Pief Panofsky addresses the audience. (Photo by Diana Rogers)

By Tom Mead

SLAC marked its 40th anniversary last week with a celebration that brought together more than 1,300 people for a series of well-orchestrated events highlighting the Lab’s past achievements and heralding exciting future possibilities.

As SLAC Director Jonathan Dorfan noted in his welcome speech, "This day is dedicated to the SLAC staff as a celebration of the accomplishments and contributions to science made by them."

The count of those contributions would now have to include the event itself. The affair, which involved months of tireless planning and preparations by over 100 people, went off smoothly and without a major hitch.

"I am so grateful to the SLAC staff for their support of this event," said 40th Committee Member Pat Kreitz (TIS). "Whenever a member of the Committee went to someone for help or put out a call for volunteers, people pitched right in. It was inspiring to witness how much everyone cared to help make this a special celebration."

A crowd gathered in a huge tent on the Green to celebrate SLAC’s 40th Anniversary. (Photo by Diana Rogers)

SLAC staff contributed in many ways, including program planning and implementation, AV, graphics, disabled transport system, parties and catering, to mention just a few. There were over 80 SLAC staff volunteers helping on the day of the celebration.

In his closing speech, Dorfan was quick to recognize the many people that contributed to the event. "This celebration could not have happened were it not for the super-human effort of a highly motivated group of our staff who organized this extravaganza as volunteers."

For the afternoon event, SLAC staff, government representatives, guests and scientists streamed to a giant white tent erected on the Green.

There, in addition to speeches by Dorfan, the afternoon included speeches by Stanford President John Hennessy, Peter Rosen from the DOE Office of Science, University of Toronto President Robert Birgeneau, Davidson Institute of Science Education Chair Haim Harari, and former SLAC Directors Burton Richter and Pief Panofsky. In the day’s most poignant moment, Panofsky received a standing ovation as he walked onstage to address the audience.

Before leading the audience to a reception on the "Green," Dorfan spoke about SLAC’s bright future, touching on work done across the Lab. "The achievements of the first 40 years will be difficult to top," he said, "but the ingredients are already in place to make the next 40 years just as memorable."

Later in the evening Jack Marburger, Chief Science Advisor to President Bush and Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy, delivered the keynote address at a dinner held at Stanford’s Alumni Center.

In his remarks, Marburger quoted from poet T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets to illustrate his vision for the future of fundamental science:

"The truths that poetry evokes are within ourselves," Marburger said. "Within the experiences that lie in our memories and are drawn out by their resonances with the propositions of the rhythmic lines. The truth lies in the experiences, the poetry comes later. In the final analysis the exploration of the universe is necessary to humanity because it provides the basis for its grandest art."