1900: A physics genius wandering around Europe

Chapter 410: Next, it is the era of geniuses!

At the first Bruce Lecture at Cambridge University, Ridgway's bold and domineering words shocked everyone.

Everyone suddenly discovered:

"Professor Bruce is a little different."

“He’s so passionate!”

Li Qiwei does not seem like the physics master who never shows his emotions, but rather a peerless genius who has found his goal again and looks down on the world.

This change in mentality had the greatest impact on Rutherford, Wilson and others.

As time goes by, they have become veterans in the field of physics.

The initial enthusiasm and passion are slowly fading away.

But now, Li Qiwei made them feel the power of youth again.

Who says only young people can move forward courageously?

Who says only young people can stay active;
Old scientists never die, they just gradually wither away, but they bloom until the last moment.

Rutherford was slightly moved, and then smiled happily.

"I'm afraid the physics community is about to forget about me, Rutherford."

"I will also follow Bruce's example and challenge the authority of truth with my old body."

"I, Rutherford, must be the first person to study atomic nuclei!"

Rutherford's eyes were determined and his blood was boiling in his heart.

He had absolute confidence because he had made breakthrough progress in his nuclear research.

The results will surely shock the physics community!

Wilson, who was standing next to him, sensed something was wrong with Rutherford and became infected with his emotions.

He also wanted to roar to the sky!

"I am Wilson. Uh. Nothing. I am still Wilson."

I was instantly speechless.

He did not have the earth-shaking achievements like Bruce and Rutherford.

Poor Brother Wei, he suddenly realized that being young is useless.

Do not bully the young because they are poor, do not bully the middle-aged because they are poor, do not bully the old because the dead are the greatest.

This is the life of an ordinary person.

The bosses were all infected by Li Qiwei's determination, not to mention the students off the court.

Everyone opened their eyes wide with excitement, and they wished they could run to the library or laboratory and work on it for three days and three nights.

"Professor Bruce has already reached the pinnacle of science, yet he is still working so hard."

"My supervisor, on the other hand, delegated all the research work to students and only added his name to the paper at the end."

"Professor Bruce's ability is worthy of admiration, but his personality is even more worthy of respect."

"."

This wave of showing off made Li Qiwei gain countless fans.

Especially the last sentence: Just one theory can unify everything in the world.

Let everyone feel Professor Bruce’s invincible heart.

Although most people think it is impossible.

But this momentum deeply shocked them.

Li Qiwei's lecture ended with thunderous cheers.

He gave the Bruce Lecture a great start.

I believe that in the future there will be more scientific giants who will speak passionately here and exchange ideas with young students.

After Li Qiwei came down from the podium, Professor Hardy came on stage next.

The topic of his speech was "Research on the Goldbach Conjecture".

There are two ways to express this conjecture:

The first comes from the form in which Goldbach originally wrote to Euler.

That is: any odd number not less than 7 can be written as the sum of three prime numbers.

The second comes from Euler's reply to Goldbach, which he modified.

That is: any even number not less than 4 can be written as the sum of two prime numbers.

Obviously, the first is a corollary of the second, and the former can be proved as long as the latter is proved.

Therefore, the first form is called the "weak Goldbach conjecture".

The second form is called the "strong Goldbach conjecture".

So far, the Goldbach conjecture has only been partially proven.

As for the "1+1" that ordinary people often hear in later generations, it actually refers to one of the proof methods.

For example, someone claims to have proved “9+9”.

The translation is:

[For a sufficiently large even number, it can be expressed as the sum of two other numbers.

Each of these two numbers is the product of 9 odd prime numbers. 】

Then according to the definition of the Strong Goldbach conjecture, the ultimate goal of this method is naturally to prove "1+1".

So far, Chinese mathematician Chen Jingrun has gone the furthest with this method.

Because he proved "1+2", he is only one step away from "1+1".

But this step alone may be more difficult than all the previous steps combined.

In Li Qiwei's previous life, Goldbach's conjecture was a disaster area for various amateur scientists.

Every year, there is an endless stream of papers submitted to Huaxia University of Science and Technology.

Every now and then, someone claims to have invented a revolutionary method that has completely proved the Goldbach conjecture.

