{"id":2477,"date":"2018-11-04T09:08:13","date_gmt":"2018-11-04T14:08:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/?p=2477"},"modified":"2018-11-11T16:43:56","modified_gmt":"2018-11-11T21:43:56","slug":"a-career-celebration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/2018\/a-career-celebration\/","title":{"rendered":"A Career Celebration"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Philip Taylor joined Case Institute of Technology as a postdoctoral researcher in 1962. Today, he is a Distinguished University Professor and the Perkins Professor of Physics. Photo by Daniel Milner.<\/p><\/div>\n

After more than 56 years at what is now Case Western Reserve, Philip Taylor<\/b>, Distinguished University Professor and the Perkins Professor of Physics, hasn\u2019t lost his momentum. Over the\u00a0<\/span>course of his career, he\u2019s published hundreds of academic papers, mentored more than 50 graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, and had six physical phenomena and models named after him. Today, he continues to teach and publish as a member of CWRU\u2019s Condensed Matter Physics group. But despite his many years of renowned work in his field, Taylor\u2019s path into physics was almost accidental.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI was going to do mathematics in university,\u201d he recalls. \u201cBut the type of math on the scholarship exam was quite different from what I was used to, so I thought I\u2019d do the physics exam instead.\u201d<\/p>\n

That one decision laid the groundwork for his career. Taylor attended King\u2019s College in his native London for his undergraduate degree, then Cambridge University for his doctorate. Almost immediately after graduating in 1962, he took a postdoctoral position at Case Institute of Technology. When he was offered a chance to join the faculty, he accepted at once, and he\u2019s been a member of the physics department ever since.<\/span><\/p>\n

Taylor\u2019s research explores the properties of materials on an atomic scale. In his early work, he concentrated on metals\u2014investigating, for example, the complex ways that sound waves interact with electrons in copper. Since the 1980s, he\u2019s expanded his focus to include \u201csoft\u201d materials that are squishy and flexible, like polymers and liquid crystals. Regardless of the materials he\u2019s studying, however, Taylor has made a point of applying his largely theoretical branch of physics to real-world problems with tangible social impact.<\/span><\/p>\n

To that end, Taylor has provided insights into problems as diverse as the biological effects of the nuclear fallout from weapons testing and the detection of lung disorders in premature infants. He\u2019s also consistently taken up one of the world\u2019s biggest and most urgent issues: global climate change. Like soft condensed matter, he points out, climate change is a result of what he calls \u201cemergent phenomena.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThink of it this way,\u201d Taylor says. \u201cYou may know all there is to know about a particular molecule of water\u2014its size, shape, etc.\u2014but even that knowledge won\u2019t tell you when a glass of water will freeze. That\u2019s because the freezing process is a collective behavior, as trillions of molecules interact. Climate science, of course, is the epitome of that. Any changes in global climate emerge from the interaction of extremely complex systems\u2014the oceans, the atmosphere, the polar ice caps and so on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just by working on the topic in his spare time, Taylor has added significantly to our understanding of climate change. During the late 1990s, he showed that predictions of its severity matched up neatly with real observations of climate in the field. He has since helped the American Physical Society, one of the world\u2019s largest organizations of physicists, craft its statements and policy on tackling climate issues. Most important, though, he\u2019s become a continuing champion for the role of scientists in rebutting climate-change skeptics\u2014a passion he says is driven not only by his interest in the underlying physics, but also by the existential threat that a warming planet poses.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt its core, climate change is the most serious problem we\u2019ve faced as humans in the past century,\u201d Taylor says. \u201cIt could cause crops to fail, floods that wash communities into the sea, sea-level rise to the point where all the coastal cities are under water. It\u2019s just horrifying to imagine. If someone has the ability to contribute to the solution and doesn\u2019t, that\u2019s unforgivable.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Taylor\u2019s main contribution to climate awareness at Case Western Reserve has been a course he created long before \u201cclimate change\u201d became a household term. Energy and Society, an interdisciplinary class he devised in the 1970s and later offered through SAGES (the Seminar Approach to General Education and Scholarship), impressed the urgency of the problem on undergraduates for more than 40 years.<\/p>\n

