Enrico Fermi, Physicist

Enrico Fermi, Physicist
Author: Emilio Segrè
Publisher: Plunkett Lake Press
Total Pages: 231
Release: 2019-08-09
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN:

In this biography of Enrico Fermi (1901-54), who won the Nobel Prize in physics in 1938 for his work on radioactivity by neutron bombardment and his discovery of transuranic elements and who achieved the first controlled nuclear chain reaction in Chicago in 1942, his student, collaborator, fellow Nobel Prize winner and lifelong friend Emilio Segrè presents the scientist, and explains in nontechnical terms Fermi’s work and his achievements. “Segrè’s description of Fermi’s early life and his involvement with and commitment to physics is extremely interesting... Segrè understands and describes very clearly the outstanding characteristics of Fermi’s theoretical work: clarity and completeness... Segrè has succeeded admirably in describing Fermi’s entire scientific career, and this book is strongly recommended.” — M. L. Goldberger, Science “We must thank Emilio Segrè for this authoritative, revealing and inspiring book. It covers in a masterly fashion the most exciting thirty years of modern physics and the character and activities of one of its greatest contributors.” — Nature “A rich, well-rounded portrait of [Fermi] 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.” — Physics Today “All that might be hoped for in a biography of one Nobel Prize winner in physics by another has been realized in Emilio Segrè’s biography of his friend, Enrico Fermi... A truly masterly drawing of Fermi’s character, along with his physics and the events through which he moved, Segrè has provided us with a brilliant appreciation of one of the most pre-eminent figures of modern physics.” — Physics Bulletin “This excellent biography, written by one of the original group who worked with him during the 1930s at Rome, catches beautifully the style and spirit of its subject... With Fermi’s passing the age of the universal experimental and theoretical physicist is gone. Segre’s book tells the story of this heroic age of physics and of its principal actor; it is a delight to read, and I recommend it heartily.” — American Scientist “Here we meet the man at work and we see the meticulous scientist... This book also shows us another facet of Fermi: that of the conscientious scientist torn between his love of pure research and his love of teaching.” — V. Barocas, Annals of Science “Segrè is a sensitive biographer, responsive to all problems that can plague the creative scientist; he shows, above all, Fermi’s dedication, zeal, and extraordinary talents. Segrè has provided more than sympathy. Much that is new about Fermi’s youth in Italy appears here... [A] very rewarding book... Every physicist will want to read this biography, along with every reader who has an interest in intellectual developments during the 1920-1960 era.” — J. Z. Fullmer, The Ohio Journal of Science

The Pope of Physics

The Pope of Physics
Author: Gino Segrè
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
Total Pages: 387
Release: 2016-10-18
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1627790063

Enrico Fermi is unquestionably among the greats of the world's physicists, the most famous Italian scientist since Galileo. Called the Pope by his peers, he was regarded as infallible in his instincts and research. His discoveries changed our world; they led to weapons of mass destruction and conversely to life-saving medical interventions. This unassuming man struggled with issues relevant today, such as the threat of nuclear annihilation and the relationship of science to politics. Fleeing Fascism and anti-Semitism, Fermi became a leading figure in America's most secret project: building the atomic bomb. The last physicist who mastered all branches of the discipline, Fermi was a rare mixture of theorist and experimentalist. His rich legacy encompasses key advances in fields as diverse as comic rays, nuclear technology, and early computers. In their revealing book, The Pope of Physics, Gino Segré and Bettina Hoerlin bring this scientific visionary to life. An examination of the human dramas that touched Fermi’s life as well as a thrilling history of scientific innovation in the twentieth century, this is the comprehensive biography that Fermi deserves.

The Last Man Who Knew Everything

The Last Man Who Knew Everything
Author: David N. Schwartz
Publisher: Basic Books
Total Pages: 503
Release: 2017-12-05
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0465093124

The definitive biography of the brilliant, charismatic, and very human physicist and innovator Enrico Fermi In 1942, a team at the University of Chicago achieved what no one had before: a nuclear chain reaction. At the forefront of this breakthrough stood Enrico Fermi. Straddling the ages of classical physics and quantum mechanics, equally at ease with theory and experiment, Fermi truly was the last man who knew everything -- at least about physics. But he was also a complex figure who was a part of both the Italian Fascist Party and the Manhattan Project, and a less-than-ideal father and husband who nevertheless remained one of history's greatest mentors. Based on new archival material and exclusive interviews, The Last Man Who Knew Everything lays bare the enigmatic life of a colossus of twentieth century physics.

Enrico Fermi

Enrico Fermi
Author: Dan Cooper
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 121
Release: 1999-02-04
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 019511762X

In 1938, at the age of 37, Enrico Fermi was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics. That same year he emigrated from Italy to the United States and, in the course of his experiments, discovered nuclear fission--a process which forms the basis of nuclear power and atomic bombs. Soon the brilliant physicist was involved in the top secret race to produce the deadliest weapon on Earth. He created the first self-sustaining chain reaction, devised new methods for purifying plutonium, and eventually participated in the first atomic test. This compelling biography traces Fermi's education in Italy, his meteoric career in the scientific world, his escape from fascism to America, and the ingenious experiments he devised and conducted at the University of Rome, Columbia University, and the Los Alamos laboratory. The book also presents a mini-course in quantum and nuclear physics in an accessible, fast-paced narrative that invokes all the dizzying passion of Fermis brilliant discoveries.

