1900: A physics genius wandering around Europe

Chapter 484: Learning never ends! The Astronomy Conference is coming! The three great stars are about to be unveiled!
When Confucius traveled to the east, he saw two children arguing about the sun. This is a classical Chinese story that sixth-grade students in China learn in later generations.

It mainly reflects the ancient Chinese people's spirit of independent thinking and courage to explore objective truth.

However, many students do not understand the scientific principles behind this.

I’m afraid even some teachers can’t explain it clearly.

Of course, there are many smart students in China.

The knowledge reserves of primary school students in Haidian District may surpass those of some high school students.

It shouldn't be difficult to answer this question.

However, the basic science education that primary school students of this era can receive is far from comparable to that of later generations.

But now, Ridgevi is using it to test Chandrasekhar.

Even though the latter is very talented and comes from an intellectual family in India.

This is also a big challenge for him.

At this time, Chandrasekhar saw a globe on Ridgevi's desk.

he asked:
"Professor Bruce, can I use this globe to illustrate my point?"

Li Qiwei smiled and said:
"can."

Chandrasekhar stepped forward and said:
"First of all, it can be determined that the distance of the sun from us has nothing to do with its temperature or size."

"Because according to the solar system model, the difference in distance between the sun and the earth is negligible within a day."

"It felt cold in the morning because the sun didn't shine on the area where the children were the night before, which is the land of Huaxia."

"So, there is no heat accumulation here in China, the temperature is lower, and it feels colder."

"As the sun moves, by midday the ground has accumulated enough heat to raise the temperature and feel hotter."

“That’s the principle behind the second kid’s answer.”

"As for the first child's answer"

"I'm sorry, Professor Bruce, I don't know."

As soon as Chandrasekhar finished speaking, Raman's eyes lit up and his excitement was beyond words.

Although Chandrasekhar did not answer the question completely, it was already very rare that he was able to answer half of it correctly.

The other person is only 11 years old this year, and children of his age are still playing in the mud.

And he has already begun discussing scientific issues with Professor Bruce.

If this experience were to spread back to China, Chandrasekhar would definitely be treated as a child prodigy and would be placed with high hopes.

Li Qiwei was also surprised.

He didn't expect that Chandrasekhar would show such extraordinary talent at such a young age.

No wonder he was the first to combine physics and astronomy and create a whole new field of research.

He first said to Raman:
"Raman, you have a good nephew."

"Train him well, and he may surpass you in the future."

Raman quickly smiled and said:
"Professor Bruce, you flatter me."

“But it is certain that Chandrasekhar can surpass me.”

Ridgevi then said to Chandrasekhar:

“Chandrasekhar, you are amazing.”

"Your answer about hot and cold is correct."

"I will now tell you why the sun is bigger in the morning and smaller at noon."

Then, Li Qiwei said to the globe:
"Outside the earth, there is a thick atmosphere."

"And the closer you get to the Earth, the denser the atmosphere becomes."

"Combined with the curvature of the Earth itself, this makes the atmosphere act like a convex lens."

"In the morning, for the Chinese, the sunlight is oblique."

"The light forms a refraction angle with the atmospheric lens, so the image of the sun is magnified."

“It’s like looking at an ant through a magnifying glass.”

“But at noon, the sun becomes direct.”

"Without the refraction angle between the light and the atmospheric lens, the image of the sun cannot be magnified."

“That’s the first kid’s answer.”

After Chandrasekhar heard this, stars appeared in his eyes.

He suddenly felt that astronomy and physics were so amazing.

There are so many profound truths behind the phenomena that can be seen everywhere in life.

He said happily:

"Thank you, Professor Bruce. I have learned something new."

At this time, Li Qiwei said earnestly:

"But you have to remember that learning never stops."

“Sometimes, you think you understand something, but you don’t.”

"Just like my answer just now, when you grow up, you will have new questions."

"The refraction of light is just a general answer."

“There’s still a little bit of a problem in it.”

"This issue needs to be analyzed in more detail in combination with the Earth's rotation and even the effect of space-time curvature."