In addition to presenting his own lectures, Taylor invited faculty colleagues in physics, earth and environmental sciences, economics, history, political science and other disciplines to share their perspectives on the topic. By the end of the semester, Taylor says, students gained a holistic view of modern energy use and its effects on climate, and an appreciation for the importance of developing environmentally sustainable energy sources.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea was to let students know the consequences of our existing energy sources, and learn about the alternatives we have,\u201d Taylor says. \u201cThat seemed a\u00a0no-brainer, really. It just was so apparent to me that renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, are plentiful and clean, and that by their use, we could eliminate so many technical and social problems.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two Festivals<\/span><\/h3>\n
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In this photograph from 1979, Philip Taylor offers an impromptu physics lesson in his office in the Rockefeller Building. CWRU Archives.<\/p><\/div>\n

Taylor\u2019s wide-ranging influence as a teacher and researcher was showcased at TaylorFest, a celebration of his 80th birthday this past April. Dozens of physicists, former graduate students and other colleagues converged on CWRU from around the world for a day of accolades and scientific lectures, each reflecting a different area of Taylor\u2019s broad interests.<\/p>\n

Climate scientist Michael Mann gave a presentation on extreme weather events; cosmologist Alexander Vilenkin (one of Taylor\u2019s former postdocs) expounded on black holes. Other discussions covered topics as diverse as nanomagnets, evolution and the chemistry of the cosmos. Even Douglas Hofstadter, author of the famed book G\u00f6del, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid<\/span><\/em>, weighed in, sending an original ambigram (a piece of writing that can be read in multiple directions) wishing Taylor a happy birthday.<\/p>\n

While speakers at the event testified to Taylor\u2019s scientific eminence, they also made clear the impact he\u2019s had beyond the world of physics. Professor Harsh Mathur<\/b>, a fellow member of the physics faculty and the organizer of the celebration, noted that Taylor and his wife, Sarah, were early advocates of renewable energy in Ohio.<\/p>\n

Longtime residents of Cleveland Heights, they were among the first homeowners in the state to equip their roof with solar panels. At the time, back in 2000, only a handful of installers across the nation could do the work, and the city\u2019s architectural board of review raised objections, fearing that the panels would \u201cruin the look\u201d of the Taylors\u2019 street. Even after they located a reputable company and pacified the review board, their problems weren\u2019t over; they battled equipment failures for the first year. Yet when the company offered to replace the faulty equipment at cost, Taylor demurred, and insisted on paying the full price.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy had I started this whole exercise in the first place? It was to support the concept of solar energy in Ohio,\u201d he explained in a 2001 article. \u201cIf I ended up bankrupting the only installer I knew of in the state, then I would hardly be achieving my objective, so I insisted on paying the extra cost myself.\u201d Besides, he wrote, \u201cThe investment is paid back in full, I say, the very first day you see your meter run backwards, and know that you are part of the solution and not part of the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Taylor, this ethic of acting for the greater good has long been a way of life. In the mid-1980s, he conceived the idea of a citywide festival marking the centennial of the Michelson-Morley experiment, which was conducted in a basement lab in Adelbert Hall in 1887. The experiment, which examined how light travels through space, challenged the physics of the 19th century and paved the way for Einstein\u2019s theory of relativity.<\/p>\n

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Philip Taylor conceived the idea of a citywide festival marking the centennial of the Michelson-Morley experiment. As part of the festival, Dale Eldred’s sculpture “Light Path Crossing” was installed on the roof of Crawford Hall in 1987. Photo by Matt Shiffler.<\/p><\/div>\n

Taylor brought together 13 of Cleveland\u2019s educational and cultural institutions for the celebration, which included a massive physics conference; the installation of a sculpture, Dale Eldred\u2019s Light Path Crossing<\/span><\/em>, atop Crawford Hall on the CWRU campus; and the world premiere of The Light<\/span><\/em>, a work commissioned from composer Philip Glass by the Cleveland Orchestra.<\/p>\n

A Strong Voice<\/span><\/h3>\n

Like her husband, Sarah Taylor is British by birth and came to the United States to pursue a scientific career, but her field is biology rather than physics. The two first met in 1964, when she arrived at Western Reserve University for a research position, and they married two years later. It wasn\u2019t long before she embarked on a life of activism. For example, she was an early member of the Open Housing Task Force, a group supporting racial integration in Cleveland Heights.<\/p>\n