Enrico Fermi

Enrico Fermi
Author: Giuseppe Bruzzaniti
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 358
Release: 2016-03-21
Genre: Mathematics
ISBN: 149393533X

This biography explores the life and career of the Italian physicist Enrico Fermi, which is also the story of thirty years that transformed physics and forever changed our understanding of matter and the universe: nuclear physics and elementary particle physics were born, nuclear fission was discovered, the Manhattan Project was developed, the atomic bombs were dropped, and the era of “big science” began.It would be impossible to capture the full essence of this revolutionary period without first understanding Fermi, without whom it would not have been possible. Enrico Fermi: The Obedient Genius attempts to shed light on all aspects of Fermi’s life - his work, motivation, influences, achievements, and personal thoughts - beginning with the publication of his first paper in 1921 through his death in 1954. During this time, Fermi demonstrated that he was indeed following in the footsteps of Galileo, excelling in his work both theoretically and experimentally by deepening our understanding of the Pauli exclusion principle, winning the Nobel Prize for his discovery of the fundamental properties of slow neutrons, developing the theory of beta decay, building the first nuclear reactor, and playing a central role in the development of the atomic bomb. Interwoven with this fascinating story, the book details the major developments in physics and provides the necessary background material to fully appreciate the dramatic changes that were taking place. Also included are appendices that provide a timeline of Fermi’s life, several primary source documents from the period, and an extensive bibliography. This book will enlighten anyone interested in Fermi’s work or the scientific events that led to the physics revolution of the first half of the twentieth century.

Atoms in the Family

Atoms in the Family
Author: Laura Fermi
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 302
Release: 2014-10-24
Genre: Science
ISBN: 022614965X

In this absorbing account of life with the great atomic scientist Enrico Fermi, Laura Fermi tells the story of their emigration to the United States in the 1930s—part of the widespread movement of scientists from Europe to the New World that was so important to the development of the first atomic bomb. Combining intellectual biography and social history, Laura Fermi traces her husband's career from his childhood, when he taught himself physics, through his rise in the Italian university system concurrent with the rise of fascism, to his receipt of the Nobel Prize, which offered a perfect opportunity to flee the country without arousing official suspicion, and his odyssey to the United States.

Fermi Remembered

Fermi Remembered
Author: Enrico Fermi
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 300
Release: 2004-08-16
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0226121119

The volume also features extensive university archival material - including correspondence between Fermi and biophysicist Leo Szilard and a letter from Harry Truman - with new introductions that provide context for both the history of physics and the academic tradition at the University of Chicago."--Jacket.

Enrico Fermi

Enrico Fermi
Author: Carlo Bernardini
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 421
Release: 2013-11-11
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3662011603

Enrico Fermi’s scientific work, noted for its originality and breadth, has had lasting consequences throughout modern science. Written by close colleagues as well as scientists whose fields were profoundly influenced by Fermi, the papers collected here constitute a tribute to him and his scientific legacy. They were commissioned on the occasion of his 100th birthday by the Italian Physical Society and confirm that Fermi was a rare combination of theorist, experimentalist, teacher, and inspiring colleague. The book is organized into three parts: three biographical overviews by close colleagues, replete with personal insights; fourteen analyses of Fermi's impact by specialists in their fields, spanning physics, chemistry, mathematics, and engineering; and a year-by-year chronology of Fermi’s scientific endeavors. Written for a general scientific audience, Enrico Fermi: His Work and Legacy offers a highly readable source on the life of one of the 20th century's most distinguished scientists and a must for everybody interested in the history of modern science.

Unearthing Fermi's Geophysics

Unearthing Fermi's Geophysics
Author: Gino C. Segrè
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 302
Release: 2022-02-15
Genre: Science
ISBN: 022680528X

Follow Nobel laureate and legendary teacher Enrico Fermi’s lost course on geophysics. Nobel Prize–winning physicist Enrico Fermi (1901–54) is known for his work on experimental particle and nuclear physics, quantum theory, and statistical mechanics, and for his particular ability to condense complicated problems into approximations for understanding and testing theory in a variety of scientific disciplines. Six of his graduate students went on to win their own Nobel Prizes. Unearthing Fermi’s Geophysics opens a window onto two underrepresented facets of this extraordinary thinker: Fermi’s teaching and his contribution to the field of geophysics. Drawing on Fermi’s handwritten calculations and notes, many of which are reproduced here in photographic facsimile, physicists Gino Segrè and John Stack have reconstructed a coursebook of Fermi’s insights into the physics of a range of geological and atmospheric phenomena. From gravity on Earth to thermodynamics in the atmosphere, the physics of raindrops, the Coriolis effect in hurricanes, tidal physics, earthquakes and seismic waves, Earth’s magnetism, atmospheric electricity, and much more, Unearthing Fermi’s Geophysics reveals the hidden workings of the world above, around, and below us—and of the mind of a great scientist who was able to bring those physical workings to light.

Enrico Fermi

Enrico Fermi
Author: Erica Stux
Publisher: Enslow Publishing
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2004
Genre: Nobel Prize winners
ISBN: 9780766021778

Enrico Fermi is one of the most important scientists of the twentieth century. For twenty-five years, he dominated the field of physics, as his work greatly advanced scientists' understanding of atomic behavior. Although he won the Nobel Prize in 1938 for his work with slow neutrons, he is probably best known for achieving the first controlled, self-sustaining chain reaction. This led to the use of nuclear power as a new source of energy, as well as the development of the first atomic bomb. Today, Fermi's legacy is inescapable. Several institutions in the U. S. and Italy bear his name. The unit of length for a proton or neutron is called a "fermi." Electrons, protons, and neutrons are collectively called "fermions" because they behave according to the statistics worked out by Fermi and physicist Paul Dirac. The element fermium was also named for Fermi. Enrico Fermi's work in physics brought honor to his native land of Italy and, later, to his adopted homeland, the United States. Book jacket.