Enrico Fermi, Physicist by Emilio Segrè
I had recently read the book The Age of Radiance by Craig Nelson which traces the story of radioactivity and nuclear power through the work of the many key scientists/physicists. Of the many scientists mentioned, I was just so impressed with Italian physicist Enrico Fermi who was not just brilliant but super brilliant in every possible way. So when I finished this book, I borrowed from the Moreland Library his biography Enrico Fermi Physicist written by fellow scientist Emilio Segre in 1970.
The blurb reads as follows
Student, collaborator and lifelong friend of Enrico Fermi, Emilio Segrè presents a rich, well-rounded portrait of the scientist, his methods, intellectual history, and achievements. Explaining in nontechnical terms the scientific problems Fermi faced or solved, Enrico Fermi, Physicist contains illuminating material concerning Fermi's youth in Italy and the development of his scientific style. Emilio Segre was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1959.
Yes, all true but a slightly disappointing read as it does not do justice to the larger than life nature of the man. It is factually correct but staid and conservative in its exposition. But on the positive side, it is very detailed regarding the nature of the physics involved and the huge talent of the physicists who worked in the golden age of nuclear physics in the 1930's and 1940's. As someone who majored in physics with a B.Sc in the 1970s, I was very aware of the advanced detailed information studied by undergrads and grads in those days compared to the relatively simple physics we study nowadays. The giants of science have all gone now. We will not see their like again.
By way of illustration, my library contains biographies of two of his contemporaries
The Life and Times of Albert Einstein by Ronald W. Clark
Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman! as told to Ralph Leighton
I also have the original 1964 edition Volumes 1 and 2 of the 3 Volume The Feynman Lectures of Physics which show the lectures in Physics which Feynman gave to the freshman and Sophomore classes at Caltech in 1962. The quality, depth and range of physics encompassed is amazing. I must get Volume 3 on quantum physics to complete the series.
I had recently read the book The Age of Radiance by Craig Nelson which traces the story of radioactivity and nuclear power through the work of the many key scientists/physicists. Of the many scientists mentioned, I was just so impressed with Italian physicist Enrico Fermi who was not just brilliant but super brilliant in every possible way. So when I finished this book, I borrowed from the Moreland Library his biography Enrico Fermi Physicist written by fellow scientist Emilio Segre in 1970.
The blurb reads as follows
Student, collaborator and lifelong friend of Enrico Fermi, Emilio Segrè presents a rich, well-rounded portrait of the scientist, his methods, intellectual history, and achievements. Explaining in nontechnical terms the scientific problems Fermi faced or solved, Enrico Fermi, Physicist contains illuminating material concerning Fermi's youth in Italy and the development of his scientific style. Emilio Segre was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1959.
Yes, all true but a slightly disappointing read as it does not do justice to the larger than life nature of the man. It is factually correct but staid and conservative in its exposition. But on the positive side, it is very detailed regarding the nature of the physics involved and the huge talent of the physicists who worked in the golden age of nuclear physics in the 1930's and 1940's. As someone who majored in physics with a B.Sc in the 1970s, I was very aware of the advanced detailed information studied by undergrads and grads in those days compared to the relatively simple physics we study nowadays. The giants of science have all gone now. We will not see their like again.
By way of illustration, my library contains biographies of two of his contemporaries
The Life and Times of Albert Einstein by Ronald W. Clark
Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman! as told to Ralph Leighton
I also have the original 1964 edition Volumes 1 and 2 of the 3 Volume The Feynman Lectures of Physics which show the lectures in Physics which Feynman gave to the freshman and Sophomore classes at Caltech in 1962. The quality, depth and range of physics encompassed is amazing. I must get Volume 3 on quantum physics to complete the series.
No comments:
Post a Comment