Pake, George Edward

▪ 2005

      American physicist (b. April 1, 1924, Jeffersonville, Ohio—d. March 4, 2004, Tucson, Ariz.), assembled (1970) a team of crack scientists and engineers for the Xerox Corp. at the newly established Palo Alto Research Center in California and oversaw its explorations into the emerging field of computer science. Under his leadership, which fostered collegiality, a number of inventions were created, including the laser printer, office networking, the graphical user interface, and a desktop computer called the Xerox Star. Such companies as Apple Computer and Microsoft later capitalized on these inventions and took them to the commercial market. While earning a Ph.D. (1948) in physics from Harvard University, Pake conducted pathbreaking work that led to the development of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In 1987 Pake was awarded the National Medal of Science.

* * *