William Pecora attended Princeton, graduating in 1933 with a degree in geology, the same year he won the US Intercollegiate Fencing champion with the foil. He later received a doctorate in geology from Harvard. He joined the US Geological Survey in 1939, and became its director in 1965. A renowned scientist, he had over 50 scientific publications, many based on his field trips. He discovered several new materials, one of which, pecoraite, was named for him. A geological feature in Antarctica was also named for him, the Pecora Escarpment. In 1971, Pecora was named Under Secretary of the Interior, but only served one year as he died after an operation for diverticulitis. Pecora was elected to the National Academy of Science in 1965, and was elected as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 1969 he received the Rockefeller Public Service Award.
United States