James Clerk MaxwellIn contrast to Newton and Einstein, Edinburgh-born Maxwell (1831-79) is virtually unknown to the general public. Yet his contribution to physics was every bit as significant, particularly his discovery of the theoryof electromagnetism. This showed that electricity, magnetism and light are all manifestations of the same phenomenon, the electromagnetic field. The development of radio, TV and radar were the direct consequences. Maxwell also carried out pioneering work in optics and colour vision. However, in his later years, his God-fearing Scottish upbringing brought him into dispute with the evolutionary thinking of Darwin and others and he wrote papers denouncing natural selection.
Largely self-educated, Faraday (1791-1867) became one of the greatest scientists of his day thanks to the patronage of the eminent English chemist Humphry Davy, who hired him as an assistant in 1813. Faraday went on to establish the idea of the electromagnetic field and discovered electromagnetic induction and the laws of electrolysis. His electromagnetic devices formed the foundation of electric motor technology. He twice rejected offers of a knighthood and when asked to advise on chemical weapons for the Crimean war effort, refused on ethical grounds. Einstein kept a picture of Faraday on his study wall (alongside pictures of Newton and Maxwell).
Marie Curie
The first woman to win a Nobel and the first person to win two separate Nobels, Curie (1867-1934) was born in Poland and won her first Nobel in 1903 with husband, Pierre, for discovering radioactivity. However, she was not allowed to participate in the keynote lecture winners give because she was a woman. After Pierre died in a road accident in 1906, she won her second Nobel in 1911 for discovering radium, though an attempt was made to rescind it when news emerged of her affair with married colleague Paul Langevin. After collecting the prize, Curie was pilloried by the French press. Langevin was ignored.
Richard Feynman
One of the 20th century’s most
influential and colourful physicists, Feynman (1918-88) played a key role in
the development of quantum electrodynamics, the theory that describes how light
and matter interact, earning him a Nobel prize in 1965. Feynman also
contributed to the fields of quantum computing and nanotechnology and
was a member of the Rogers Commission that lambasted Nasa over the destruction
of space shuttle Challenger in 1986. He was a keen drummer, experimented with
drugs and often worked on physics problems in topless bars because he said they
helped him concentrate. Feynman died in 1988, aged 69.Ernest Rutherford
New Zealand-born Rutherford (1871-1937) is considered one of the greatest of all experimental physicists. He discovered the idea of radioactive half-life and showed that radioactivity involved the transmutation of one chemical element to another. He was awarded a Nobel in 1908 “for his investigations into the disintegration of the elements”. Rutherford later became director of the Cavendish Laboratory at Cambridge University where, under his leadership, the neutron was discovered by James Chadwick in 1932 and the first experiment to split the nucleus was carried out by John Cockcroft and Ernest Walton. The element rutherfordium was named after him in 1997.
Paul Dirac
One of the most revered – and strangest – figures in physics. The son of a Swiss father and English mother, Dirac (1902-84) was born in Bristol. He predicted the existence of antimatter, created some of quantum mechanics’ key equations and laid the foundations for today’s micro-electronics industry. Dirac won a Nobel in 1933 but remained “an Edwardian geek”, according to biographer Graham Farmelo. He turned down a knighthood because he didn’t want people using his first name, while his daughter, Monica, never once remembered him laughing. “This balancing on the dizzying path between genius and madness is awful,” Einstein said of him.
Nice one. One day my name will be written along side with this geniuses.
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