Name Siegfried Hecker Role Scientist | ||
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Nationality Austrian-Polish-American Institutions Los Alamos National LaboratoryCenter for International Security and CooperationFreeman Spogli Institute for International StudiesStanford University Notable awards Enrico Fermi Award, Seaborg Medal USDOE Distinguished Associate Award, Ernest Orlando Lawrence Award Education | ||
Conversations with history siegfried s hecker
Siegfried S. Hecker (born October 2, 1943) is an American metallurgist and nuclear scientist. He served as the Director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory from 1986 till 1997 and is now affiliated with Stanford University, where he holds the position of research professor in the Department of Management Science and Engineering in the School of Engineering and of Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies.
Contents
- Conversations with history siegfried s hecker
- Dealing with north korea s nuclear program siegfried s hecker
- Early life
- Education
- Professional career
- Los Alamos
- Stanford University
- Nuclear Threat Initiative
- Visits to North Korea
- Awards
- Publications
- References
Dealing with north korea s nuclear program siegfried s hecker
Early life
Hecker's parents came from Sarajevo, Bosnia and were moved during World War II to Tomasow, Poland, where Hecker was born. When his father had not returned from the war at the Eastern Front, his mother remarried and settled in Rottenmann, Austria. The family emigrated from Styria to the US in 1956.
Education
Hecker completed his Bachelor of Science in Metallurgy in 1965, his Master of Science in Metallurgy in 1967, and his Doctor of Philosophy in Metallurgical Engineering in 1968, all from Case Western Reserve University. He then spent two years as a postdoctoral appointee at the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Professional career
Hecker began his professional career as a senior research metallurgist with the General Motors Research Laboratories in 1970.
Los Alamos
After Hecker's return to the Los Alamos National Laboratory, he led the laboratory's Materials Science and Technology Division and Center for Materials Science. He then served as the Director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory from 1986 till 1997 and was a Los Alamos Senior Fellow until 2005.
Stanford University
He first came to Stanford University as a visiting professor in 2005. In 2007 he became co-director of the Stanford University Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) in the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and held this post until 2012.
Nuclear Threat Initiative
Hecker also acts as advisor to the Nuclear Threat Initiative board of directors and belongs to the advisory council of CRDF Global, an independent nonprofit organization that promotes international scientific and technical collaboration.
Visits to North Korea
He has visited North Korea frequently in an unofficial capacity to assess the plutonium program at the Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center (once every year since 2004). In November 2010, Hecker visited the Yongbyon nuclear facility and reported on its advanced state.
Awards
His achievements have been recognized with the American Nuclear Society's Seaborg Medal and many other awards including the Navy League of the U.S.'s TR & FD Roosevelt Gold Medal for Science Award in 1996.
The Secretary of Energy named Hecker, co-recipient of the 2009 Enrico Fermi Award. This Presidential Award is one of the oldest and most prestigious given by the U.S. Government and carries an honorarium of $375,000. He shares the honor with John Bannister Goodenough, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin.