World's Top 10 Physicists Of All Time

Physics is one of the oldest branches of science. Nature research is one of the earliest human endeavors, but what is now referred to as physics was born in the post-scientific revolution of the 18th century when it became a scientific method. The common name was natural philosophy, which cannot be called science.

Although physicists have been trying to understand nature for the last 400 years, there are still many problems in nature that have not been properly explained. The resulting physics is still an active discipline; Thousands of researchers around the world are engaged in the study of physics. 

The amount and scope of research in physics today are much greater than at any time in the past. Modern theories of physics have not only given a deeper description of nature but have made its unique and mysterious forms clearer to us.

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Undoubtedly, physicists have been contributing and have contributed to the surge of the development of Science and Inventions. But, there are always some such physicists who have put their efforts the most and given us numerous things to go on developing our daily life with the help of physics, and, eventually Science itself.

World's Top 10 Physicists of All Time
World's Top 10 Physicists of All Time


We've made a list of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time, to get a basic list of "Top 10 Physicists of All Time" and to know their stories.

List Of World's Top 10 Physicists


1. Isaac Newton

Sir Isaac Newton is an eminent English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, and alchemist. According to many, Newton is the greatest and most influential scientist of all time. In 1687 AD, his world-famous book Philosophia Naturalis Principia Mathematica was published in which he elaborated on the three laws of universal gravitation and motion. These formulas and basic principles have served as the basis for classical mechanics, and the classical mechanics that emerged from his research have dominated the world of scientific thought over the next three centuries. He was the first to show that the earth and all the objects in the universe are governed by the same natural laws. He was able to give a clear explanation by combining his own theory of gravitation with Kepler's law of planetary motion. As a result of his research, even the slightest doubt behind the idea of ​​a solar-centric world was dispelled and the scientific revolution was accelerated.

Isaac Newton
Isaac Newton

Newton laid the foundations of mechanics. He constructed this foundation through the preservation formula of linear and angular momentum. In the case of optics, it is actually a reflection telescope made by his hand. At the same time, he put forward a theory on the color of light which he confirmed through observation. The observation was on the scattering of light passing through a triangular prism through which the visible spectrum was created. He also conducted research on the speed of sound and the cooling process from which Newton's cooling formula came.

In the world of mathematics, Newton's pair is fair. Newton and Gottfried Leibniz jointly founded a new branch of mathematics called calculus. This new branch has played a major role in revolutionizing the world of modern physics. Newton also demonstrated the generalized binomial theorem, invented the so-called Newtonian method of appearing the zeros of a function, and played a special role in the study of power series.

In 2005, the Royal Society held a referendum on who had the most influence in the history of science. The results of the vote show that Newton is more influential than Einstein.

2. Niels Bohr

Niels Henrik David Bohr is one of the proponents of the modern theory of atomic structure and a famous physicist. This Danish physicist was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1922. Bohr's atomic model is still famous in the history of chemistry. He contributed primarily to the molecular structure of matter and to quantum mechanics for which he received the Nobel Prize. He compared the atomic model to a planet orbiting the Sun, where the nucleus is located at the center of the atom and the electrons revolving around the nucleus.

Niels Bohr
Niels Bohr


In 1912, he married a woman named Margaret Norland. One of their children was Au Niels Bohr. He is also known as an important physicist. He was also awarded the Nobel Prize in 1975.

He has worked on a project of physicists known as the Manhattan Project. Also, worked closely with the famous physicist Albert Einstein. He is considered one of the most important physicists of the twentieth century.

Bohr was born on October 8, 185, in Copenhagen, Denmark. Her father, Christian Bohr, was a professor of physics at the University of Copenhagen, and her mother, Ellen Adler Bohr, was the daughter of a wealthy Danish Jewish family of banking and parliamentary affiliation. Nelles is the second of his parents' three children. Her older sister Jenny and younger brother Harold. Jenny later taught, and Harold was a mathematician and footballer who played for the Danish national team at the 1906 Summer Olympics in London. Niels was also a footballer. The two brothers played a few matches for the Copenhagen-based Academics Baldclub, where Niels was the goalkeeper.


Bohr enrolled and studied at Gamelhome Latin School at the age of seven. In 1903, Bohr graduated from the University of Copenhagen. His subject of study was physics. He studied the subject under Professor Christian Christianen, as he was the only physics teacher at the university at the time. He studied astronomy under Thorvald Thaler and psychology under Professor Harold Huffing, a friend of his father.

3. Albert Einstein 

Albert Einstein is a German-born Nobel Prize-winning physicist. He is best known for his discovery of the theory of relativity and especially the law of mass-energy equivalence. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921. He was cited for his contributions to theoretical physics, especially for his research on photoelectricity.

Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein

Einstein did a lot of research in various fields of physics and contributed a lot to new inventions and discoveries. The most famous special theory of relativity integrated mechanics and electromagnetism and the general theory of relativity established a new theory of gravitation by applying the theory of relativity to unequal motion. His other contributions include the cosmology of relativity, capillary action, chronological perceptual chromaticity, the classical problems of statistical mechanics and their application to quantum theory, an explanation of the Brownian motion of the molecule, the probability of molecular rotation Photon formed the basis of the theory), a theory of radiation that also included the subject of stimulated emission, the first conception of integrated field theory and the geometry of physics.

Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany in 1933, when he was a professor at the Berlin Academy of Sciences. Being Jewish, Einstein emigrated to the United States at that time and never returned to Germany. He settled in the United States and became a US citizen in 1940. He wrote a letter to US President Franklin D. Roosevelt before the outbreak of World War II. In the letter, he warned that Germany could "make a different kind of impossibly powerful bomb" and urged the United States to launch a similar study. It was through this letter that the work on the Manhattan Project began. Einstein supported the Allies but opposed the use of the atomic bomb. Russell-Einstein later co-authored the Manifesto with the British philosopher Bertrand Russell, outlining the dangers of the atomic bomb. Until his death in 1955, he was associated with Princeton University's Institute of Advanced Study.


Einstein's research work is contained in more than 50 scientific papers and some non-scientific books. In 1999, Time magazine named Einstein "the man of the century." Also known by a vote of famous physicists, he is recognized by almost everyone as the best physicist of all time. The word "Einstein" is now used to refer to someone or something who is gifted and intelligent in general culture and in everyday use. That is, it is synonymous with merit.

4. James Clark Maxwell 

James Clark Maxwell is a Scottish physicist who is remembered for his discovery of electromagnetic theory. Despite being a nineteenth-century scientist, no one but Maxwell had such an impact on twentieth-century science. That is why his name was coined with Newton and Einstein in judging the originality of the discovery. In 1931, the centenary of Maxwell's birth was celebrated. At the time, Einstein said that Maxwell was the most successful and influential physicist since Newton.

The biggest aspect of Maxwell's discoveries was that almost all of them served as the basis for major scientific discoveries in the twentieth century. Maxwell formulated his field equations based on the properties that Michael Faraday made by observing electrical and magnetic force lines. These equations served as the basis for Einstein's special theory of relativity. In this way, the equivalent of mass energy was established from Faraday to Maxwell to Einstein.

James Clerk Maxwell
James Clerk Maxwell


Maxwell's doctrine and theory paved the way for the discovery of quantum theory. His explanation of electromagnetic radiation gave rise to unsatisfactory sources of heat radiation which accelerated the arrival of Max Planck's quantum project. Thus at some point, we realize that heat radiation occurs in clusters that are called quanta. The concept of interaction between electromagnetic radiation and matter, a key part of Planck's project, facilitated the discovery of atoms and molecular structures.

In 1839 his mother died of stomach cancer. Maxwell himself was diagnosed with cancer at this age. He thought Maxwell understood everything too late. At that age, of course, it was understood that he had a strong enthusiasm and a strong memory. Aunt Jane Kay brought him to Edinburgh in 1841 and admitted him to the Edinburgh Academy. He studied at the academy with his biographer Lewis Campbell and friend Peter Guthrie Tait.

He was more interested in outside of the textbook. He didn't care much about test results. He published his first research paper when he was only 14 years old. In this research paper, he described a generalized series of spherical curves, which can be made using pins and threads using examples of ellipses. His love for geometry and mechanical design persisted throughout his life. This love has been very useful in the research of adult Maxwell.

5. Michael Faraday

Michael Faraday was an English chemist and physicist. He has made important contributions to electromagnetic theory and electrochemistry. He established that magnetism affects light and that there is an underlying relationship between these two direct phenomena. The main subjects of his discovery are electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism, electrolysis.

Michael Faraday
Michael Faraday 


Thinking about the financial situation of the family, he took a job in a bookstore. From there, his job was to go to people's houses and sell various newspapers. After working for a year, he was given the task of binding books so that the hardship would be lessened. There are more opportunities to fall into this job gap. Science books attract him more.


Within a few days, he set up a small laboratory for scientific research in his home. He used to save a lot of money and buy a couple of things for research. Again, he would pick up many things from the garbage and make them himself. One day, suddenly, at the age of 21, he had the opportunity to work with Sir Humphrey Davy. Humphrey gave him the job of washing laboratory bottles. In his spare time, he watched Humphrey's research.

Faraday's research can be divided into three main parts. He first studied chemistry. Gradually he became interested in research on magnetic energy. He mainly researched the relationship between electric and magnetic energy and how mechanical energy can be obtained with the help of electric energy and achieved a lot in this work. At this time the scientist Walston was researching the same subject. He accused Faraday of stealing the contents of his research. Although the allegations proved to be false, Faraday distanced himself from power research. He then researched various aspects of chemistry.


After a long seven years, he returned in 1831 to study electromagnetism. Finally, within a few days, he prepared the dynamo. He named this machine Masono Electric Machine. Then in 1841, he discovered his groundbreaking theory of the effect of magnets on light. Based on this discovery, James Clark Maxwell wrote his famous electromagnetic equation. The power we now enjoy is the brainchild of Michael Faraday. He always said:

The most important thing in life is to accept everything equally, and to move forward steadily for yourself. 
Albert Einstein's study room had pictures of Isaac Newton and James Clark Maxwell, as well as Michael Faraday. Reminiscing about Faraday, physicist Ernest Rutherford said:

If we imagine the enormity and scope of Faraday's discovery, as well as his influence on science and industry, it is clear that he was one of the greatest inventors of all time.

 

6. Marie Curie

Marie Curie is the first female scientist to win the Nobel Prize. This Polish and French scientist received the Nobel Prize in 1903 jointly with her husband Pierre Curie and the discoverer of radioactivity Henri Becquerel for his research on radioactivity. She was the first female scientist to win the Nobel Prize twice in two different branches of science. She was also the first female professor at the University of Paris and all three were the first women to be buried in the Pantheon in 1995 due to their outstanding merit.

Marie Curie
Marie Curie


Marie Curie was born on November 6, 18 in Warsaw, Poland, which was then part of the Russian Empire. Marie Curie studied at the secret floating university in Warsaw and began her practical scientific training in Warsaw. In 1891, at the age of 24, she followed her older sister Bronislava to study in Paris. It was there that she conducted her next scientific work. In 1903, Marie Curie won the Nobel Prize in Physics with her husband Pierre Curie and the physicist Henry Becquerel. She also won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1911 alone.

She received the Nobel Prize in Physics for her work on radioactivity. And get the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for separating radium from pitchblende.

During World War I, hospitals had a shortage of X-ray equipment. She went on to raise funds to pay for the proper X-rays of war-wounded patients. During this time she set up 220 radiology stations with sick bodies. Of these, 200 were stationary, and 20 were mobile. These she made by borrowing cars from various rich women. She herself helped with X-rays at various stations, and about one million war wounded were X-rayed at these dyeing institutes she had built during the war.

She worked at another radium institute, including her own radium institute in Warsaw, the capital of Poland. She received the Nobel Prize jointly with her daughter, Erin, and her husband, Frederick Juliet, for his research on radium at the Radium Institute.

Even as a citizen of France, Marie Sklodowska Curie (she wrote both of her surnames) never forgot her Polish identity. She taught her daughters Polish and took them to Poland. She named the first element she discovered, Polonium, after her homeland. Marie Curie died in a sanatorium in Sanchelame, France (Haute-Savior) in 1934 due to aplastic anemia caused by radioactivity during research, carrying a test tube full of radium in her shirt pocket and working on a mobile X-ray unit she built during World War I.

In 1895, Wilhelm discovered X-rays. However, the reason for this was still unknown. In 1896, Henry Becquerel discovered that uranium salts emit a kind of ray whose ability to penetrate anything is equivalent to that of X-rays. He showed that these rays are not like phosphorescence, they emit spontaneously without the help of any external energy. Influenced by these two discoveries, Marie Curie began research on uranium rays.

She invented a new method for testing samples. Fifteen years before the incident, her husband and brother-in-law built an advanced electrometer that could measure electrical charges. Using that device, Marie discovered that uranium rays travel through the air in the vicinity of a sample. She hypothesized that radioactive radiation is not the cause of the collision of multiple particles but of the atom itself. Molecules disappear according to ancient ideas; Her hypothesis was important in proving this idea wrong.

Curie began teaching at the Ecole Normal Superior to raise income. Curie had no laboratory of its own; Most of their research was done in one place at the School of Physics and Chemistry. It was the dissection room of the medical school, there was not enough light and air and there was no waterproofing. Although she did not receive any financial support for her schooling, she was assisted by various metallurgical and mining organizations, as well as government and non-government organizations. And Chalcolite was twice as active. She concluded that if her first idea of ​​measuring activity based on the amount of uranium was correct, the two minerals contained small amounts of a substance whose activity was higher than that of uranium. There is religion. Pierre became so interested in Marie's work that in mid-1898 he left research on crystal and began helping Marie's research.

Read More: Top Female Psychologists

The research intellect writes Reid was her own; No one helped her do it, and although she sought her husband's opinion on the matter, she clearly established her own ownership. She later mentioned her husband in her autobiography and made it clear twice that there was no doubt about it. From this, it is understood that she realized at the beginning of her career that ... it would be hard for many scientists to believe that a woman is really capable of doing the things she was engaged in.

7. Richard Feynman

Richard Phillips Feynman is a Nobel Prize-winning American physicist who explains his quantum mechanics path integral formulations, quantum electro-kinetics theory, and the ultra-fluorescence mechanism of superheated liquid helium and works in particle physics. In recognition of his contributions to quantum electrodynamics, Feynman won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1985, jointly with the American scientist Julian Schweiger and the Japanese scientist Sean-Itiro Tomonagar. 

Richard Feynman
Richard Feynman 


Feynman provides a widely used diagram of the mathematical expression that controls the behavior of ultra-atomic particles, known as the Feynman diagram. Feynman is considered one of the most popular and famous scientists in the world, both in life and after death.

Feynman studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Princeton University. After earning his Ph.D. in 1942, he helped build the atomic bomb in Los Alamos, New Mexico, along with many other young physicists. At the end of the war, he first taught at Cornell University and later at Caltech. He is said to be the father of quantum computing and the concept of nanotechnology.

Feynman has worked to popularize physics through his various books and lectures, most notably his 1959 lecture on nanotechnology, Their Planet of The Room at the Bottom, and The Feynman Lectures on Physics. Feynman in his semi-autobiographical book Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! And he is also famous for What Do You Care What Ginger People Think? He was a prankster, juggler, safe maker, hobby painter, and musician. He was a good thinker. In addition to physics, he was interested in biology, painting, Mayan script, and safecracking.

Feynman had a keen interest in biology; He was friends with the geneticist and microbiologist Esther Lederberg, who discovered the replica plating and bacteriophage lambda. He had friendships with several scientists who began their careers in nuclear physics but became interested in genetics for moral reasons — Leo Gillard, Guido Pontekravo, Aaron Rovic, and Carl Sagan.

8. Ernest Rutherford 

Ernest Rutherford, Nelson's first Baron Rutherford, OM, PC, FRS, a New Zealand nuclear physicist. He is known as the "father" of nuclear physics. He discovered the Rutherford scattering from the nucleus of evidence in his famous goldsmith experiment, which later helped build Bohr's atomic model.

Becquerel discovered around 1896 that uranium emitted unknown radiation, "uranic radiation." Rutherford published in 1899 an essential document, in which he studied the way that these radiations could have ionized the air, placing the uranium between two charged plates and measuring the current that passed.

Ernest Rutherford
Ernest Rutherford


He thus studied the penetration power of radiation, covering his uranium samples with metal sheets of different thicknesses. He found that ionization started to decrease rapidly as the thickness of the sheets increased, but above a certain thickness, it decreased more weakly. For this reason, he deduced that uranium emitted two different radiations since they had different penetrating power. He called the less penetrating radiation alpha radiation, and the more penetrating radiation (and which necessarily produced less ionization since it passed through the air) beta radiation.

In 1900, Rutherford married Mary Newton. Their only daughter, Eileen, was born from this marriage in 1901.

Around this time, Rutherford studied thorium and realized, using the same device as for uranium, that opening a door in the laboratory greatly disrupts the experiment, as if the movements of the air could alter the experiment. You will soon come to the conclusion that thorium gives off an emanation, also radioactive, since when you breathe in the air that surrounds thorium, you realize that this air transmits the current easily, even at a great distance from thorium.

Also, note that thorium fumes only remain radioactive for about ten minutes and that they are neutral particles. Its radioactivity is not altered by any chemical reaction, nor by changes in conditions (temperature, electric field). He also realizes that the radioactivity of these particles decreases exponentially, since the current that passes between the electrodes also decreases, and thus discovers the period of the radioactive elements in 1900. With the help of a Montreal chemist, Frederick Soddy arrives in 1902 to the conclusion that the thorium emanations are indeed radioactive atoms, but without being thorium, and that the radioactivity is accompanied by a disintegration of the elements.

This discovery caused a great stir among chemists, very convinced of the principle of the indestructibility of matter. Much of the science of the time was based on this concept. Therefore, this discovery represents a real revolution. However, the quality of Rutherford's work left no room for doubt. It took Pierre Curie himself two years to admit this idea, even though he had already found with Marie Curie that radioactivity caused a loss of mass in the samples. Pierre Curie believed that they lost weight without changing their nature.

Rutherford's research was recognized in 1903 by the Royal Society, which awarded him the Rumford Medal in 1904. He summarized the results of his research in a book entitled Radioactivity in 1904, in which he explained that radioactivity was not influenced by conditions. external pressure, and temperature, nor by chemical reactions, but which involved an emission of heat greater than that of a chemical reaction. He also explained that new elements with different chemical characteristics were produced, while radioactive elements disappeared.

Together with Frederick Soddy, he calculated that the emission of thermal energy due to nuclear decay was between 20,000 and 100,000 times greater than that produced by a chemical reaction. He also hypothesized that such energy could explain the energy released by the sun. They believed that if the earth maintains a constant temperature (as far as its core is concerned), it is undoubtedly due to the disintegration reactions that take place within it. This idea of ​​great potential energy stored in atoms will find a confirmatory principle a year later when Albert Einstein discovers the equivalence between mass and energy. After these works, Otto Hahn, the discoverer of nuclear fission together with Fritz Strassmann and Lise Meitner, will go to study with Rutherford at McGill for a few months.

Through numerous studies with radioactive elements, he observed that they emit two types of radiation. The first type of radiation, which you call alpha rays, is highly energetic but has a short range and is absorbed by the environment quickly. The second type of radiation is highly penetrating and of a much greater range, which you call beta rays. Using electric and magnetic fields, he analyzes these rays and deduces their speed, the sign of their charge, and the relationship between charge and mass. He also finds a third type of very energetic radiation, which he will call gamma rays.

9. Galileo Galilei

Galileo Galilei is an Italian physicist, astronomer, mathematician, and philosopher who is deeply involved in the scientific revolution. His most notable contributions include the development of the telescope, which played a major role in the advancement of astronomy, the many different types of astronomical observations, Newton's first and second laws of motion, and a very important observation for Copernicus's theory.

According to scientist Stephen Hawking, no one has been able to contribute more than Galileo to such a huge advancement in the natural sciences in the modern age. He has been called the father of modern astronomy, the father of modern physics, and even the father of modern science. Galileo's discoveries have played a major role in the demise of the Aristotelian concept.

Galileo Galilei
Galileo Galilei


Galileo played a pioneering role in the founding of quantitative measurement in the world of science. The results of his measurements were mathematically accurate. At the same time, William Gilbert made several quantitative studies on magnetism and electricity. Galileo's father, Vincenzo Galilei, performed some experiments that led to the first known nonlinear relationship in the world of physics. By performing this experiment on a tuner, he proved that, for drawn wire, the pitch is proportional to the square root of the pull.

In 1609, Galileo independently developed and successfully developed advanced telescopes and applied them to astronomy. Earlier, in 1606, the Dutch spectacle maker Lippersheim published a telescope he had made, and in the same year, the word of this strange glass device reached Galileo. At the time, he wrote in one of his essays:
About 10 months ago, news reached me that a Dutch spectacle maker had invented a device that could see distant objects as clearly as near objects. As soon as I got this news, I started thinking about how I could build such a device myself.
Soon after, Galileo improved telescopes by enlarging telescopes at least 30 times.

The results of the first observations made by astronomers with the help of telescopes were recorded in the book 'Sirius Nancyus' or 'News from the Stars' (published in 1810). This book deals with the surface of the moon, many small and big spots, etc. Galileo thinks that the surface of the moon, like the surface of the moon, is made up of mountains, hills, valleys, rivers, caves, reservoirs, etc. Seeing the large black spots on the telescope, he thought they were a sea, but later this idea was proved wrong.

The existence of innumerable stars invisible to the naked eye is captured by telescopes. At that time, only 6 stars could be seen in the constellation Krittika with the naked eye; But Galileo observed 36 stars with his telescope. Observing the Milky Way galaxy at that time shows that it is actually a collection of innumerable stars. With the help of a telescope, he also discovered some odd stars and some nebulae.

