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2004 Patterson Open Letter
2004 Patterson Open Letter
James D. Patterson
tarting as an undergraduate stu- not get to the bottom of things and are also provided distractions. One stu-
S dent and ending as a department
head, I had a career in physics that
not well grounded. dent I knew resolved to work every
problem in Charles Kittel’s Introduc-
spanned approximately a half cen- Disrespecting superiors tion to Solid State Physics. He passed
tury. While, on the whole, I enjoyed When I headed the physics and space the basic. I did not, although many
my various roles as student, professor, sciences department at the Florida In- students did take the exam again. In-
and department head, I suppose a re- stitute of Technology, the dean was stead, I transferred to the University
viewer of a proposal I wrote got it younger than I, and I thought his phi- of Kansas, where I eventually earned
right when he said I had had a rela- losophy was wrong headed. So I my PhD.
tively undistinguished career. Then tended to oppose him head on. In graduate school, time may be
why you may wonder, should you lis- Whether he was right or not really your most valuable asset. Even im-
ten to me? For one thing, I think my misses the issue. My job was to move practical goals, which some people
career was fun. Physics is so interest- the department ahead as best I could, would say included my goal of becom-
ing that I believe it is rewarding at given the boundary conditions I was ing a theoretical physicist, need a
whatever level you can perform. My working under. Obviously, my tech- practical, organized approach for ac-
teaching often energized me; I wrote nique was not optimal. Later, I ob- complishment.
papers that interested me, if few oth- served a more effective department
ers; and I met many interesting peo- head who approached the same dean Being a desk potato
ple. However, I wish I had maximized about an issue by saying, “How do you After several years as professor at the
my opportunities. Obviously, because see this?” Then the department head South Dakota School of Mines and
I had a long, uninterrupted physics skillfully guided the conversation Technology, my friend Gerald L.
career, I must have done a few things until he ended up with at least part of Jones invited me to spend a sabbati-
right. But that is another story. what he wanted. cal year at the University of Notre
Retirement has given me time for Regarding superiors with ill-con- Dame. I arrived tired and fat. How-
introspection, and I think I have fig- ceived contempt often comes from a ever, I resolved to change. I got a dog,
ured out a few reasons why I was not false arrogance that may arise from took him for walks, dieted, and
more successful. Such insights are of insecurity. It can lead us to rebel and worked hard in between. Compared
little use to me now, but perhaps they become isolated from the very ones to my previous achievements, the
may be helpful to some of the younger who can help us. Courtesy is not in- year was productive and fulfilling. I
generation. sincere nor is networking with those actually solved more problems—some
who are helpful or whom we can help. while walking—than I ever would
Doing too much too soon have done otherwise.
When I arrived at the University of
Not controlling temper Sometimes our problems are so
Chicago in the fall of 1956, I had just While I was serving as the depart- vexing we feel we cannot leave our
graduated from the University of Mis- ment head at Florida Tech a few fac- desk or we will never find the solu-
souri–Columbia, where I had been ulty members thought I was doing a tions. However, we often need a rested
more interested in getting good poor job. I lost my temper with them body and a fresh approach to generate
grades than gaining understanding. I more than once in departmental new ideas. Staying in condition, tak-
was advised that perhaps I should meetings and privately. As a conse- ing walks, and doing other sorts of ex-
take some senior courses before ven- quence, I probably had less support ercise are important. Fatigue arising
turing into the graduate ones. I re- from the department than I could from lack of conditioning can cause er-
fused, and consequently never really have had, and also lost influence with rors and inhibit inspiration.
caught up with the graduate level at the dean, who I am sure heard about
my lack of support. Using math without experiment
Chicago. When I began teaching, I
Losing one’s temper often comes My PhD research at Kansas was on
still had trouble with the basics and
from frustration, which in turn may the theoretical interpretation of color
related details. It wasn’t until I was
come from poor performance. If we centers, crystalline defects that ab-
doing research on my own that I real-
lose our temper we let the situation sorb visible light. Although this area
ized I needed to understand the basics
control us rather than the converse. was clearly linked to experiment, I
before delving into the unknown.
found it very frustrating because the
We have to learn basics first, be- Being inefficient calculations that could be done at that
cause we need them for all that fol- As a second-year graduate student at time were rudimentary. When I
lows. If we do not learn the basics, we Chicago, I resolved to spend most of started my career, I looked for an area
are disadvantaged. A related sin is my time studying for the dreaded that had few directly relevant experi-
skipping essential details. Then we do “basic” exam. So I took few courses, mental results. For a while I settled
and it was up to me to organize my on applying statistical mechanics to
James Patterson is professor emeritus time. I did not have a focus to my finite Heisenberg magnetic systems.
at the Florida Institute of Technology in work, but instead read a lot and During a job interview, I was asked
Melbourne. worked few problems. Chicago itself why I did not work on problems that
http://www.physicstoday.org July 2004 Physics Today 57 Circle number 24 on Reader Service Card