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Wilfrid Bennett Lewis, (June 24, 1908 – January 10, 1987) was a
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
nuclear scientist Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the ...
and administrator, and was centrally involved in the development of the
CANDU The CANDU (CANada Deuterium Uranium) is a Canadian pressurized heavy-water reactor design used to generate electric power. The acronym refers to its deuterium oxide (heavy water) neutron moderator, moderator and its use of (originally, natural ...
reactor. Born in Castle Carrock, Cumberland, England, he earned a
doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...
in
physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...
at
Cavendish Laboratory The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the School of Physical Sciences. The laboratory was opened in 1874 on the New Museums Site as a laboratory for experimental physics and is named ...
,
University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
in 1934, and continued his research in nuclear physics there until 1939. From 1939 until 1946, he was with the
Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force and civil aviation that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the ...
, becoming Chief Superintendent of the Telecommunications Research Establishment. In 1946, he moved to Canada, to become director of the division of Atomic Energy Research at the
National Research Council of Canada The National Research Council Canada (NRC; ) is the primary national agency of the Government of Canada dedicated to science and technology research and development. It is the largest federal research and development organization in Canada. Th ...
in Chalk River, Ontario. From 1952 until 1963, he was vice president, research and development, of the
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL, Énergie atomique du Canada limitée, EACL) is a Canadian Crown corporation and the largest nuclear science and technology laboratory in Canada. AECL developed the CANDU reactor technology starting in th ...
, and was senior vice president, science, from 1963 until 1973. Starting in the mid-1940s, Lewis directed the development and championed the CANDU system, with its natural
uranium Uranium is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Ura ...
fuel moderated by
heavy water Heavy water (deuterium oxide, , ) is a form of water (molecule), water in which hydrogen atoms are all deuterium ( or D, also known as ''heavy hydrogen'') rather than the common hydrogen-1 isotope (, also called ''protium'') that makes up most o ...
(deuterium oxide) to control neutron flux. The CANDU has proven its value for commercial power applications, showing outstanding efficiency and safety records. AECL also became a world leader in the production of radioisotopes for medical purposes. From 1973 until his death in 1987, Lewis was a Distinguished Professor of Science at Queen's University. From 1955 until 1987, he was the Canadian Representative on the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
Scientific Advisory Committee. In 1994 a biography of Lewis entitled Nuclear Pursuits was published Ruth Fawcett.


Honours

* In 1945 he was made a Fellow of the
Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
of London. * In 1946 Lewis was appointed as a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire * In 1964 he received an honorary Doctor of Science from the
University of Saskatchewan The University of Saskatchewan (U of S, or USask) is a Universities in Canada, Canadian public university, public research university, founded on March 19, 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatch ...
. * In 1966 he was the first recipient Outstanding Achievement Award of the Public Service of Canada. * In 1967 he was made a Companion of the
Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...
. * In 1967 he received the United States Atoms for Peace Award * In 1972 he won the
Royal Medal The Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal and The King's Medal (depending on the gender of the monarch at the time of the award), is a silver-gilt medal, of which three are awarded each year by the Royal Society. Two are given for "the mo ...
of the
Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
of London * In 1981 he received the
United States Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and energy production, the research and development of nuclear power, the military's nuclear w ...
Enrico Fermi Award


References


Further reading

* ''Canada and the Atomic Revolution'', by D. M. LeBourdais,
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, McClelland and Stewart Limited, 1959. * ''Canada's Nuclear Story'', by Wilfrid Eggleston,
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, Clarke, Irwin & Company, 1965. * ''Science and Politics in Canada'', by G. Bruce Doern,
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, McGill-Queen's University Press, 1972. * ''Canadian Nuclear Policies'', edited by G. Bruce Doern and Robert W. Morrison,
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, The Institute for Research on Public Policy, 1980, . * ''Nucleus: The History of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited'', by Robert Bothwell,
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, University of Toronto Press, 1988, . * ''Nuclear Pursuits: The Scientific Biography of Wilfrid Bennett Lewis'', by Ruth Fawcett,
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, McGill-Queen's University Press, 1994. * ''Canada Enters the Nuclear Age: A Technical History of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited'', project coordination by Eugene Critoph,
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, McGill-Queen's University Press, 1997, . * ''Isotopes and Innovation: MDS Nordion's First Fifty Years, 1946-1996'', by Paul Litt,
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
, McGill-Queen's University Press, 2000, . * ''Canadian Nuclear Energy Policy: Changing Ideas, Institutions, and Interests'', edited by G. Bruce Doern, Arslan Dorman, and Robert W. Morrison,
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, University of Toronto Press, 2001, . * ''Risky Business: Nuclear Power and Public Protest in Canada'', by Michael D. Mehta, Lanham, Maryland, USA, Lexington Books, 2005, . * ''The Politics of CANDU Exports'', by Duane Bratt,
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
, University of Toronto Press, 2006, . * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Wilfrid Bennett 1908 births 1987 deaths Canadian physicists Canadian nuclear physicists Canadian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada Companions of the Order of Canada People from Cumberland Academic staff of Queen's University at Kingston Enrico Fermi Award recipients Royal Medal winners Atoms for Peace Award recipients Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge