July 2, 1997

Princeton University President Harold T. Shapiro issued a statement saying, "Rob Goldston is exactly the right person to lead PPPL and, in that capacity, to play a central role in the national and international magnetic fusion efforts at a time of new directions and innovation in this exciting field of research. In addition to being a scientist of the highest stature, he is known within the field as a person of vision, a gifted communicator, and a leader committed to forging effective partnerships among individual scientists and diverse institutions in support of a truly national, even international, research enterprise."

Secretary of Energy Federico Pena commented: "PPPL is one of the Department of Energy's premier research institutions. Its our only laboratory devoted to plasma physics, a scientific discipline important not ony to long-range fusion energy research, but also to nearer-term issues in semiconductor processing, astrophysics and waste management. I'm pleased that Professor Goldston brings such scientific accomplishment to this position of leadership within the U.S. fusion program. I look forward to working with him in sustaining a strong U. S. fusion science program into the 21st century."

Rob received his Ph.D. in astrophysical sciences from Princeton University in 1977 and has worked at PPPL since that time. He is the author of over 200 scholarly articles and is co-author with Paul Rutherford ot the textbook, "Introduction to Plasma Physics." He has worked on all of the major programs at PPPL, including the Adiabatic Toroidal Compressor (ATC), the Princeton Large Torus (PLT), the Poloidal Divertor Experiment (PDX) and the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR). For his latter work, he was a co-recipient of the American Physical Society's Excellence in Plasma Physics Award. He is a professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton University and, until his recent appointment as Director of PPPL, was PPPL's Associate Director for Research. In that capacity, he recently organized a national workshop on fusion concept innovations and has been active in planning for the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX), now under construction at PPPL.

Goldston said, "The study of the physics of hot plasmas is one of the most rewarding fields of scientific research. Plasmas are full of wonderful and surprising tricks that fascinate us as scientists, and at the same time the goal of providing a sustainable and clean energy source for future generations provides a fundamental motivation for our hard work."

For more information, contact: Stephen O. Dean