David Sparrow

Dr. David Sparrow is a theoretical physicist with deep expertise in nuclear physics, scattering theory, and mathematical modeling, as well as applied research in unexploded ordnance, land combat systems, and autonomous and AI-enabled systems. He has contributed extensively to test and evaluation (T&E) practices for defense technologies. Since 1999, he has served as a Research Staff Member at the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA), following prior roles including Assistant Division Director and Interim Director of the IDA Simulation Center. From 1997 to 1999, he served as Science Advisor on Modeling and Simulation for the Director, Operational Test and Evaluation. He has held academic appointments at the University of Maryland, Temple University, the University of Pennsylvania, and others. Dr. Sparrow earned his Ph.D. and M.S. in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and holds a B.A. in Physics from Princeton University.