He wanted to become a cowboy, a singer, or play for the Dodgers. Instead discovered a new element on the periodic table!

It’s quite common for Mississippi College graduates to go on to distinguished careers, but Dr. Joseph Hamilton is practically in a class by himself. The Distinguished Professor of Physics at Vanderbilt University received his master's and Ph.D. at Indiana University and became a co-founder of three separate elements on the periodic table. He’s also contributed to over 1200 publications in journals and books and received the Humboldt Prize in Research, as well as the Flerov Prize from the Russian Academy of Sciences. Dr. Hamilton even holds eight honorary doctorates from universities throughout the world and continues to work in experimental nuclear physics.

As a young man, Dr. Hamilton used to say he wanted to be one of three things: a baseball player, an opera singer, or a cowboy. When asked if he’s disappointed with the outcome, Dr. Hamilton explains that he is anything but.?"I taught physics to the number one pitcher on the Los Angeles Dodgers today. Yes, Walker Buehler was my physics student at Vanderbilt. So, I have a vicarious connection to baseball. Also, a colleague once invited me to a three-week excursion on a ranch in Southern New Mexico where we rounded up 500 head of cattle and branded the new calves. So, I was able to cross being a cowboy off the list, as well. My singing would just have to be with the concert choir at Mississippi College."

Switching to the topic of his scientific achievements, Dr. Hamilton explains that new elements are not so much discovered as they are assembled from raw materials. "All the elements beyond uranium, which is the heaviest element found in the Earth's crust, have been created by nuclear reactions. The process involves bringing two nuclear atoms together to make a new element. This is usually accomplished using an existing element called berkelium-249. The problem is, acquiring enough berkelium requires an outlay of a few million dollars. In 2005, the head of the Russian group who had worked on elements 114 and 116, approached me about putting together a fundraising initiative to acquire enough berkelium to synthesize element number 117. So, I contacted some other prominent researchers in the field, and we put together a fundraising campaign."

Once the funds had been acquired, Dr. Hamilton and his colleagues began working on element number 117, which needed to have 117 atoms in a distinct configuration. "By late fall, of 2006 we had something like six atoms of 117. That's not a lot, but it's enough to start getting excited about. So, we submitted a research paper to Physical Review Letters, the world’s leading physics journal. We sent the paper in on Friday, and on Monday they called us with the news that the article would be published within three weeks. However, it took six years before the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry and Physics assembled a committee that decided that, yes, we really had discovered elements 115, 117, and 118."

Dr. Hamilton was even privileged enough to name the 117th element, which is called Tennessine. "I got to name it for the state of Tennessee, because so much of the research had been done at the Oak Ridge facility – and because I teach at Vanderbilt. Tennessee is only the second state to have a namesake element, the other being California."

Dr. Hamilton’s specialty is in experimental nuclear physics, which most people have a difficult time understanding. When asked to explain his field for the average reader, he tries to keep it as basic as possible. "It basically involves studying the nucleus of the atom. The nucleus is essential both for a fundamental understanding of the nuclear force that holds atoms together, but also for its applications in a variety of fields. One way to study the structure of the nucleus is to bombard two atoms together and see what happens when they collide. This is also how new elements are created."

He goes on to explain that nuclear experimentation is about more than simply building advanced weaponry.?"Positive emission tomography (PET scans) and other aspects of nuclear medicine come out of nuclear physics. Californium, which I mentioned earlier, is still being much used by oil industries for oil exploration. It was also the first power source on the first space shuttle. It's a very compact energy source that has a lot of industrial applications that most people don't know about."

He sees other potential uses for nuclear energy as well. "The president talks about wanting the nation to transition to electric vehicles, but electricity has to come from somewhere. Right now, about half the electrical power in the country comes from burning fossil fuels. So even if we start driving electric cars, we really haven’t accomplished anything if we don’t have an alternative source of energy.

Unfortunately, nuclear power doesn't have a favorable public opinion here. But look at other parts of the developed world. China has now commissioned 30 new nuclear power plants, France has 20, and England ten. They see that the future of clean energy is in nuclear power. It’s not at all clear that solar and wind power can replace all of the energy that's currently being provided by burning coal and oil."

So how did such a distinguished scientist happen to study at Mississippi College in the first place? "My father graduated from Mississippi College in 1914. He told me I could go any place in the country I wanted to, but the only school he took me to see was MC. So, I graduated 40 years after he graduated from Mississippi College. To a large degree, I am what I am as a result of those four years at MC."

Shaped in part by his time at MC, Dr. Hamilton has also played a role in shaping some 10,000 students of his own, including some fairly well-known athletes. "One student became the quarterback for the Chicago Bears. Then there was Brandt Snedeker, who once won an $11 million PGA golf tour prize. I also taught Walker Buehler, who's the number one pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Then there are some 40 professional baseball and football players and a good number of baseball and basketball players. I even had one student who won two NBA titles playing for the Golden State Warriors."

