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Center for Nonlinear Studies |
Our friend Frank Harlow, mentor, boss, and puller-of-strings-behind-the-scenes, worked at Los Alamos Laboratory continuously for 50 years and 2 days. He was never bored, enjoying many scientific pursuits in addition to establishing the discipline of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). With the aid of his memoir, "Adventures in Physics and Pueblo Pottery" and his 2004 review article in the Journal of Computational Physics, we'll recall some of his most important contributions. First, he invented the particle-in-cell (PIC) method, with which reliable hydrodynamics calculations in two dimensions could be performed. He then endured "five years of obscurity" (and low raises) until his PIC method was accepted. Second, he used his genius for recognizing talent wherever it might be found to build T-3 into a group that revolutionized CFD. Third, Frank led a brilliant public relations campaign that unleashed computational fluid dynamics on the world at large. Through carefully placed articles, how-to manuals disguised as laboratory reports, and personal contacts with interested scientists outside the Lab, he made CFD accessible. From the seeds he planted, CFD has grown into the huge and consequential enterprise it is today. Finally, we remember Frank as a respected colleague and mentor. He enjoyed human company, and collaboration for him was a pleasure above all else. The enjoyment was clearly mutual. His many former students remember their time with Frank as productive and fun, and many remained friends his entire life. They are his living legacy.
Host: Jeremiah Brackbill