\u201cShortly after we bought our house in 1969, we were harassed constantly by some real estate companies pressuring us to sell and move to Beachwood or Chagrin Falls,\u201d she says. \u201cThey were trying to play off the racial tensions of the time in order to sell homes in more distant neighborhoods. So I got together with three women in the neighborhood, and when the next agent called, I invited her over for coffee to give her a piece of our minds. We had a very lively discussion about the importance of retaining diversity, which seemed to go well. But the next day, I got a phone call from The Plain Dealer<\/span><\/em> asking, \u2018How do you and your husband feel about being sued for $1 million?\u2019 The real estate company had filed a lawsuit for slander against us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The suit was eventually dismissed in federal court, and Sarah continued serving on the Task Force, which collected evidence of discriminatory conduct by the local real estate industry. \u201cWe had white couples and African American couples both go to real estate agents with the same requests, and would keep track of the location of each house the agents showed in response,\u201d she explains. \u201cSure enough, we kept turning up a pattern where people were steered towards one neighborhood or another. I think that exposing the results of our work really helped to end that practice.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to advancing the cause of fair housing, Sarah Taylor has been a leading supporter of public media in the city. After hearing National Public Radio for the first time in 1973 during a trip to Oregon, she began advocating for the creation of a major NPR station in Cleveland. Eventually, she became one of the four founding trustees of Cleveland Public Radio, now the city\u2019s beloved WCPN.<\/p>\n

Sarah is also a strong voice for renewable energy in northern Ohio. In 2006, she created a website, Windustrious Cleveland, devoted to encouraging support among the public, institutions, organizations and corporations for offshore wind farms on Lake Erie. Her activism stimulated the formation of the Great Lakes Energy Development Task Force, an initiative of the Cleveland Foundation, and the subsequent founding of a nonprofit corporation, LEEDCo. Recently, Fred. Olsen Renewables, a major renewable energy firm based in Norway, has taken over the task of developing and building what Sarah hopes will be the first of many wind power installations on the Great Lakes.<\/p>\n

Something Special<\/span><\/h3>\n
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Philip and Sarah Taylor first met in 1964 and married two years later. They raised their two daughters in their Cleveland Heights home, which has solar panels on its roof and an English garden in the backyard. Photo by Mike Sands<\/p><\/div>\n

Among her other activities, Sarah has found time to engage with the Case Western Reserve community. During the mid-1990s, she created a Newcomers Committee to welcome arriving faculty members and their families to campus and to their new city. The committee, made up of faculty spouses and faculty members, sponsored a series of events throughout the year,\u00a0including a family picnic in August and a wine-tasting party each spring. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThese events were much appreciated for the interconnections they fostered between those involved in different fields across the campus,\u201d Sarah says. \u201cThey were also valuable as a way of providing introductions to the city\u2019s many organizations and institutions.\u201d Philip was deeply involved in the hosting of many Newcomer events over the years\u2014especially the wine tastings, which he established and for which he selected \u201ca variety of delicate samplings.\u201d These parties have always been very popular, and continue to this day.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you talk of Phil, you have to talk about Phil and Sarah together. They are very much a team,\u201d says Mano Singham<\/b>, adjunct associate professor of physics and retired director of the University Center for Innovation in Teaching and Education.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I arrived as a new faculty member in 1989, Phil and Sarah made it a point to make me feel welcome,\u201d Singham recalls. \u201cThey would invite me to parties at their home, introduce me to people to help me fit in. I thought there must be something special about me that they liked. But when I talked to other faculty members across the university, I found that they had the same experience. There was nothing special about me; it was Phil and Sarah who were special.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all better faculty members, and better people, as a result of our work and interactions with Phil and Sarah over the years,\u201d adds Cyrus Taylor<\/b> (no relation), dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and the Albert A. Michelson Professor in Physics. \u201cThrough them, I learned more about what it was to be a physicist, to be an academic, to be a human being.\u201d<\/p>\n

David Levin is a freelance science writer based in Boston.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After more than 56 years at what is now Case Western Reserve, Philip Taylor<\/b>, Distinguished University Professor and the Perkins Professor of Physics, hasn\u2019t lost his momentum. Over the\u00a0course of his career, he\u2019s published hundreds of academic papers, mentored more than 50 graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, and had six physical phenomena and models named after him. …Read more.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":97,"featured_media":2579,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/147\/2018\/11\/04094905\/Taylor-thumbnail.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2477"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/97"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2477"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2670,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2477\/revisions\/2670"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2579"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}