Clearly, then, most of his students don’t go on to become nuclear physicists. So, why does he think It’s important that even non-scientists study physics? "Critical thinking is essential in a scientifically oriented society. Scientific discoveries have tremendous impacts on us, and we need to be able to evaluate those impacts. Even if students don’t go on to become scientists or researchers, they need to understand the way science works and how everyday life is impacted by it."

Dr. Hamilton has even taught physics to the Tennessee Titans, as well as some of their most diehard fans. "I have a football in my office that was given to me by the kicker for the Titans. He invited me to come out and help him maximize the distance he could kick the football. I had been a placekicker at MC, and, somehow, he got wind of that and reached out to me. The team later approached me and asked whether I would be willing to give six lectures on football physics for Titans football fans. We put together some short film clips, lasting one to three minutes, that would be shown at intermissions or between halves or quarters. I did one on angular momentum and one on power and one on acceleration. Alongside my narration, they would show the physics at work on the gridiron."

In addition to all of the above, Dr. Hamilton was also the first American physicist to visit a Chinese laboratory. ?"I was a lecturer at that lab and, 30 years later, the President of China presented me with their Award for Scientific and Technological Development of the People's Republic of China. For my assignment, I went for three weeks at a time and gave lectures for 8 hours a day for two or three days. There was not a single person in any of those audiences who ever nodded off during those 8 hours. I couldn't believe it. Most people I know have trouble staying awake for one."

Dr. Hamilton also worked in a Russian facility in St. Petersburgh, which led to the Soviet government awarding him the Flerov Prize mentioned above. His scientific forays into the Communist world brought him to the outer peripheries of the Cold War. "After returning from behind the Iron Curtain, someone from the CIA would always show up and ask me what my colleagues and I discussed. Meanwhile, the people I had collaborated with would be approached by the KGB and would be asked the very same questions about me."

He may very well be a man of science, but Dr. Hamilton is also very much a man of faith. In fact, he and his wife have co-authored 21 articles on science and religion, eleven of which have circulations of over 300,000. "We wrote a series of seven articles for the Baptist Training Union aimed at adults. We wrote another series of four articles for young adults. We also compiled a booklet of 50 pages for college students on the general theme of science and religion. Its purpose was to help them think about science in a more clearheaded way, to help them to understand the current views of science today, and then to show them how it all fits in with their religious perspective."

Elaborating further, Dr. Hamilton explains that science and religion don’t have to be at odds with one another, that one can believe in both in equal measure. "People who are strong in their faith can be strong in their science as well, and it’s important to understand that. If you really, really want to have faith, you have to study the scientific components of life, as well. There simply is no other way for a person living in the 21st Century."

Dr. Hamilton adds that much of his philosophy about faith and science was initially conceived at Mississippi College. "When I came to MC, I knew right away I didn’t want to have a secondhand faith, which is basically just agreeing with what other people have told you. You have to be proactive and understand the relationship between your faith and your actions. Mississippi College helped solidify my understanding of my faith and that it was an essential part of my life."

The distinguished physicist says he is indebted to MC for another reason as well. "The campus BSU director and I had been friends when we were undergraduates together. After we had both graduated and he was running the BSU, he invited me to go to Canada, to the Baptist World Youth Conference, with a group of MC undergrads. He promised that if I did, he would introduce me to the most beautiful lady on the trip. Well, he did, and she's now my wife. Her name is Janelle, and we have been married now for 63 years."

When thinking back on his MC days, Dr. Hamilton can’t help but recall the excitement of his football career. "Well, in my junior year, I finally got to be the starting center on the football team. And you have to remember, I was the smallest man on the lineup. In one game against Hendrix, the opening kickoff somehow got all the way down to the ten-yard line. In one play I pushed the guard out of the way, and a player named Joe Murphy ran 90 yards for the longest run in MC history, straight up the middle without anybody even touching him."

And what does he remember about his academic life at MC? "Well, my math Professor, William Strange, was a very important person in my life. I was actually finishing my math major when I took my first physics course. Dr. Strange was very encouraging. He advised me to take all the math I could because it would make physics a lot easier to study. My other major influences were Doctor Barnes and Dr. Carlock, who were the physics professors at that time."

While reflecting back, Dr. Hamilton acknowledges that the educational environment today is very different from the MC of the 1950s. So, what advice does he have for up-and-coming college students now? "Well, first of all, students need a school where they feel certain the teachers will be committed to helping them grow. They should also look for a place that emphasizes the importance of perseverance. Perseverance is the queen of all virtues. What’s really important is that students learn life skills alongside the education they receive."

And did Dr. Hamilton get those things at MC? "Oh, absolutely."

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