"So, you must always maintain a humble heart, understand?"

Chandrasekhar certainly had no idea what the curvature of space-time meant.

So he couldn't understand the profound meaning of Li Qiwei's words.

But he knew that Professor Bruce encouraged him to keep learning.

So, he nodded firmly.

"Professor Bruce, I will definitely remember your words."

However, Li Qiwei's words shocked Raman who was standing by.

what?
Isn't the refraction of light enough to explain it?

We even have to consider the curvature of space and time.

Professor Bruce is too strict.

Raman suddenly felt a sense of admiration.

He sighed silently in his heart:

"Professor Bruce is the purest physicist in the world."

"His attitude towards science is admired by everyone."

Then he felt extremely happy for Chandrasekhar's good fortune.

Professor Bruce actually personally guided this child.

What a rare opportunity!
Raman looked at his nephew's calmness and said with amusement:
"Little guy, you probably don't know what today's discussion means for your future."

Of course, Li Qiwei did it on purpose.

Based on Chandrasekhar's guidance of Yang Li in real history, he deserves a few more words.

Given his current status, Chandrasekhar was destined to never be ordinary again.

At the very least, he is a well-known university professor.

Otherwise, Professor Bruce would lose face, which would be a very serious matter.

Of course, there is a more important reason.

Li Qiwei said silently in his heart: Mr. Qian, I will seek justice for the oppression that Eddington has inflicted on you.

However, the Chandrasekhar limit is about to become the Bruce limit.

Raman thanked Li Qiwei again and said goodbye.

As he and Chandrasekhar walked out of the gate of the Quantum Research Institute, they ran into a middle-aged man.

He looked carefully and found that he actually recognized the other person.

"Hello, Professor Eddington."

“I am Raman from India.”

The person who came was Eddington.

He had come to discuss with Ridgway the first plenary session of the International Astronomical Union.

The conference will be held on February 2 next year in Rome, Italy.

It can be called the Bruce Conference of the astronomy world!
According to rumors that came from nowhere, there will be important results announced at this conference.

Almost all astronomers around the world are looking forward to witnessing this supreme conference in the field of astronomy.

As the Secretary General of the Executive Committee, Eddington was responsible for the specific arrangements for this meeting.

So, he came to the Quantum Research Institute to confirm the matter with Professor Bruce. After hearing Raman's greeting, Eddington was slightly stunned and stopped.

But soon, he remembered who the other person was.

Although Raman has a general reputation internationally, he is also a leader in the Indian scientific community.

Eddington was acquainted with some of the leading scientists who were members of the Commonwealth.

In addition, Raman also participated in the Bruce Conference, so he cannot be underestimated.

So, he was quite enthusiastic.

"Oh, it's Professor Raman."

"Sorry, I left in a hurry just now."

"Did you just come out of the Quantum Institute as well?"

Raman smiled and said:

"Yes."

"Mr. Tagore specifically asked me to say hello to Professor Bruce."

Eddington said:

“Are you going back to India now?”

Raman Road:
"No, I have to go to Oxford to attend the Commonwealth University Conference next."

Upon hearing this, Eddington clapped his hands.

"Oh, I had forgotten about that."

"I think I got an invitation too."

"Hey, I've been busy with the International Astronomical Union recently, and I'm exhausted."

"I'll be heading over as soon as I'm done meeting Professor Bruce."

Raman also knew that a crucial conference was coming up in astronomy.

The great debate of the century was widely reported and caused a huge sensation.

He smiled and said:
"Then I won't bother you anymore, Professor Eddington. Please go in quickly."

"I will ask you for advice when I get to Oxford."

Eddington said quickly, "You are so polite, Professor Raman."

Afterwards, the two parted ways.

Looking at Eddington's leaving back, Chandrasekhar always felt a special emotion.

“Uncle, is he famous?”

Raman touched his nephew's head and smiled:

"If you study astronomy in the future, you will understand how powerful he is."

Chandrasekhar asked innocently again:
"How about him compared to Professor Bruce?"

