James Thomas Cushing (; 4 February 1937 – 29 March 2002) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

theoretical physicist Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental physics, which uses experi ...

and

philosopher of science Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

. He was professor of physics as well as professor of philosophy at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

Life and career

He studied physics in several universities in the US, obtaining his BSc from Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois in 1959, his MSc from

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

in 1960 and his

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

, also in physics, from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

in 1963. He then performed research at the

, the

Imperial College Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a cultural district in South Kensington that included museums ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and the

Argonne National Laboratory Argonne National Laboratory is a Federally funded research and development centers, federally funded research and development center in Lemont, Illinois, Lemont, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1946, the laboratory is owned by the United Sta ...

, after which he joined the University of Notre Dame, initially as assistant professor from 1966 to 1969, then advancing to associate professor and, from 1978 onwards, as professor of physics. From 1990 to 1993, he additionally was professor of philosophy at the same university. Cushing's main areas of research were the history and philosophy of 20th century physics and the foundations of

quantum theory Quantum theory may refer to: Science *Quantum mechanics, a major field of physics *Old quantum theory, predating modern quantum mechanics * Quantum field theory, an area of quantum mechanics that includes: ** Quantum electrodynamics ** Quantum chr ...

. He investigated in particular

interpretations of quantum mechanics An interpretation of quantum mechanics is an attempt to explain how the mathematical theory of quantum mechanics might correspond to experienced reality. Quantum mechanics has held up to rigorous and extremely precise tests in an extraordinarily b ...

, including the historical reasons for the success of the

Copenhagen interpretation The Copenhagen interpretation is a collection of views about the meaning of quantum mechanics, stemming from the work of Niels Bohr, Werner Heisenberg, Max Born, and others. While "Copenhagen" refers to the Danish city, the use as an "interpretat ...

over hidden-variable theories or the

de Broglie–Bohm theory The de Broglie–Bohm theory is an interpretation of quantum mechanics which postulates that, in addition to the wavefunction, an actual configuration of particles exists, even when unobserved. The evolution over time of the configuration of all ...

(causal interpretation of quantum mechanics). Since 2004, an annual prize is awarded in honor of James T. Cushing to younger scholars for significant work in the history and philosophical foundations of modern physics.

Publications

James T. Cushing has authored more than 100 scientific articles. ;Books: * James T. Cushing, ''Philosophical Concepts in Physics: The Historical Relation between Philosophy and Scientific Theories'', Cambridge University Press, 1998 * J. T. Cushing, A. Fine, S. Goldstein (eds.)
''Bohmian Mechanics and Quantum-Theory: An Appraisal''
Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht 1996 (Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Science, 184) * James T. Cushing

The University of Chicago Press, 1994 (cloth) (paper) * James T. Cushing

Cambridge University Press, 1990 * James T. Cushing and Ernan McMullin (eds.), ''Philosophical Consequences of Quantum Theory'', University of Notre Dame Press, 1989 * James T. Cushing, C. F. Delaney and Gary Gutting (eds.), ''Science and Reality: Recent Work in the Philosophy of Science'', University of Notre Dame Press, 1984 * James T. Cushing, ''Applied Analytical Mathematics for Physical Scientists'', John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 651 pages (1975)

References

External links

James T. Cushing
curriculum vitae, University of Notre Dame 1937 births 2002 deaths 20th-century American physicists Quantum physicists Philosophers of science American theoretical physicists Scientists from Long Beach, California University of Notre Dame faculty Northwestern University alumni Loyola University Chicago alumni University of Iowa alumni 20th-century American philosophers Fellows of the American Physical Society {{US-physicist-stub