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Finding Aid for the Murray Gell-Mann Papers 1931-2001, bulk 1955-1993
10219-MS  
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Collection Overview
 
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Description
The scientific and personal correspondence, organizational and government files, technical and teaching notes, writings and talks, civic and social action files, biographical and family papers, and a small collection of audiovisual material of Murray Gell-Mann (b. 1929) form the collection known as the Murray Gell-Mann Papers in the Archives of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Professor at Caltech beginning 1955, Gell-Mann won the Nobel Prize in physics in 1969 for his work on the theory of elementary particles. Gell-Mann is a founder of the Santa Fe Institute and writes on complex adaptive systems. He became emeritus from Caltech in 1993.
Background
Murray Gell-Mann was born on September 15, 1929, in New York City, the second son of Arthur Isidore Gell-Mann and Pauline, née Reichstein. The hyphenation of the family surname was introduced by Arthur from the traditional Gellmann used by his forebears in the place of his birth, the province of Galicia then part of Austria-Hungary (today Ukraine). The details concerning the unusual name spelling are told by George Johnson in his biography of Murray Gell-Mann, Strange Beauty: Murray Gell-Mann and the Revolution in Twentieth-Century Physics (New York, 1999). Although the family heritage was Jewish, neither Arthur Gell-Mann nor his son Murray practiced any formal religion.
Extent
54 linear feet
Restrictions
Copyright may not have been assigned to the California Institute of Technology Archives. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Caltech Archivist. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the California Institute of Technology Archives as the owner of the physical items and, unless explicitly stated otherwise, is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.
Availability
The collection is open for research. Researchers must apply in writing for access.