Lauriston Taylor: The Radiation Protection Man

This work explores the formative years of Lauriston Taylor, a pivotal American physicist in the history of radiation protection, from the origins of his career until the shift brought about by World War II. It draws primarily on his lengthy and largely unexplored unpublished autobiography, along with archival sources and published materials. It examines Taylor’s early involvement in the field at a time when few scientists in the United States had both the formal education or experience—and perhaps even the interest—in X-rays and radium. Taylor's work was not confined to scientific laboratories and experiments. His significant role in national and international organizations highlights how scientific expertise, institutional power, and political context intertwined in shaping radiation protection as a field. By tracing Taylor’s steps, this paper illuminates the making of radiation standards and the emergence of radiological protection as both a scientific and diplomatic enterprise.