By Christina Folz, OPN Managing Editor

John Howard--OSA Fellow, Emeritus Member, and OPN Contributing Editor--has attempted to retire many times. While he officially made the leap to retirement from the Air Force Geophysics Laboratory many years ago, OSA has not made it easy for him to spend too much time on his porch swing. I am one of the guilty parties. His column in OPN is simply too well loved--and his stories too lively and interesting--for me to cease my endless requests for more, more, more. Judging by the positive feedback we receive on his column, I don't think OSA members would mind that I continue to gently prod John. He has also been an invaluable contributor to OSA's History Project, which seeks to chronicle important events, people, and happenings of the Society's 94 years of existence.

And now, even as John himself approaches 90, he has agreed to share his vast wealth of stories and knowledge about the history of optics, particularly as they relate to OSA, with OPN's readers and with the rest of the world, through this blog. I am extremely grateful for John's good-natured willingness to continue to learn, contribute, and grow. He is by far OPN's most prolific single contributor, and I'm not at all surprised that he has embraced this 21st century form of communication without any second thoughts.

I hope you enjoy his insights as much as I do.

optics history, OSA, The Optical Society, John Howard, optics