 Reines was accepted into the Massachusetts Institute of Technology , but chose instead to attend Stevens Institute of Technology in <unk> , New Jersey , where he earned his Bachelor of Science ( <unk> ) degree in mechanical engineering in 1939 , and his Master of Science ( <unk> ) degree in mathematical physics in 1941 , writing a thesis on " A Critical Review of Optical <unk> Theory " . He married Sylvia <unk> on August 30 , 1940 . They had two children , Robert and <unk> . He then entered New York University , where he earned his Doctor of Philosophy ( Ph.D. ) in 1944 . He studied cosmic rays there under Serge A. <unk> , but wrote his thesis under the supervision of Richard D. Present on " Nuclear fission and the liquid drop model of the nucleus " . Publication of the thesis was delayed until after the end of World War II ; it appeared in Physical Review in 1946 . 
