Townes married Frances H. Brown, an activist for the homeless, during 1941. They lived in
Berkeley, California and had four daughters: Linda Rosenwein, Ellen Anderson, Carla Kessler, and Holly Townes. He wrote in a statement after winning the
Templeton Prize during 2005: "Science tries to understand what our universe is like and how it works, including us humans. Religion is aimed at understanding the purpose and meaning of our universe, including our own lives. If the universe has a purpose or meaning, this must be reflected in its structure and functioning, and hence in science." Townes's opinions concerning science and religion were expounded in his essays "The Convergence of Science and Religion", "Logic and Uncertainties in Science and Religion", and his book
Making Waves. Townes felt that the beauty of nature is "obviously God-made" and that God created the universe for humans to emerge and flourish. He prayed every day and ultimately felt that religion is more important than science because it addresses the most important long-range question: the meaning and purpose of our lives. Townes's belief in the convergence of science and religion is based on claimed similarities: • Faith. Townes argued that the scientist has faith much like a religious person does, allowing him/her to work for years for an uncertain result. • Revelation. Townes claimed that many important scientific discoveries, like his invention of the maser/laser, occurred as a "flash" much more akin to religious revelation than interpreting data. • Proof. During this century the mathematician
Kurt Gödel discovered that there can be no absolute proof in a scientific sense. Every proof requires a set of assumptions, and there is no way to check whether those assumptions are self-consistent because other assumptions would be required. • Uncertainty. Townes believed that we should be open-minded to a better understanding of science and religion in the future. This will require us to modify our theories, but not abandon them. For example, at the start of the 20th century physics was largely deterministic. But when scientists began studying the quantum mechanics, they realized that indeterminism and chance play a role in our universe. Both classical physics and quantum mechanics are correct and work well within their own bailiwick, and continue to be taught to students. Similarly, Townes believes that growth of religious understanding will modify, but not make us abandon, our classic religious beliefs.
Death Townes had steadily been active at the UCB campus, visiting and working regularly in the physics department or at the Space Sciences Laboratory past his 99th birthday and only a few months before his death. Townes' health began to decline, and he died on route to the hospital in
Oakland, California, on January 27, 2015, at the age of 99.
Reinhard Genzel, a professor of physics at Berkeley, said of Townes: "He was one of the most important experimental physicists of the last century. ... His strength was his curiosity and his unshakable optimism, based on his deep Christian spirituality." == Recognition ==