Anthony Philip French (for the physicist): A Pioneer of Modern Physics and Artistic Vision
Anthony Philip French (1920-2017) stands as a fascinating figure—a celebrated physicist whose groundbreaking contributions to nuclear physics intersected unexpectedly with an enduring passion for painting, specifically Barn and Tress landscapes. While his scientific legacy cemented him as a pivotal participant in the Manhattan Project and a champion of innovative physics education, his artistic pursuits revealed a contemplative spirit deeply attuned to the beauty and tranquility of rural England.
Born in Brighton, United Kingdom, French’s early academic journey at Cambridge University was shaped by Egon Bretscher, a Swiss physicist whose lectures ignited his fascination with classical mechanics and subsequently steered him toward the burgeoning field of nuclear physics. This formative influence would prove instrumental in his subsequent career, culminating in roles at MIT and Cambridge where he spearheaded advancements in teaching and research.
- The Manhattan Project: French’s involvement in the Tube Alloys project during World War II was transformative. Alongside Bretscher and other luminaries of the era—including Edward Teller—he tackled the daunting challenge of harnessing atomic energy for national defense, meticulously measuring neutron cross-sections vital to bomb design. His work at Los Alamos underscored the collaborative spirit of scientific discovery and cemented his place in history as a key contributor to one of humanity’s most consequential endeavors.
- MIT Years: Following the war, French joined MIT where he revolutionized introductory physics instruction with a novel curriculum focused on fostering student engagement and understanding. He authored five influential textbooks that continue to shape physics education today—a testament to his dedication to disseminating knowledge and inspiring future generations of scientists. These books are still in print and celebrated for their clarity and pedagogical innovation.
- Barn and Tress: Beyond the laboratory, French cultivated an artistic sensibility expressed primarily through landscape painting. His series of monochrome drawings depicting Barn and Tress scenes—particularly “Barn and Tress” (1937)—capture a distinctive style characterized by meticulous realism and nostalgic charm. These works offer a poignant counterpoint to his scientific achievements, reflecting a profound appreciation for the natural world and its enduring beauty. The artist’s dedication to capturing subtle tonal variations and textural nuances exemplifies a remarkable blend of observation and artistic skill.
- Recognition & Honors: French’s contributions to physics education were recognized internationally with prestigious awards including the University Medal of Charles University, Prague, and the Lawrence Br",
French's artistic vision—rooted in a deep connection to rural England—served as an inspiring contrast to his scientific pursuits. His legacy extends beyond the realm of physics, embodying a harmonious blend of intellectual curiosity and aesthetic contemplation.
Anthony “Tony” Philip French, MIT professor emeritus in physics and a notable leader in physics education, died on Feb. 3. He was 96 years old.
French was born Nov. 20, 1920, in Brighton, England. His father was a printer, and he earned a scholarship to Sydney Sussex College at Cambridge University, following an early interest in science, especially classical mechanics. He was particularly interested in lectures by Egon Bretscher, a Swiss physicist at Cambridge who steered French toward nuclear physics.
After receiving a BA in physics in 1942, French was recruited by Bretscher into the Tube Alloys Project, Britain’s nuclear bomb program. In 1944 the program merged with the US’s Manhattan Project, and Tony was sent to Los Alamos. There, working for Edward Teller’s small group exploring the possibility of a fusion bomb, French measured cross sections for reactions of light nuclei, such as d + d → p + 3H and p + 3H → n + 3He. His results showed that a fusion bomb was in principle feasible.
Los Alamos was an unforgettable experience for French. He was 23 and barely educated in physics when he was suddenly removed from grim wartime Britain to a land of sunshine where you could have oranges and eggs (in Britain the ration was one egg per week) and set down in the mountains of New Mexico, where he could have oranges and eggs and work with some of the best and most famous physicists in the world.
After the war, French married Naomi Livesay, a mathematician from Montana who worked in Richard Feynman’s computing group at Los Alamos. They honeymooned by touring the American Northwest in an auto bought from Klaus Fuchs—who was later discovered to have given atomic-bomb secrets to the USSR.
French joined the Cambridge University faculty and completed his PhD using declassified results from his Los Alamos work.
In 1955 French moved to the University of South Carolina, and shortly afterwards he became physics department chair. Over the next six years, as he hired faculty to bring physics research into the department, his own interests shifted from research to teaching, and he wrote his first textbook, *Principles of Modern Physics* (Wiley, 1958).
His book was admired by Jerrold Zacharias, the MIT professor leading the Physical Science Study Committee (PSSC) effort to reform physics teaching in US high schools. Zacharias wanted to introduce the modern outlook of the PSSC into college and university physics teaching, and he recruited French to MIT to help do it.
French developed a novel curriculum for an experimental introductory physics course at MIT. When he proposed to expand his course to include a few more students from the regular course, the department head said, ”That’s of no use to me. Take the whole thing,” and French became the chief lecturer and manager of a course taken by more than 500 MIT students.
The acronym for French’s course became notorious. French said, “I called it, blandly, ‘Physics: A New Introductory Course.’ . . . Within the first week, I couldn’t imagine how I could have been so stupid, as it was known forever afterwards as the PANIC course!”
French was a skillful, lucid lecturer. Those qualities are also evident in his stylish writing. The four books he wrote while teaching PANIC are still in print.
He used demonstrations well and devised several of his own. He was proud of his prize-winning pressure-of-light experiment and of his low-cost Fabry–Perot interferometer made from a microscope slide and a cover slip.
French’s influence in physics education reached beyond MIT. From 1975 to 1981, he was chairman of the International Commission on Physics Education (ICPE) of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics. He edited *Einstein: A Centenary Volume* (Harvard University Press, 1979) and coedited *Niels Bohr: A Centenary Volume* (Harvard University Press, 1985).
Those efforts on behalf of the ICPE were recognized with the 1980 University Medal of Charles University, Prague, and the 1988 Lawrence Br",
