Francis Sears Explained

Francis Weston Sears
Birth Date:	1 October 1898
Birth Place:	Plymouth, Massachusetts
Death Place:	Hanover, New Hampshire
Citizenship:	USA
Fields:	Physics Acousto-optics Education
Workplaces:	Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dartmouth College
Alma Mater:	Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Known For:	University Physics Debye–Sears effect
Spouse:	Mildred Cornwall

Francis Weston Sears (October 1, 1898 – November 12, 1975) was an American physicist. He was a professor of physics at MIT for 35 years before moving to Dartmouth College in 1956.^[1] At Dartmouth, Sears was the Appleton Professor of Physics.^[2] He is best known for co-authoring University Physics, an introductory physics textbook, with Mark Zemansky. The book, first published in 1949, is often referred to as "Sears and Zemansky", although Hugh Young became a coauthor in 1973.

In 1932 he collaborated with Peter Debye in the discovery of what is now called the Debye–Sears effect, the diffraction of light by ultrasonic waves.^{[3] [4]}

Sears was a fellow of the Optical Society of America, and was active in the American Association of Physics Teachers, serving as its treasurer from 1950 to 1958, followed by successive one-year terms as president-elect and president.^[5] He retired to Norwich, Vermont and died in Hanover, New Hampshire, of a stroke on November 12, 1975.^{[6] [7] [5]}

Awards

• 1961 — Oersted Medal of the American Association of Physics Teachers^{[8] [9]}

Books

• Book: Sears , Francis W. . An Introduction to Optics. MIT Press. Cambridge, Massachusetts. 1935.
• Sears, Francis W. (1946). Electricity and Magnetism. Reading, Massachusetts. Addison-Wesley^[10]
• Book: Sears , Francis . College Physics. Mark Zemansky . Addison Wesley. 1948. 1st. etal. ^[11]
• Book: Sears , Francis W. . An Introduction to Thermodynamics, the Kinetic Theory of Gases and Statistical Mechanics. Addison Wesley. 1950. 2nd edition, 1953^{[12] [13]}
• Sears, Francis W. (1950). Mechanics, heat and sound. Cambridge, Massachusetts. Addison Wesley.
• Book: Sears , Francis . Mechanics, Wave Motion, and Heat. Addison Wesley. 1958. 1st. ^[14]
• Book: Francis W. Sears. Thermodynamics, Kinetic Theory, and Statistical Thermodynamics. Addison Wesley. 1975 . 020106894X. ^[15]

See also

• MIT Physics Department

Notes and References

1. "Biographical notes", Journal of the Optical Society of America, 66(12): 1446
2. News: O'Connell . George . The faculty . May 26, 2022 . Dartmouth Alumni Magazine . October 1961.
3. Web site: Descendants of Richard Sears - Eighth Generation . 2014-07-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304221725/http://www.searsr.com/richard1/pafg152.htm . 2016-03-04 . dead .
4. http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Debye-Sears+ultrasonic+cell Debye-Sears ultrasonic cell
5. King . Allen L. . Francis W. Sears, 1898–1975 . American Journal of Physics . 1976 . 44 . 3 . 3 . 10.1119/1.10535. 1976AmJPh..44....3K .
6. Zemansky, Mark W.. Mark Zemansky. Francis W. Sears. Physics Today. February 1976. 29. 2. 65. 10.1063/1.3023329. 1976PhT....29b..65Z. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20130928080058/http://www.physicstoday.org/resource/1/phtoad/v29/i2/p65_s2?bypassSSO=1. 2013-09-28.
7. News: Francis Sears . May 26, 2022 . The New York Times . November 14, 1975.
8. News: O'Connell . George . The faculty . May 26, 2022 . Dartmouth Alumni Magazine . March 1962.
9. Book: Olsen . Leonard O. . 10.1063/9780735421325_031 . Phillips . Melba . Francis Weston Sears: Oersted Medalist for 1961 . 1979 . 9780735421325 . 50 Years On Teaching Physics. 125–126 .
10. Platt, John R.. John R. Platt. Review of Principles of Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism by Francis Weston Sears. Science. 104. 2692. 1946. 112–113. 10.1126/science.104.2692.112 . 17790179 . 177021679 . p. 113
11. 10.1126/science.107.2768.73. Review of College Physics: Mechanics, Heat and Sound (Pt. 1.) by Francis Weston Sears and Mark W. Zemansky. 1948 . Nierenberg . William A. . William Nierenberg . Science . 107 . 2768 . 73 .
12. 10.1119/1.1933565. Review of An Introduction to Thermodynamics, the Kinetic Theory of Gases, and Statistical Mechanics, 2nd edition by Francis Weston Sears . 1953 . Leaf . Boris . Cardwell . A. B. . A. B. Cardwell . American Journal of Physics . 21 . 7 . 580 . 1953AmJPh..21..580S .
13. 10.1063/1.3061598. Review of An Introduction to Thermodynamics, the Kinetic Theory of Gases, and Statistical Mechanics, 2nd edition by Francis Weston Sears . 1954 . Friedman . Abraham S. . Physics Today . 7 . 4 . 26 .
14. 10.1063/1.3060858. Review of Mechanics, Wave Motion, and Heat by Francis Weston Sears . 1959 . Ablow . C. M. . Physics Today . 12 . 6 . 52–54 .
15. 10.1119/1.10595. Review of Thermodynamics, Kinetic Theory, and Statistical Thermodynamics by Francis W. Sears and Gerhard L. Salinger . 1976 . Turoff . Robert David . American Journal of Physics . 44 . 2 . 192–194 .