Robert E. Hopkins

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Robert E. Hopkins (June 30, 1915 - July 4, 2009) was president of the Optical Society of America in 1973. Recognized as an expert in optical instrument design, aspheric optics, interferometry, lasers, and lens testing, Hopkins has been characterized as the father of optical engineering. Born in Belmont, MA, in 1915, Hopkins attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) under a full scholarship, earning a BS in 1937. He received his MS (1939) and PhD (1945) from the University of Rochester (UR). In 1948, he was awarded a US Navy Citation for outstanding wartime service in the Office of Research and Development. Hopkins was appointed to the UR faculty in 1945 and was named Professor of Optics in 1951. He led the Institute of Optics as Director from 1954 to 1964, during the time when computers were first used to design optical systems and both fiber optics and the laser were born.