Jerome Friedman was born in Chicago on March 28, 1930, the younger of two sons of Selig and Lillian Warsaw Friedman. Selig Friedman had immigrated to the United States in 1913. Friedman's early interests revolved around art and music, but he redirected his energies after a chance encounter with Albert Einstein's book Relativity. Even though he was offered a scholarship to the Art Institute of Chicago, Friedman decided to pursue this new interest in science by studying physics at the University of Chicago in the late 1940s. While at the university, he had the opportunity to work on projects with physicistsEnrico Fermi and Valentine Telegdi. Remaining at the University of Chicago for the bulk of his studies, Friedman received his bachelor's degree in physics in 1950, his master's degree in 1953, and his doctorate in 1956.

The focus of Friedman's research--nuclear physics--was determined early in his academic career. While still at Chicago, Friedman carried...