1900: A physics genius wandering around Europe

Chapter 425 "Dr. Schrödinger, do you like cats?"

1919 passed with a bang, and 1920 arrived quietly.

Ridgway spent New Year's Day at Rutherford's home.

Although it was not the first time he saw Rutherford's wife, he couldn't help laughing every time he thought of her name.

"Ms. Newton, thank you for the sumptuous meal you prepared for me."

"Your craftsmanship is the same as it was ten years ago, just like your beauty."

After hearing this, Mary Newton felt as if she had eaten honey, and her whole face seemed to turn into a flower.

She and Rutherford's daughter, Irene, giggled nearby.

Mrs. Niu smiled happily and said:
"Bruce, you are still so sweet."

"I'm afraid that's how you found two excellent wives."

"My Rutherford is just a little bit slow in talking, otherwise he would be like you."

Irene laughed even louder.

Rutherford was so frightened that he shuddered and ate quickly without daring to answer.

Li Qiwei was ashamed that Mrs. Niu was still so sharp.

Suddenly, Rutherford seemed to have thought of something and diverted the blame.

"Irene, I heard you want to invite Fowler to your home?"

Irene, who had been smiling happily just now, stopped smiling immediately.

She quickly glanced at her mother, then said carefully:

"Well, I see that they usually work hard in the laboratory helping you, Dad, with your experiments, so I wanted to reward them."

When Mrs. Niu heard this, she immediately became alert.

"Who is Fowler? A man? How old is he?"

Rutherford said: "Fowler is currently a researcher at Cavendish and is 31 years old."

Then he briefly introduced the other party's situation.

When Mrs. Niu heard that the other party was retired from the Royal Navy and was awarded the Medal of the British Empire for his contributions during the war.

She then engaged in scientific research and became a capable assistant to her husband, and a smile gradually appeared on her face again.

This has far exceeded the scope of young and promising people, and belongs to the elite among the elites.

Clearly, Fowler is on the Lady Oxen’s watch list.

"Oh, that's a very nice young man."

"Erin, you can invite him over. I want to see him."

Irene finally breathed a sigh of relief.

In their family, the mother is the one who keeps her word.

Even if his father won ten Nobel Prizes, he would not dare to challenge his mother's authority.

Li Qiwei found it funny to see the family members pitting each other.

It looks like he will be attending Rutherford's wedding next year.

At the same time, he thought of his wife and children in Borneo.

"Lu Yao, Xiang Lan, are you all right?"

My family has already sent me a message saying that they will come to visit him in a while.

Li Qiwei has not decided on a time yet. After all, it is too troublesome to go back and forth.

When Rutherford saw that Li Qiwei suddenly looked a little sad, he knew that he must be missing home.

So he changed the subject and asked with a smile:

"Bruce, I heard that you are going to take Marie Curie's daughter Irene as a doctor?"

"The French Radium Institute is amazing. It's a place dedicated to the study of radioactivity."

"Why would Irena choose to go to your Quantum Research Institute?"

"That's like throwing away the watermelon to pick up the sesame seeds."

Li Qiwei recovered from his thoughts and said:
"I can't help it. My reputation is so great that many talented people come here to watch me."

Several people laughed.

Irene suddenly asked expectantly:
"Uncle Bruce, what do you think of me?"

Li Qiwei wondered, "You're fine."

Irene said anxiously, "No, I'm asking if I can be your doctoral student, too?"

Li Qiwei: "Can you ask the question again?"

Irene: "Uncle Bruce, what do you think of me?"

Li Qiwei immediately shook his head funny and said regretfully: "Not very good."

The room was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.
-
1920 1 Month 15 Day.

Irene came to England from France accompanied by Joliot.

She went to the Quantum Research Institute as soon as possible and met Li Qiwei.

"Uncle Bruce, I finally see you again."

Irena, who has grown into a big girl, no longer comes up and hugs him as she did before.

She learned to be reserved.

Li Qiwei touched her head and smiled:

"Thank you for your hard work. I'll send a telegram to your mother later to let her know you're safe."

Then he asked, "Who is this?"

Irena gave a detailed introduction to Yolio's situation.

Yorio was very excited to see the legendary god.

This is the only living legend in this world, the famous Professor Bruce.

Anyone in the scientific field would be unable to contain their excitement upon seeing him.

Joliot admired the Curies, but when it came to Professor Bruce, it was no longer admiration but faith.

"Hello, Professor Bruce, I'm Yolio."

"I am currently studying radiology with Marie Curie at the French Radium Institute."

Li Qiwei stretched out his hand and said with a smile: "Hello, Yolio."

