Cherry Murray

Director of the Biosphere 2 Institute

Professor, Physics Department

Cherry Murray grew up traveling abroad as her father was a diplomat. She obtained both a B.S. and a Ph.D, in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, after which she spent 27 years at Bell Labs in New Jersey, then became deputy director for science and technology at Lawrence Livermore National Lab for 5 years, then was dean of engineering and applied sciences at Harvard for 6 years, took two years of government service leave as a presidential appointee as Director of the US Department of Energy Office of Science. She is now Professor of Physics and Director of the Biosphere 2 Institute at UA. Her research interests have varied from experimental condensed matter and surface physics to nanotechnology, innovation, research and development of telecommunications networks, national security and science and technology policy. Her current interests include international science policy, research, development, and innovation to sustain human civilization on future Earth.

Degrees

  • PhD Physics, Massachussetts Institute of Technology, 1978