Milton A. Rothman

Born in Philadelphia on November 30, 1919, Milton A. Rothman became a nuclear physicist, college professor, and science writer with a gift for making difficult ideas approachable. He studied engineering at Oregon State University and later earned a doctorate in physics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Alongside his scientific career, he was deeply involved in early science fiction fandom. He helped found the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society, one of the oldest continuously running science fiction clubs in the United States, and he also wrote fiction under the pseudonym Lee Gregor.

Rothman’s books and essays are remembered for their clear, welcoming style, especially when explaining physics to general readers. He died on October 6, 2001, leaving behind a body of work shaped by both scientific rigor and curiosity about the wider imaginative world.