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Niels Bohr, 1885-1962 Niels Bohr is often referred to as the second most important scientist of the 20th century after Albert Einstein. His work in physics developed greatly the knowledge we have on atomic structure and quantum mechanics. Atomic physics and quantum mechanics that changed the world Physics isn't something that most of the people know a lot about. It's actually quite a complicated science, sometimes very difficult to understand, but our daily life would not be the same without all the things we know about physics. Everytime that we switch on the lights at home or we send rockets to space we are using physics. Electricity, magnetism, atomic energy, cosmology... everything we know about them is because of physics. We all have heard the name of Albert Enstein and his Theory of Relativity. It is often said that, after Einstein, the most important physicist of the 20th century was Niels Bohr. Much of our atomic knowledge of today has been built over Bohr's research. The Danish physicist developed the theory that electrons orbit around the nucleus of the atom, and also set the foundations of Quantum Mechanics. Quantum Mechanics is, along with general relativity, one of the pillars of modern physics. Niels Bohr's contribution to physics was awarded in 1922 with the Nobel Prize. During his 77 years of life, he wrote some 115 scientific publications and was member of many academic societies and institutions all around the world. Besides his scientific research, he was also known for being an advocate for the peaceful use of nuclear energy. The life and work of Niels Bohr Niels Henrik David Bohr was born in Copenhagen in 1885, in a family of talented academics. His father Christian Bohr was a professor of Physiology at University of Copenhagen University, and Niels' younger brother, Harald, became a professor in Mathematics. Niels Bohr married in 1912 to Margrethe Nørlund, and one of their children, Aage Niels Bohr, became a famous physicist who won a Nobel prize in 1975, like his father. Young brothers Niels and Harald Bohr loved to play soccer. Harald made it eventually to the Danish national team and competed in the Olympics. Niels found more success in the field of science. After receiving his doctorate from Copenhagen University in 1911 he joined the famous physicist Ernest Rutherford (called the "father of nuclear physics"), and at the age of 27 he published his theory of the hydrogen atom, on which he introduced the idea of electrons traveling in orbits around the nucleus of the atom. In 1916 Bohr became a professor of physics at the University of Copenhagen, and in 1920 he was made director of the Institute of Theoretical Physics, which was created specially for his research. Two years later, in 1922, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics "for his services in the investigation of the structure of atoms and of the radiation emanating from them". Yet, Niels Bohr's scientific research had nothing but started. Based on Bohr's "Theory of Complementarity", in 1927 German physicist Werner Heisenberg and Niels Bohr formulated the "Copenhagen interpretation" of quantum mechanics, which is still considered today as the most widely-accepted specific interpretation of quantum mechanics. Because of his Jewish origins, Bohr had to scape out of Denmark during the Nazi occupation of the country in World War II. He travelled to Sweden, England, and the United States, where he got involved in the Atomic Energy Project. Niels Bohr believed in atomic physics for peaceful purposes and opposed the use of nuclear technology on nuclear weapons. He believed that atomic technology should be shared by all the international scientific community, and he addressed this concern on his "Open Letter to the United Nations" of 1950. His advocacy for the peaceful use of atomic technology gave him in 1957 the first U.S. Atoms for Peace award. Einstein and Bohr, two leading 20th century physicists After Albert Enstein, Niels Bohr is often considered as the second most important physicist of the 20th century. Both men were friends and liked to debate with each other about quantum theory. Einsten once wrote to Bohr, "I have learned much from you, mainly from your sensitive approach to scientific problems". However, the German creator of the Theory of Relativity did not agree on the Dane's view of Quantum Mechanics. As Einstein liked to mention God in quotes like "God does not play dice" or "God is not malicious", Niels Bohr went on to him and replied in a friendly manner: "Einstein, stop telling God what to do". Article submited in January 2006 by Claudia Graf
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