Walter Lewin

Walter Lewin earned his doctorate in nuclear physics at Delft in 1965 and joined MIT's physics faculty the following year, where he would stay for 43 years. His astrophysics work included the first discovery of a rotating neutron star through all-sky balloon surveys and X-ray detection research via satellites and observatories. He built a reputation as a gifted teacher, and when MIT posted his lectures on OpenCourseWare and later edX, they found a massive audience - millions watched him conduct elaborate in-class experiments and scrawl equations with theatrical flair. He retired in 2009. In December 2014, an MIT investigation determined that Lewin had sexually harassed an online student in a MITx course, and the university revoked his Professor Emeritus title and removed his lecture videos from its platforms.