American scientist Robert Herman (1914 – 1997) studied physics at the City College of New York and Princeton University before working at defence research centres during World War Two. He met Ralph Alpher while working at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. The two collaborated on theoretical cosmology until their paths diverged in 1956, when Herman moved to the General Motors Research Laboratory. He went on develop a new field, traffic science before returning to academia at the University of Texas at Austin, where he taught physics and civil engineering.