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Original Essays | April 29, 2013
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A Force of Nature: The Frontier Genius of Ernest Rutherford (Great Discoveries)by Richard Reeves
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:A new intellectual biography of Ernest Rutherford, the twentieth century's greatest experimental physicist. Ernest Rutherford, who grew up in colonial New Zealand and came to Cambridge on a scholarship, made numerous revolutionary discoveries, among them the orbital structure of the atom and the concept of the half-life of radioactive materials, which led to a massive reevaluation of the age of the earth, previously judged just 100 million years old. Above all, perhaps, Rutherford and the young men working under him were the first to split the atom, unlocking tremendous forces; forces, as Rutherford himself predicted, that would bring us the atomic bomb. Rutherford, awarded a Nobel Prize and made Baron Rutherford by the queen of England, was also a great ambassador of science, coming to the aid of colleagues caught in the Nazi and Soviet regimes. Under Rutherford's rigorous and boisterous direction, a whole new generation of remarkable physicists emerged. In Richard Reeves's hands, Rutherford leaps off the page, a ruddy, genial man and a towering figure in scientific history. Review:"In the latest installment of Norton's Great Discoveries science-history series, historian Reeves re-introduces Ernest Rutherford, one of the founding geniuses of nuclear physics. Although less well known today, Rutherford was as famous in his lifetime as Einstein became, and his work is equally important to atomic and particle physics. He and his students performed the experiments which resulted in the discovery of the nucleus and structure of the atom, and he counted Niels Bohr as one of his students. Born on the remote New Zealand frontier, Ernest's brilliance showed early, and scholarships led him to study with J. J. Thomson at the Cavendish Laboratory at Cambridge University. He changed his focus from electromagnetism to the more mysterious field of radioactivity and, through a combination of brilliant insight and indefatigable effort, made fundamental discoveries that earned him a Nobel Prize in 1908 and a powerful influence over nuclear physics until his death in 1937. While short, this biography does an outstanding job of capturing the excitement and almost breathless pace of physics research in the 20th century's first four decades; for those who want to read more, Reeves provides ample endnotes for each chapter." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
Synopsis:A new intellectual biography of Ernest Rutherford, the twentieth century's greatest experimental physicist.
Synopsis:"Starred Review. Reeves deploys his considerable writing skill in portraying Rutherford's personality ... capturing the full aspect of the man."'"Booklist
Synopsis:Ernest Rutherford, who grew up in colonial NewZealand and came to Cambridge on a scholarship,made numerous revolutionary discoveries, amongthem the orbital structure of the atom and theconcept of the half-life of radioactivematerials, which led to a massive reevaluationof the age of the earth-previously judged just100 million years old. Above all, perhaps,Rutherford and the young men working under himwere the first to split the atom, unlockingtremendous forces-forces, as Rutherford himselfpredicted, that would bring us the atomicbomb.Rutherford, awarded a Nobel Prize andmade Baron Rutherford by the queen of England,was also a great ambassador of science, comingto the aid of colleagues caught in the Nazi andSoviet regimes. Under Rutherford's rigorous andboisterous direction, a whole new generation ofremarkable physicists emerged. In Richard Re'shands, Rutherford leaps off the page, a ruddy,genial man and a towering figure in scientifichistory.
About the AuthorRichard Reeves, an award-winning historian and columnist, is the author of many books, including President Reagan: The Triumph of Imagination. He is a senior lecturer at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California. He splits his time between New York City and Santa Monica, California.
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