Professor Jesse Thaler has been appointed director of the MIT Laboratory for Nuclear Science (LNS), effective August 1, succeeding Professor Bolek Wyslouch, who directed LNS for the past decade. Thaler is a theoretical particle physicist who integrates quantum field theory with machine learning techniques to tackle fundamental physics questions. Nergis Mavalvala, dean of the MIT School of Science, remarks, "Jesse has done pioneering work on particle jets at the Large Hadron Collider and is a leader in merging AI with fundamental particle physics. The collaborative nature of his research will benefit LNS as we enter a new era of AI-driven discoveries."
Thaler is the William and Emma Rogers Professor of Physics at the MIT Center for Theoretical Physics (CTP), and since 2020, he has served as the inaugural director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) AI Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Fundamental Interactions (IAIFI), which has recently been renewed for another five years. Mike Williams, a physics professor, will succeed Thaler as IAIFI director.
LNS is poised to pursue new research projects through the Department of Energy's Genesis Mission, focusing on AI-enabled scientific discovery. Thaler states, "In particle physics, researchers are developing cutting-edge AI algorithms to manage the data deluge from collider experiments and perform significant theoretical calculations. This work has direct implications for discovering new physics, and the algorithms themselves are valuable beyond our field."
Thaler aims to lead LNS into the next wave of discoveries supported by AI capabilities. At IAIFI, he has championed education and research at the intersection of physics and AI. Collaborating with the MIT Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, IAIFI leadership established a doctoral program in physics, statistics, and data science. They also created dedicated postdoctoral fellowships to allow early-career researchers the freedom to pursue interdisciplinary work. Thaler notes, "Giving young scientists space to build connections across domains, universities, and career stages has been transformative within IAIFI."
Established in 1946 to support nuclear and particle physics, LNS now encompasses research spanning cosmology, gravity, field theory, and quantum information science. As head of LNS, Thaler will also oversee his home center, CTP, which last year received a donation from the Leinweber Foundation to establish a network of theoretical physics research institutes. According to the Science Philanthropy Alliance, this constitutes the largest philanthropic commitment ever for this field. Thaler earned his PhD in physics from Harvard University in 2006 and his BS in math/physics from Brown University in 2002. From 2006 to 2009, he was a fellow at the Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science at UC Berkeley and joined the MIT faculty in 2010.
Blogger's Review: Thaler's appointment signifies not only a personal achievement but also MIT's strategic move in advancing the integration of particle physics with AI research. As AI technology continues to evolve, the field of particle physics may experience profound transformations, and we can look forward to groundbreaking discoveries emerging from this synergy.