"Are you here to apply to be my doctor this time?"

Yorio scratched his head, feeling a little lacking in confidence.

He came here mainly to escort Irena, but he did not decide to join the Quantum Research Institute immediately.

Because he felt that he still had a lot of room for improvement and needed to settle down in the Radium Institute.

You can't disrupt your own rhythm because of love.

It won’t be too late for him to come back once Irena is stable.

"Professor, no words can describe how much I want to be your doctor."

"However, my current abilities are not enough to bear the pressure of a PhD."

“But I will definitely try it in the future.”

After hearing this, Li Qiwei nodded with satisfaction.

The other party is very independent, just like Wu Youxun who chose to go to the United States.

They all have a clear positioning and plan for themselves.

Irena looked at Yolio with her beautiful eyes.

Even in front of Professor Bruce, the other party behaved neither humbly nor arrogantly and was very decent.

After seeing Jolio off, Li Qiwei talked to Irena about her doctoral thesis.

"Irena, given your background, I suggest you choose radioactivity as your research topic."

"You already have a solid experimental foundation from your mother."

“And Professor Rutherford discovered the proton, which made radiology even more exciting.”

“I believe that there will be many amazing results in this field in the future.”

Irena was very excited when she heard this, and she quickly got into the mood, even changing her way of addressing people.

"Professor, radiology happens to be my favorite research area."

"I've been studying Professor Rutherford's alpha particle bombardment experiment lately."

“His experiments are always very well designed, and I have a lot to learn.”

Li Qiwei smiled and said, "It seems that you are very intuitive."

"Atomic experiments rely mainly on various bombardments and continuous attempts."

“I hope you can bombard more different materials during your PhD.”

“Maybe one day we’ll discover a completely new experimental phenomenon that will surpass Professor Rutherford.”

"He often mocks my poor experimental ability."

"Irena, I'm counting on you to help me defeat him."

Irena's face was all smiles.

Suddenly, she thought of an important question.

"Professor, I don't think I've passed the doctoral entrance exam yet. Have you decided to hire me?"

Li Qiwei smiled lightly.

"Just take a good rest today and come for the exam tomorrow."

Then he gently pressed a button on the desk. Ding!
Soon, a middle-aged man knocked on the door, walked in, and said respectfully:

"Professor, what can I do for you?"

Li Qiwei introduced to Irena:

"This is Mr. Sean. He will help you arrange everything later."

"You will live in the apartment next to the institute. That is a benefit for doctors and researchers."

"It's convenient for you to work overtime until late at night."

Irena was startled, she suddenly felt the intensity.

“Doesn’t the British Empire have labor laws?”

"It's really not easy to be Professor Bruce's doctor."

Sean is the administrative director hired by the Quantum Institute, who is specifically responsible for non-scientific research work within the institute.

The other party was introduced by Thomson and had previously held a similar position in the university and had extensive experience.

Sean, 45 years old this year, is mature and steady, a typical British gentleman, and is deeply trusted by Li Qiwei.

Now, the Quantum Institute is short of a laboratory assistant to help Li Qiwei share the energy of scientific research management.

It is difficult to find a suitable candidate for this position.

If you choose a big boss, I guess no one will be willing; if you choose a rookie, it’s useless.

However, what Li Qiwei did not expect was that soon a young man came to visit and recommended himself.

1920 1 Month 20 Day.

As expected, Irena successfully passed Li Qiwei's test and became the first doctoral student at the Quantum Institute.

Moreover, she is also the first female PhD student admitted by Li Qiwei.

If it were someone else, it would probably be difficult to get a degree for Irena.

Compared with 20 years ago, women's rights to education have been greatly enhanced.

But getting a degree, let alone a degree from a top university, is still a difficult task.

But for Li Qiwei, these are a piece of cake.

As long as Irena's doctoral research results can pass the defense, he will definitely be able to help her obtain the degree and become a real doctor.

Such is the influence of Professor Bruce.

Today, Wang Zhengyang just reported that a man named Schrödinger came to apply for the position of laboratory assistant.

When Li Qiwei heard this, a gleam of light flashed in his eyes and he was a little confused.

"Good fellow, why is this person here?"

At this moment, Schrödinger was waiting for news in the conference room on the first floor.

He was also a little nervous.

Schrödinger, 33 years old this year, has just graduated with a doctorate in physics 10 years ago.

But apart from publishing some insignificant papers, there were no special achievements.

Of course, he was comparing himself with people like Ridgway and Einstein.

In the eyes of ordinary scholars, his paper is still very innovative, at least at the level of young elites.

