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Joseph W. Weinberg Papers

An inventory of his papers at the Syracuse University Archives

Finding aid created by: Matthew Isom
Date: 2014

Revision history:

Biography

Joseph W. Weinberg was born in Maspeth, New York on January 19, 1917. He was considered a rather precocious youth; he enrolled in the Community College of New York at 15 and graduated with his Bachelor of Science degree in physics in 1936 at 19. Weinberg went on to earn his master's degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he would meet his future wife, Merle Hoesly, an accomplished artist.

In 1938, Weinberg moved to the University of California, Berkeley to work on his Ph.D. in theoretical physics. There he met J. Robert Oppenheimer who became his adviser and would later bring Weinberg in to work on the Manhattan Project during World War II. From 1943 to 1947, Weinberg held the positon of instructor at Berkeley and had research published in the scientific journal, Physical Review. In 1948, he moved to the University of Minnesota to become an associate professor of physics.

Weinberg's association with Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project directly led to his dismissal from the University of Minnesota. During the McCarthy Era of the early 1950s, the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) targeted numerous scientists who had been involved with the Manhattan Project. Weinberg was accused of being "Scientist X," an unknown individual believed to be a communist spy who tried to sell nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union. His trial ended on March 5, 1953, with two of his charges dropped while being acquitted on a third. During the trial, he was fired by the University of Minnesota and was not to be reinstated under the recommendation of the university's president.

After leaving Minnesota, Weinberg briefly worked with the Physical Review and spent time writing and editing for the journal. In 1953, he became a research engineer with the House of Vision, an optics company, where he would later be named director of research. Weinberg worked for the House of Vision in Chicago and then in Great Neck, Long Island, where he helped develop plastic eyeglass lenses and non-fogging visors for the U.S. Air Force and NASA.

In 1957, Weinberg joined the faculty of the Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. He and a number of notable physicists began work on various research projects including magnetic resonance, optics and gravitational theory. Weinberg came to Syracuse University in 1970, where he was named the University's first William Rand Kenan Jr. Professor of Science. He devoted much of his time and energy to teaching and enlightening undergraduates in the physics program. Weinberg stayed engaged in his research in astrophysics, phase transitions, and the geometry of color-space, a topic upon which he would later publish some of his findings. He retired in 1984 and was named professor emeritus by Syracuse University.

Weinberg's interests ranged widely not just in physics but into seemingly all branches of human curiosity. His love of music, literature and philosophy was well known to his friends and colleagues. After his retirement, Weinberg devoted much of his time to the Schola Cantorum, a society dedicated to performing early European music, where he served on the board, raised funds and organized workshops. He also continued some scientific research and focused on the shapes found on stalactites and icicles, pure math and perfect numbers, and the development of new teaching techniques in mathematics.

Joseph W. Weinberg died on October 22, 2002 in Syracuse, New York.

Scope and Content Note

The Joseph W. Weinberg Papers span the years 1929 to 1988 and relate to his research in a variety of topics in physics, as well as his time with the Department of Physics at Syracuse University. The papers include correspondence, lecture notes and various notes and related publications involved with his research.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

Please note that the collection is housed off-site, and advance notice is required to allow time to have the materials brought to the Reading Room on campus.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from the Syracuse University Archives and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Related Material

The Archives holds a clipping file and portrait file on Joseph W. Weinberg.

Selected Search Terms

Names

Weinberg, Joseph W., 1917-2002.
Syracuse University -- History.
Syracuse University.

Subjects

Physics.
College teachers.
Higher education.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Joseph W. Weinberg Papers,
University Archives,
Special Collections Research Center
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

The Joseph W. Weinberg Papers were donated to the Archives by his wife, Merle Weinberg, in 2002.

Processing Information

Materials were rehoused in acid-free folders and boxes.

Arrangement

The items are arranged in alphabetical order.

Table of Contents

Papers

Inventory