January 8, 1999

A New Challenge for a Theoretical Physicist

By JOSHUA ROLNICK

For someone who doesn't much care about accumulating firsts, Shirley Ann Jackson has a pretty impressive collection of them.

In 1973, she was the first black woman to earn a doctorate -- in any field -- from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 1995, she became the first woman -- and first black person -- to head the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

And last month, Rensselaer Polytechnic

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