Schrödinger also reflected on his own failure. He felt that it was his rich emotional life that hindered him.

How can I do research if I feel dizzy when I wake up every day?

However, Dr. Xue never thought of giving up his hobby.

"If I can't chat about academics with women on a beautiful night, what's the point of life?"

If Professor Thomson heard this, he would definitely scold him: "You are the worst student I have ever seen!"

European war, Germany and Austria-Hungary were defeated.

As an Austrian, Schrödinger was in a bit of an awkward situation.

It seemed that there was nowhere else to go except Germany.

He had already contacted the physics laboratory at the University of Jena in Germany.

I plan to go there as an assistant this year.

However, Ridgway's establishment of the Quantum Institute affected his plans.

Compared with Professor Bruce, the University of Jena is nothing.

In Schrödinger's opinion, if he could work in a quantum research institute, it would be a great benefit to his resume.

Professor Bruce is Chinese, so his identity issue is not a big deal.

Moreover, his mother is half British, and his grandmother is British.

Coming to the UK to work is a good choice.

The Quantum Institute is also recruiting laboratory assistants.

Schrödinger believes that his current experience is very suitable for this position.

I just don’t know whether to cry or laugh, the food also has its advantages.

So he boldly tried it.

Just as he was daydreaming, Wang Zhengyang came down soon.

"Dr. Schrödinger, please follow me. The professor can interview you now."

Schrodinger straightened his clothes, took his resume, and went up to the third floor confidently and calmly.

In the director's office.

Schrödinger restrained his playboy style and appeared gentle and polite.

"Hello, Professor Bruce, my name is Schrödinger, and this is my resume."

After saying that, he respectfully handed over his carefully prepared resume with both hands.

Li Qiwei looked at the resume and a faint smile seemed to appear on his face.

"In 1910, he received his doctorate from the University of Vienna, Austria."

“From 1910 to 1914, he worked at the Institute of Physics at the University of Vienna and published five papers.”

"They are about vibration theory, electromagnetic effect, atmospheric radioactivity, capillary pressure, and beta rays."

"From 1914 to 1918, he served as an artillery officer, but in his spare time he continued to study theoretical physics."

Obviously, at this time, Schrödinger was a typical unknown in the physics community.

The scientific achievements are mediocre and the research topics are scattered here and there without any focus.

His scientific experience and achievements are far less rich than his emotional experience and achievements.

However, Li Qiwei knew that the other party would soon become a treasure.

In real history, Schrödinger became famous after proposing the wave mechanics version of quantum mechanics.

From a physics expert, he instantly became a physics master.

Immediately afterwards, he succeeded Planck as head of the Department of Physics at the University of Berlin, which was a rapid rise to fame.

"Dr. Schrödinger, you have an excellent resume."

"It is more in line with my recruitment requirements."

"But I want to know, what are your plans for the future?"

Although Schrödinger had met Li Qiwei at a meeting before, he was like an ant at that time and could only watch from afar.

Only after talking with Li Qiwei at close range today did he feel the momentum and pressure as huge as a mountain and an ocean.

Li Qiwei's status is really too high.

It’s so high that even Schrödinger would get nervous.

He knows all about Li Qiwei's legendary experience.

Only a physicist like him could understand how terrifying it was.

"Professor Bruce, my previous topics were too scattered, which really affected the depth of my research."

"So, next, I hope I can make a breakthrough in quantum theory."

“That’s why I came to apply for the job today.”

"Your Quantum Research Institute is the world's leading authority in the field of quantum."

“I hope that I can learn from you here and achieve something in the future.”

Schrödinger's words were very beautiful.

It not only expresses respect, but also reflects his sincerity.

Then, Li Qiwei learned more about Schrödinger's other situations.

He also introduced his responsibilities in the institute and the corresponding benefits.

When the other party said that he did not want to live in the apartment next to the institute, but would rent a house alone in central London.

Li Qiwei clearly saw that Schrödinger's eyes were evasive.

He complained in his heart: You little brat, you’re still pretending in front of me. You just like quietness, but you like to sneak in secretly.

At the end of the interview, Li Qiwei suddenly had an idea and asked a question:
"Dr. Schrodinger, do you like cats?"

Schrödinger was confused when he heard this.

ah? What's the meaning?
If I answer that I don’t like it, I won’t be fired directly.

However, he still answered honestly:
"Professor, I don't like cats."

Li Qiwei smiled lightly and said nothing.

I thought to myself: Then don’t blame me for liking cats.

Bruce's cat, hehe.

(End of this chapter)