National Academy of Engineering
Bechtel Corporation (retired)
Dr. Forsen is a retired senior vice president of Bechtel Corporation in San Francisco, CA. After receiving his B.S. and M.S. degrees in electrical engineering at the California Institute of Technology, Forsen joined General Atomics in San Diego to work on magnetic fusion research, where his contributions were in spectroscopy and experiment design and construction. He returned to graduate school, earning a Ph.D. in electrical engineering at the University of California at Berkeley for work in plasma physics. From there, Dr. Forsen joined the nuclear engineering faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, continuing his research in plasma physics but also developing a program in fusion reactor engineering -- authoring or co-authoring more than 100 publications. He progressed from associate professor to professor and in 1972 became director of the university's Physical Sciences Laboratory. In 1973, he joined Exxon Nuclear Company as manager of engineering in Bellevue, WA, becoming vice president and member of the board of directors - he was responsible for the company's program in atomic vapor laser isotope separation. In 1981, Dr. Forsen joined Bechtel's research and development organization, becoming Senior Vice President and Manager of Technology for the corporation. In 1994 he moved to Bechtel Hanford introducing technology into the site cleanup process and retired in 1995. He was elected Foreign Secretary of the National Academy of Engineering from 1995-2003. Currently he is a consultant and advisor in the fields of plasma physics and fusion engineering.
Dr. Forsen has served on numerous government advisory panels and is the author or coauthor more than 100 publications and presentations. He holds ten U.S. patents. He is the recipient of many professional society and national awards, including the Arthur Holly Compton Award of the American Nuclear Society. Forsen is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a Fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Nuclear Society and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1989.