle As Way to Open Space for Warfare," Lyons, R., ''New York Times'', p34, March 29, 1981</ref> He spent sabbaticals in the 1980s at Wellesley and Haverford colleges, in 1996 was visiting scholar and national lecturer for [[Phi Beta Kappa]], and in 2018 worked on solar energy as visiting professor at [[University of Notre Dame]] and Distinguished Fellow at its Institute for Advanced Study.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ndias.nd.edu/fellows/chaisson-eric-j/|title=Eric J. - Chaisson // Institute for Advanced Study // University of Notre Dame}}</ref>

==Awards==
Chaisson’s research and writing have won several awards, such as the 1977 B.J. Bok Prize<ref name="BokPrize">{{cite web |url=http://astronomy.fas.harvard.edu/bok-prize |title=Bok Prize |work=Department of Astronomy |publisher=[[Harvard University]] |access-date=2016-03-06 }}</ref> for “original radio-astronomy discoveries,” the 1980 Smith-Weld Prize<ref> ''Harvard Gazette'', November 10, 1979</ref> for “best article by a Harvard faculty member,” a 1990 (and 1994) certificate of recognition from [[NASA]] with U.S. flag flown aboard the Space Shuttle-31 mission for “exceptional performance on the [[Hubble Space Telescope]] program,”<ref>"Heaven comes down to earth with Annapolis man in the classroom," Harper, S., ''The Sunday Capital'', April 2, 1989</ref><ref>"Early Results from the Hubble Space Telescope," Chaisson, E., ''Scientific American'', pp44-52, June 1992</ref> as well as unsought fellowships from the [[Alfred P. Sloan Foundation|Sloan Foundation]] and the [[United States National Academy of Sciences|National Academy of Sciences]].

His 2018 election to the rank of AAAS Fellow noted his "research and teaching contributions to astrophysics, including co-authoring the nation's most widely used astronomy textbook." He was also a finalist nominee for the 2024 Smithsonian Secretary's national Achievement Award for "consistent and outstanding performance in educational programming that opens doors to lifelong learners, communities and educators elsewhere while serving the nation through distance learning, digital media, publications and exhibitions.”

His book ''Cosmic Dawn'' in 1982 received the [[Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science]], the [[Science Writing Award]] of the [[American Institute of Physics]] and was a finalist for the [[National Book Award for Nonfiction]]. ''The Hubble Wars'' in 1995 also won the AIP’s [[Science Writing Award]]<ref>"Chaisson and Kitchener Honored,"''Physics Today'', p28, December 1995</ref> and was hailed in the [[New York Times]]<ref>''New York Times Book Review'', C. Raymo, May 29, 1994</ref>
as perhaps "the most readable and instructive book on the doing of science since [[James Watson]] wrote ''The Double Helix''." ''Epic of Evolution'' won the 2007 Kistler Book Award<ref> [https://www.futurefoundation.org/awards/kba_2007_chaisson.html] Foundation for the Future, 2007</ref> “for “increasing understanding of factors shaping the future of humanity.” And his textbook, ''Astronomy: The Universe at a Glance'', won the Most Innovative New Textbook award in 2016 from the Textbook Authors Association.

In the 1990s, he co-produced and hosted the educational PBS (Maryland Intec) television series, ''Starfinder'', highlighting [[Hubble Space Telescope]] discoveries and people, now freely available online at the American Archive of Public Broadcasting.<ref>"Corporation for Public Broadcasting," https://americanarchive.org/catalog?q=Starfinder</ref>

==Bibliography==
* ''Cosmic Dawn: The Origins of Matter and Life'' (in 9 foreign languages), Atlantic Monthly Press, 1981
* ''The Invisible Universe: Probing Frontiers of Astrophysics'' (co-authored with G. Field; in 4 languages), Birkhauser-Boston, 1985
* ''The Life Era: Cosmic Selection and Conscious Evolution'', Atlantic Monthly Press, 1987
* ''Relatively Speaking: Black Holes, Relativity, and Fate of the Universe'' (in five languages), Norton, 1988
* ''Universe: An Evolutionary Approach to Astronomy'', Prentice-Hall, 1988
* ''Astronomy Today'' (co-authored with S. McMillan), Pearson, 9 editions, 1993-2018
* ''Astronomy: A Beginner’s Guide'', (co-authored with S. McMillan), Pearson, 8 editions, 1995-2017
* ''The Hubble Wars: Astrophysics Meets Astropolitics . . .'', HarperCollins, 1994
* ''The 13th Labor: Improving Science Education'' (co-edited with T-C. Kim), Gordon&Breach, 1999
* ''Cosmic Evolution: The Rise of Complexity in Nature'', Harvard University Press, 2001
* ''Epic of Evolution: Seven Ages of the Cosmos'' (in 7 languages), Columbia University Press, 2006
* ''Astronomy: The Universe at a Glance'' (co-authored with S. McMillan), Pearson, 2016

==See also==
* [[Big History]]
* [[Epic of Evolution]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*[http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~ejchaisson/cv.pdf Eric Chaisson's curriculum vitae]
* [http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~ejchaisson Eric Chaisson's web site]
* [http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~ejchaisson/cosmic_evolution/docs/splash.html Cosmic evolution web site] (containing text, images, animations, movies, and hyperlinked references of interest to both non-scientists {Introductory Track} and professional scientists {Advanced Track}).
* A 60-minute video interview with PBS-Science for the Public 2014: [http://forum-network.org/lectures/evolution-cosmos/ WGBH Forum]
* Representative samples of recent research articles: [https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~ejchaisson/current_research.pdf Current Research]
* Syllabus of annual course at Harvard: [https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/~ejchaisson/current_teaching.pdf Current Teaching]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaisson, Eric}}
[[Category:American astrophysicists]]
[[Category:21st-century American educators]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American science writers]]
[[Category:Harvard College Observatory people]]
[[Category:1946 births]]
[[Category:People from Lowell, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Harvard University faculty]]
[[Category:Tufts University faculty]]

Eric Chaisson - Revision history

imported>Truthanado: c/e, infobox