UpDate - Vol. 15, No. 30, Page 4
May 2, 1996
Symposium, dinner to honor physicist's career

     Charles P. Swann will be honored for his 50-year career as a
physicist with the Bartol Research Institute by a special symposium,
followed with a reception and dinner on May 11.
     The symposium, "Physics and Its Applications: A Symposium
Honoring 50 Years of Research by Charles P. Swann at the Bartol
Research Institute," is open to the public and will be held from 2-6
p.m. in Clayton Hall.
     In addition, a Charles P. Swann Distinguished Lectureship is
being established to celebrate Swann's research career, and donations
for this project are welcome.
     According to Norman F. Ness, president of Bartol, Swann has had a
distinguished research career unparalleled in his own field, and much
of the institute's continued success can be attributed to Swann's
ongoing creativity, vigor and contributions to science.
     Swann, whose father served as Bartol's first director, began his
career at what was then known as the Bartol Research Foundation on
April 1, 1946, as a nuclear physicist. His initial projects involved
the development of the Bartol 2.5 Van de Graaff and Bartol 5 MV Van de
Graaff accelerators, used for studying the properties of atomic
nuclei. In 1978, Swann developed a proton-induced X-ray emission
(PIXE) system in Sharp Laboratory at the University of Delaware.
     During his career, Swann has published more than 90 articles in
scientific journals on such diverse topics as the penetration of high
energy electrons in aluminum, a study of the distribution of elements
in living oyster shells and trace elements in ancient glass and
glazes, and colorants in glass from ancient Palestine and Egypt.
     Swann, who retired from Bartol in 1985, continues to carry out a
vigorous research program as professor emeritus.
     He has worked with colleagues from around the world, including
researchers at the Louvre and the University Museum of the University
of Pennsylvania. Within the University, he has worked with students
and research staff in the departments of Physics and Astronomy,
Electrical Engineering and Geology and the College of Marine Studies
and the Art Conservation Program.
     For further information on the May symposium or lectureship, call
831-1103 or 831-8116.