On the occasion of his 70th birthday, Institute Professor John Deutch is being honored with a symposium this Thursday in 10-250, featuring talks by leading figures from academia and government who have worked with him through the years.
In addition to his 40 years as a member of MIT's faculty, initially in the Department of Chemistry (which he chaired), and then as dean of science and as provost, Deutch served several stints in government, most notably as the director of central intelligence during the Clinton administration. He also has held leading posts in the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy. He earned his SB and PhD in chemical engineering from MIT.
The symposium in his honor, running from 2 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., will include talks by academics and former government officials including Professor George Whitesides of Harvard, former Secretary of Defense and Secretary of Energy James R. Schlesinger, former Secretary of Defense Harold Brown, former National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft, and former White House Chief of Staff John Podesta.
The event will be followed by a reception in the Bush Room, and is being sponsored by the Office of the Provost, the School of Science, the Department of Chemistry, and the MIT Energy Initiative.
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on April 15, 2009 (download PDF).