Raman was stunned, then burst out laughing.

"There is no one in this world who is more powerful than Professor Bruce."
-
Inside the office.

Eddington spoke for a full five minutes before he finished explaining the general arrangements for next year's conference.

Then he heard a piece of news that shocked him.

"Professor Bruce, why are you resigning as President of the International Astronomical Union?"

Li Qiwei said:
"Haha, I'm not a serious astronomer."

"I was just used as a shield by Director Dyson at the beginning."

“Now that the federation is on the right track, my role is done.”

"Next, my focus will be on the international alliance of scientists and physics."

Eddington nodded after hearing this.

Human energy is limited.

Especially for someone of Professor Bruce's stature, time is too precious.

The President of the International Astronomical Union is not an honorary position and requires dealing with many things.

It is impossible for Professor Bruce to spend all his time managing astronomy.

The boss has more important things to do.

However, Eddington still asked with concern:

"Professor Bruce, will you continue to study astronomy?"

This is much more important than being the president of the federation.

Professor Bruce's paper on nuclear fusion shocked the entire astronomical community, opened up a whole new field, and provided employment for countless people.

If the other party did not study astronomy, it would definitely be a misfortune for all astronomers.

And Eddington often comes here to ask for advice.

He was well prepared for this general meeting of the Federation and achieved great results.

He was inspired by nuclear fusion to explain the structure of stars, and after combining a large amount of observational data, he discovered a major result:
There is a regular relationship between the mass of a star and its luminosity.

The more massive a star is, the more light it can emit.

Based on this phenomenon, the mass of a star can be directly estimated by observing only its brightness.

This is very important in the field of astronomy.

Once we know the mass of a star, we can use the law of universal gravitation to calculate the movement of stars, the structure of galaxies, and so on.

Therefore, Eddington was full of confidence in this achievement, which would definitely enable him to shine again.

Instead of forever resting on the credit of proving the bending of starlight.

In addition, Eddington discovered a very strange phenomenon.

That is the size of stars in the universe, and it seems that there is a limit.

After looking at a large amount of observational data, he concluded that stars with a mass more than 10 times that of the sun are extremely rare.

This made him a little confused, and he always felt that there must be some deeper principle behind it.

But he couldn't figure out the answer himself.

He plans to raise this issue at this conference.

Soon, Eddington withdrew his thoughts and wanted to know what Professor Bruce was planning.

Li Qiwei smiled and said:

"of course."

"I just decided to resign as president of the federation. It will not affect my continued research in astronomy."

"And I have achieved new theoretical results this time."

"I want to compete with you professionals."

Wow!
Eddington was overjoyed when he heard this.

I can't wait to ask Professor Bruce to tell me what the results are.

"Is it another achievement on the same level as nuclear fusion?"

For a moment, Eddington suddenly felt his blood boiling.

He really wanted to compete his results with Professor Bruce.

The just concluded third Bruce Conference shocked everyone in the scientific community.

Professor Bruce successively proposed concepts such as "power", all of which were shocking and refreshed everyone's cognition.

And this time, the other party may replicate this miracle again at the conference of the Astronomical Union.

Let astronomy take another step forward!
Eddington could already imagine what kind of sensation that would cause.

“I’m really looking forward to it!”

Li Qiwei looked at Eddington's surprised expression and smiled slightly.

The timing of the first General Assembly of the Astronomical Union was very fortuitous.

The proton-neutron model and the Pauli-Bruce exclusion principle have been published.

Based on these two theories, the final outcome of the evolution of the stellar model can be deduced.

White dwarfs, neutron stars, black holes.

Three famous cosmic bodies are about to be released!
This is another major application of quantum theory and atomic science in the field of astronomy.

There is no doubt that Ridgwell will once again make a sensation in the entire astronomy community and even the physics community.

He will truly deduce the process of black hole formation from a theoretical perspective.

It is no longer just a mathematical solution in general relativity.

Li Qiwei smiled pretentiously.

“I’m looking forward to it, too.”

(End of this chapter)