Fusion Power Associates Board of Directors has announced the recipients of their 1999 Distinguished Career Awards. Fusion Power Associates Distinguished Awards are presented to individuals who have made extraordinary career contributions to the development of fusion over many decades. They have been given annually since 1987. Three such awards are being given in 1999: to Prof. Thomas H. Stix, Dr. J. Bryan Taylor, and Dr. Masaji Yoshikawa.

Thomas H. Stix

Prof. Thomas H. Stix is one of the pioneers of the U. S. fusion program. He received his Ph.D in physics from Princeton University in 1953 and has spent his career working on plasma physics and fusion at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) since that time. Since 1962, he has also been a Professor of Astrophysical Sciences at Princeton University. He has held many positions at PPPL, including Head of the Experimental Division, Assistant Director for Academic Affairs, and Head of the Basic Plasma Physics Group. He has served on numerous advisory committees over the years and is a Fellow of the American Physical Society. He is perhaps best known for his outstanding original contributions to the physics of plasma waves. His 1962 text, "The Theory of Plasma Waves," is one of the classics of our field.

In presenting the award to Prof. Stix, on October 19, Fusion Power Associates president, Dr. Stephen O. Dean, stated that, "In addition to his many technical contributions, Tom is also known and respected among his colleagues for his objectivity in judging the work of others and his interest in the human aspects of our field, including the training of students and the plight of less fortunate scientists in other countries."

Masaji Yoshikawa

Dr. Yoshikawa has been a leader of the fusion program in Japan throughout his career. He received his Ph.D in physics from the University of Tokyo in 1961. From 1963 to 1971 he was a research scientist at General Atomics, in the U.S., where he was an early pioneer of the Doublet concept, with Dr. Tihiro Ohkawa, who received the Fusion Power Associates Distinguished Career Award in 1998. In 1971, Dr. Yoshikawa joined the staff at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI). In 1975, he became Head of the Office of Large Tokamak Development there and in 1984 he became Director of the Department of Large Tokamak Development. Under the guidance of Dr. Yoshikawa, the largest and one of the most productive tokamaks in the world, JT-60, was built and operated.

In 1988 Dr. Yoshikawa became Director General of the Naka Fusion Research Establishment at JAERI, eventually rising to become the President of JAERI in 1995. He has been a champion of fusion research in Japan and worldwide throughout his career, serving on the ITER Council and chairing the ITER Management Advisory Committee.

In presenting the award to Dr. Yoshikawa, Dr. Dean stated that, "In addition to his technical leadership, Masaji is known as a man of high integrity and sound judgment."

J. Bryan Taylor

Dr. Taylor has been a leading theoretical physicist in the world fusion effort throughout his career. He received his Ph.D.from Birmingham University in England in 1955. From 1955 to 1962, he worked at the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston. In 1962, he joined the fusion effort at Culham Laboratory as Head of the Theoretical Physics Division, a position he held until 1981; He spent 1980-81 at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton University. From 1979 to 1989, he was Chief Physicist at Culham. He then spent several years at the University of Texas. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society and of the American Physical Society.

Dr. Taylor is widely recognized for his many original contributions to the theory of magnetic confinement of plasma, which have had a broad impact on our current understanding of fusion plasma behavior. Dr. Taylor's award will be presented to him by Fusion Power Associates Board Member, Dr. David Baldwin, at the Annual Meeting of the American Physical Society Division of Plasma Physics in November.