The discovery of Jupiter's satellite is one of the most important of Galileo's early discoveries with the help of telescopes. He observed Jupiter for several consecutive nights and found four satellites of Jupiter. The discovery of Jupiter's satellites proves that "astronomers, such as planets and stars, revolve around the Earth alone", a theory of ancient astronomers is not true.

In September or October 1610, Galileo first observed some black spots on the sun. But he did not disclose this discovery until May 1612. Meanwhile, Thomas Harriet, a scientist from England, John Fabricius from Holland, and Shiner from Germany independently observed solar eclipses, and their discovery was published before Galileo. That is why Harriet, Fabricius, Shiner, and Galileo all have partial credit for the discovery of the sunspot.

10. Paul Dirac

Paul Adrian Morris Dirac, OM, FRS was a Nobel Prize-winning British theoretical physicist who was one of the founders of quantum electrodynamics and quantum physics. He was a Lucasian professor of mathematics at Cambridge University for 36 long years, from 1932 to 1969. One of his most important discoveries was the Dirac equation. This equation not only explains the behavior of fermions but is also the first to predict the existence of antimatter. Derdac won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1933, along with Erwin Schrodinger, for his innovative and fruitful discovery of the atomic theory.

Paul Dirac
Paul Dirac


Dirac described his childhood as unhappy, due to his father's severity and authoritarianism. A recent biography has qualified that character, referring to Paul's own difficult and taciturn character.

He studied at Bishop Primary School and Merchant Venturers Technical College, an institution of the University of Bristol, which emphasized modern sciences (something unusual at the time, and to which Dirac would always be grateful).

He graduated in electrical engineering from the University of Bristol in 1921. After working for a short time as an engineer, Dirac decided that his true calling was mathematics. He completed another career in mathematics in Bristol in 1923 and was then admitted to the University of Cambridge, where he would develop most of his career. He began to be interested in the theory of relativity although Cunningham, a Cambridge specialist in that field, did not accept him as a student and then he worked under the supervision of Ralph Fowler who was working in the nascent field of quantum physics.

Dirac was known among his colleagues for his precise, at the same time taciturn nature. When Niels Bohr complained that he did not know how to finish a certain sentence in a scientific article, Dirac replied: "I was taught in school that you should never start a sentence without knowing the end of it." Anecdotes about his tendency to silence became famous, and a unit, the Dirac, was coined for the minimum unit of words that could be said in conversation. A recent biography The Strangest Man by Graham Farmelo has suggested that he had Asperger Syndrome, as his language was very literal and he did not speak much to people.

His social relationship difficulties, his lack of empathy, and his lack of interest in women were also known. Despite the latter, in 1937 he married the sister of the also physicist Eugene Paul Wigner, Margit Wigner (familiarly known as Manci), with whom he had two daughters, as well as two other children that Manci contributed from a previous marriage, who they adopted the Dirac surname, and those he always considered his own.

Dirac was also known for his modesty. He called the equation for the time evolution of a quantum-mechanical operator the "Heisenberg equation of motion" when he was the first to write it. To refer to the Fermi-Dirac statistic he always insisted on saying the Fermi statistic.

When asked about poetry once, he replied: “In science, you try to tell people, in a way that everyone can understand, something that no one ever knew before. Poetry is the exact opposite.

When he visited the Soviet Union, he was invited to a conference on the philosophy of physics. He simply stood up and wrote on the board: "Physical laws must have the simplicity and beauty of mathematics." This concept of mathematical beauty, even before experimental proof, guided practically his entire scientific career. Due to his frequent trips to the Soviet Union, he was prevented from entering the United States for some time.

Dirac was a recognized atheist. After speaking with Dirac, Pauli said in his chronicles: 

If I understand Dirac correctly, he says: there is no God, and Dirac is his prophet.

Dirac, although for several years he showed himself as an atheist, with the time in 1963 he declared for a Scientific American article that he considers God as a great mathematician who used advanced science to create the universe. At a conference in 1971, he was skeptical that life happened by chance, saying that "God must be assumed to exist" concerning the laws of quantum physics.

He maintained political positions relatively heeled to the left, although not militant. He often visited the Soviet Union and maintained a close friendship with the Soviet physicist Pyotr Kapitsa. Although he participated in the theoretical development of nuclear energy and in engineering developments for the enrichment of uranium, during World War II he remained practically on the fringes of research for the development of nuclear weapons.

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