However, few people are willing to take the initiative to put their papers online for public review.

Whether it is a mule or a horse, you will know it by putting it on arXiv.

Hardy is worthy of being called a master of his generation. He made the complicated mathematics even more complicated.

Countless students in the audience looked confused.

This made Hardy feel a little embarrassed, as the lecture was intended to stimulate students' interest.

He just made the children autistic.

Finally, it was Li Qiwei who stepped forward and said jokingly with a smile:
"Professor Hardy is indeed a master of mathematics."

"After listening to your analysis, I suddenly feel lucky that I didn't choose mathematics, otherwise I would have achieved nothing now."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone burst into laughter.

Even Professor Bruce laughed at himself. Ordinary people like them have nothing to worry about.

Then the atmosphere became lively again.

Hardy gave Ridgway a grateful look.

At the same time, a bold idea suddenly arose in his mind.

"If Professor Bruce switched to studying mathematics, could he prove the Goldbach conjecture?"

"Even solving the 1900 difficult mathematical problems proposed by Professor Hilbert in 23?"

hiss!
The more Hardy thought about it, the more excited he became. He felt that with Professor Bruce's extraordinary talent, it was really possible.

Sadly, this may forever remain a secret.

Unless Professor Bruce is reborn in a second life in old age, and kills his physical body to refine his mathematical soul!

Finally, today’s two lectures ended perfectly.

Although there are lectures on other subjects coming up, Li Qiwei has to return to the Quantum Research Institute tomorrow, so he cannot attend them.

But his speech today definitely left a deep impression on many Cambridge students.

At this moment, at the invitation of Rutherford, he came to the Cavendish Laboratory.

Rutherford was also very decisive after taking over Cavendish.

Based on Thomson's work, he reformed the laboratory and increased research on atoms.

Many new instruments and equipment have been added, and many advanced physics courses have been opened.

This will improve students' research capabilities.

Rutherford was determined to make Cavendish the world's center for atomic research.

"Bruce, look at Cavendish now. Isn't it completely different from before?"

Rutherford proudly introduced the laboratory to Ridgway.

Thomson gave him this responsibility, which was both an honor and a pressure for him.

So Rutherford never relaxed.

Not only did he still maintain the habit of doing experiments himself, but he also squeezed out more time to guide students.

And now, in front of Bruce, he can finally show off. Li Qiwei smiled and nodded.

"Rutherford, it seems that Professor Thomson's choice of you as his successor is the right one."

"In your hands, Cavendish will surely flourish and achieve greater success."

After hearing this, Rutherford's face was full of smiles.

He also introduced his students to Li Qiwei.

"Chadwick, you've seen him before. He's now my right-hand man."

Chadwick stepped forward and said excitedly:

"Professor Bruce, I have never had the opportunity to thank you in person."

"Now I finally see you in person, thank you for helping me."

Li Qiwei smiled at him.

He knew what the other party was talking about.

At that time, the other party and Eddington and others were buttonholes by the German military.

If it weren't for Li Qiwei's mediation, Chadwick and others would not have been able to escape so quickly.

So, Chadwick was truly grateful to him.

"Chadwick, I hope that incident won't dampen your interest in science."

Chadwick nodded excitedly, indicating that there was no impact.

"No, Professor."

"I hope to become a strong scholar like you."

Everyone smiled.

Then, Rutherford introduced:

"This is Fowler, currently conducting research in thermodynamics and statistical mechanics."

"This is Blackett. He has recently been modifying the Wilson cloud chamber so that he can better observe the decay of alpha particles."

Amid the two men's excited looks, Li Qiwei shook hands with them.

“They are all very nice guys.”

In real history, Fowler was not only Rutherford's son-in-law, but also Dirac's doctoral supervisor.

He himself is also the originator of the zeroth law of thermodynamics.

He also made certain contributions to the theory of electronic valence band.

In his later years, he did a lot of pioneering work in the fields of stellar spectra and temperatures, and collaborated with Eddington, Chandrasekhar and others.

Later, Blackett mainly engaged in research on cosmic rays, astrophysics and other aspects.

He himself won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1948.

Rutherford didn't need to introduce the last person, as Li Qiwei was very familiar with him.

