A tribute to Dale Corson (1914-2012), Cornell's eighth president and a distinguished physicist.
A professor of physics emeritus at Cornell, Corson was a polymath whose achievements in physics and engineering date to 1940 when he discovered astatine, element 85 in the periodic table of the elements. During World War II he helped introduce the use of radar into military operations.
But his finest moments came as Cornell's president from 1969 to 1977. Modest and mild-mannered, he led Cornell through the era of student protest against the Vietnam War and for civil rights and restored the university to stability.