Thomas P. Rona (1923–1997) was a 1980s era science advisor to the Defense Department and the White House under Presidents Reagan and Bush. Born on January 7, 1923, in

Budapest, Hungary Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

, Rona graduated from École supérieure d'électricité in Paris (M.E., 1943; E.E., 1945) and

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

(M.S. in E.E.; Sc.D. in E.E., 1955). He received his license certificate in physical electronics at the Sorbonne in 1946. The author of several books and articles with his best known probably being ''Our Changing Geo-Political Premises'' published in 1982. Rona is often credited with coining the term "

information war Information warfare (IW) is the battlespace use and management of information and communication technology (ICT) in pursuit of a competitive advantage over an opponent. It is different from ''cyberwarfare'' that attacks computers, software, and ...

" in a report, "Weapon Systems and Information War," that he wrote in 1976 while at

The Boeing Company The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

. He worked in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

for Boeing from 1959 to 1984. (The phrase "information war" has been used at least since 1970--and probably before--when Dale Minor, a news reporter, published ''The Information War,'' examining conflicts between the media and the U.S. government,Dale Minor, ''The Information War'' Tower, 1970 although Rona was likely the first to use the term to refer to a military or strategic concept.) During the 1980s, Rona held various posts in the

Executive Branch The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...

to include Special Assistant for Space Policy at the

Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, ...

, 1984 to 1986 and Assistant Director for Government Programs in the

Office of Science and Technology Policy The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is a department of the United States government, part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, Executive Office of the President (EOP), established by United States Congres ...

at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

, 1986 to 1987. On June 16, 1987, President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

announced Rona's nomination as Associate Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. In June 1989 he briefly succeeded William Graham by becoming Acting Science Advisor to President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

, a position he held until President Bush's choice was available in August of that year. When Rona left government service, he did private consulting work in the general area of

information warfare Information warfare (IW) is the battlespace use and management of information and communication technology (ICT) in pursuit of a competitive advantage over an opponent. It is different from ''cyberwarfare'' that attacks computers, software, and ...

for companies such as

Aegis Research Corporation The aegis ( ; ''aigís''), as stated in the ''Iliad'', is a device carried by Athena and Zeus, variously interpreted as an animal skin or a shield and sometimes featuring the head of a Gorgon. There may be a connection with a deity named Aex, a ...

, then headquartered in

Rosslyn, Virginia Rosslyn ( ) is a heavily urbanized unincorporated area in northeastern Arlington County, Virginia, United States. It is in Northern Virginia, north of Arlington National Cemetery and directly across the Potomac River from Georgetown and Foggy B ...

. Rona died at his home in

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

, on December 27, 1997, from hypertensive cardiovascular disease.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rona, Thomas P. 1923 births 1997 deaths American civil servants MIT School of Engineering alumni University of Paris alumni Hungarian expatriates in France Hungarian emigrants to the United States Directors of the Office of Science and Technology Policy