George Thomson, Professor Thomson's son, also known as Little Thomson.

After the war, he followed his father's arrangement and stayed in Cavendish for a few years to gain experience.

Then he followed the same route as Rutherford, Richardson and others and was sent abroad as a professor.

In real history, Thomson Jr. became a professor at the University of Aberdeen in England in 1922.

During this period, he successfully completed the electron diffraction experiment, proving the shocking discovery that electrons have wave properties.

As a result, he and Davidson of the United States jointly won the 1937 Nobel Prize in Physics.

It can be seen that Rutherford's current team is luxurious.

Cavendish is a Nobel Prize-winning factory.

However, now, these future physics giants are still just doctoral students.

Everyone was more excited than the other to see Professor Bruce.

Soon, under the reluctant gazes of everyone, Rutherford pulled Li Qiwei into the director's office.

He poured a cup of coffee for Li Qiwei, and then the two began to discuss academic matters.

Li Qiwei didn't believe it at first, but he took another sip of coffee and found that it was true.

"Damn, Rutherford, we haven't seen each other for a few years, and you treat me with this kind of low-quality coffee."

Rutherford heard this, not ashamed at all, and laughed and scolded:
"How dare you complain to me? I've been drinking your fake tea for years."

"My finances are tight right now, so I'll just make do with what I can."

Li Qiwei smiled awkwardly, it seemed that his previous tricks had been seen through by the other party.

"It's true, it's true, but the quality is a little bit lower."

After the two of them joked with each other, Rutherford said with emotion:
"Bruce, your speech today touched me deeply."

"It has been more than 1908 years since I won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 10."

“I never published anything groundbreaking again.”

"Sometimes I wonder if I am not only old in age, but also old in heart."

"But fortunately you woke me up today."

Ridgway had known Rutherford for many years and of course knew his love for physics.

So he said, “Atomic research is very difficult.”

"But it is also extremely important, as it is the material basis of quantum theory."

“Without a deep understanding of microscopic particles, quantum theory would not be able to continue to develop and improve.”

"If I wasn't so poor at hands-on experiments, you wouldn't have gotten to do it."

Rutherford laughed out loud after hearing this.

It is generally recognized in the physics community that Professor Bruce's experimental ability is only second-rate.

Not to mention compared with Rutherford, there is still a gap even compared with the slightly inferior Millikan.

"Haha, Bruce, it's not your turn now."

Li Qiwei already knew it, but he still cooperated and asked:

"Oh?"

“Could it be that the atomic nucleus is really composed of a finer structure?”

Rutherford smiled mysteriously, hiding his achievements and fame.

"My paper will definitely be published within this year."

"You'll know then."

“It will definitely surprise you.”

Li Qiwei smiled and said, "Then I will have to wait patiently."

"Be careful I find fault with you."

Just like in real history, Rutherford was going to publish his major achievement in 1919.

After discussing his own research, Rutherford suddenly asked:

"Bruce, I heard that Wu Youxun from your Huaxia went to the University of Chicago for a visiting scholar program."

"I'm curious. Since you have established the Quantum Research Institute, you should be short of people now."

“Why not recruit him as a doctoral student?”

Li Qiwei heard this and said with a smile:
"The situation here is quite complicated and has something to do with our Chinese culture."

"But don't underestimate him."

“Even at the University of Chicago, he would definitely be able to achieve something.”

"Wu Youxun has recently been studying with Compton the verification of the wave-particle duality of light."

“I believe they will succeed.”

Wow!
Rutherford found it a little unbelievable.

One is a recently graduated undergraduate and the other is a recently graduated doctoral student.

Neither of them has a well-known physics expert as a mentor.

I actually want to challenge one of the most difficult topics in physics.

This is really hard to imagine.

In addition, the wave-particle duality of light is extremely bizarre.

Once successfully verified, it will be another huge shock to physics.

Although it ended the wave-particle debate that had lasted for hundreds of years, it brought new problems.

How should we understand wave-particle duality?
What is its essence?
"Bruce, are you so confident in those two young men?"

Li Qiwei smiled slightly.

"Of course!"

"Because next, it will be the era of geniuses!"

(End of this chapter)