Who are the Greatest Physicists in this century?

[Schrodinger's Dog]

For the love of humanity use spellcheck.

You know I've just nowticed ther is a spell checker on this web site? I've been mowning about having no spell checker for a wile and not one person pointed this owt Plenty of people pointed out my crappy spealing thow

Modestly speaking I'd say I'm not going to be a big wheel in the physics world, might of left it too late, although of course in the world of milk I am set to be a cutting edge specialist and a guru, some might even say I'm a legend in my own lifetime

Whoever comes up with a practical working fusion engine will be big, if they can, or a quantum computer of sufficent aplication, or a hyper drive as was said. I'd settle for fusion for this century or antimatter drives, but then I'm easy, it's early days though.

 

[Bladibla]

That was the most obvious, easy-to-get sarcasm in the world. Honestly - superconductors? Transistors? Unimportant? I even included a little smiley icon with a "wink" feature.

Well, I have no humour in my life. Forgive me.

 

[J77]

She hasn't necessarily done great things as far as I'm aware, but one of my favourite scientists at the moment is Kathy Sykes, a British physicist. :!)

...but she's a professor of making science easier for the public

How's about Sir Michael Berry?

 

[shmoe]

The list also includes someone who was quite a good soccer player, although his mathematician brother was even better.

Any other famous(ish) physicists who played football at a high level? Any that made national teams?

I think the title of "Greatest Physicist" should be decided on the football pitch. Or maybe a boxing ring, who was the toughest physicist?

 

[Geographer]

...but she's a professor of making science easier for the public

How's about Sir Michael Berry?

She sure is

Berry's alright, too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Berry

 

[George Jones]

Or maybe a boxing ring, who was the toughest physicist?

Hubble was a good heavyweight boxer.

Regards,
George

 

[999]

Nikola Tesla is the greatest and will be so for the next 100 years at least.

Albert Einstein gave the world hot air and everybody knows him ?

 

[selfAdjoint]

Nikola Tesla is the greatest and will be so for the next 100 years at least.

Albert Einstein gave the world hot air and everybody knows him ?

Tesla was a good engineer, and a great showman, but nothing as a physicist. Einsteins's discoveries are in use every day, for example in the GPS gadgets we use now to track our locations, and his relativity theories continue to be the foundation of all kinds of physics. 999, attitude does not make up for lack of information.

 

[Manchot]

Einsteins's discoveries are in use every day, for example in the GPS gadgets we use now to track our locations, and his relativity theories continue to be the foundation of all kinds of physics.

I'd say that at this point in time, the transistor is used more than relativity. :) Seriously though, John Bardeen was awesome. His two Nobel prizes cover both experimental work (the transistor) and theoretical work (BCS theory). It just goes to show how varied his talents were.

 

[Gokul43201]

Tesla was a good engineer, and a great showman, but nothing as a physicist. Einsteins's discoveries are in use every day, for example in the GPS gadgets we use now to track our locations, and his relativity theories continue to be the foundation of all kinds of physics. ...

...to say nothing about his contributions to condensed matter physics - from an estimate of the Avogadro/Loschmidt Number to the laser equations, the phonon spectrum and heat capacity of insulators, the diffusion relations and mobilities of charge carriers in semiconductors, the statistics and condensation of bosons, and the photoelectric effect in metals, to name but a few.

 

[wolram]

I am sure Zapper will go down in history as the anti mickey mouse.

 

[Lisa!]

Ettore Majorana:!)

What happened to him?

 

[Gokul43201]

Ettore Majorana:!)

What happened to him?

It is said that he passed clean through the earth, and was lost from the other side, undetected!

PS: Serious though, I have no idea. All I know is that he disappeared shortly before the war, and if anything is known about his later whereabouts, I'm unaware of that.

 

[Chi Meson]

Nikola Tesla is the greatest and will be so for the next 100 years at least.

Albert Einstein gave the world hot air and everybody knows him ?

Trolling trolling trolling...

 

[Kurdt]

I don't think we could chose the greatest based on the last 6 years but I'd like to contribute the guy that I admire most and look up to as it were and that is Roger Penrose. He is the dude

 

[selfAdjoint]

Ettore Majorana:!)

What happened to him?

Check out this paper on the arxiv.

http://arxiv.org/PS_cache/physics/pdf/0605/0605001.pdf

Cool or crazy? We report; you decide.

 

[selfAdjoint]

My definition of physics for me is about controlling the ability to do work

for the benefit of mankind. If you think Einstein was so great ask yourself

what he gave to you that is more important than AC electricity, radio,

remote control, loosely based Telsa car soon to be released (Nikola's

car was better) http://www.teslamotors.com

Einstein is DEAD ... Tesla could not believe in his time how gullible

people were to follw this idiot and he was right.

He HELPED work out the problems of AC supply, he was not the originator of the idea. He DID NOT give us radio, and his work on remote control was not the source of our modern remote control. As for the magic Tesla car, I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[Chi Meson]

I heard that Tesla also invented cheese.

 

[humanino]

Check out this paper on the arxiv.

http://arxiv.org/PS_cache/physics/pdf/0605/0605001.pdf

It can't be serious, right ?
Well, it gave me a good laugh in any case

 

[.ultimate]

ZapperZ <- Great Person.

 

[Chaos' lil bro Order]

No, because that criteria on what is "best" is vague. Just like the thread on General Physics on the question "Is energy and matter the SAME thing", what criteria does one use in such a thing? Impact? Number of Nobel Prizes? Number of citations? What?

I don't play this "best" game, because it is (i)subjective (ii)meaningless, and (iii) demeaning to others in the field who are making important contributions but the work does not have the "sexyness" to garner front-page news in popular media. Next time your loved ones require an MRI to diagnose an important disease, would you then consider those who have pioneered and made advances in MRI and NMR as the important and "best" physicists?

I have no interest in trumpeting those household names. I will, however, point out the many men and women who have made terrific and significant contributions to the field of physics that have been glaringly overlooked.

Zz.

Don't worrry Zapper, you will get your prize one day. We haven't overlooked you.

 

[neurocomp2003]

anyone mention any computational (astro)phys people?