earned his bachelor's degree at the now defunct Kingfisher College. After earning his master's and doctoral degrees in physics at the University of Chicago under Compton, Stearns went on to become a professor and later chairman of the department of physics at the University of Denver. His research there included investigation of cosmic rays at a high altitude laboratory atop Mount Evans. In the course of establishing his laboratory there, Stearns worked with Denver City Parks to have a road to the summit built. The scenic byway remains the highest paved road in the United States. In 1941 Stearns was elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society. References 1893 births 1948 deaths People from Linn County, Missouri Kingfisher College alumni University of Chicago alumni University of Denver faculty 20th-century American physicists Washington University physicists Manhattan Project people Fellows of the American Physical Society Washington University in St. Louis faculty