Simon Ramo was an aerospace engineer, leader of the scientific advisory teams for Atlas, Thor, and Titan, and strong proponent of the use of electronics in spacecraft development. Ramo began his career with General Electric before moving to Hughes Aircraft where he rose to become vice president of operations. Later, Ramo cofounded TRW (Thompson-Ramo-Wooldridge Corporation) and became scientific director for the American intercontinental guided missile program (1954–58). When TRW merged with Fujitsu, Ramo was appointed to vice-chairman and then chairman of the TRW-Fujitsu board. He also served as a member of the White House Energy Research and Development Advisory Council, the advisory committee on science and foreign affairs for the State Department, and chairman of the President's Commission of Science and Technology. Ramo earned a PhD in electrical engineering from the California Institute of Technology (1960).