A Man of Science and Engineering in Troubled Times Wandering in the Late Qing Dynasty

Chapter 366

Knowing that Li Yu was going to release something new, Lord Kelvin immediately asked excitedly, "What do you want to do?"

Li Yu said: "It's hot right now, about radioactivity and rays."

Lord Kelvin said happily: "Very good topic! I remember receiving your first paper, which was about X-rays."

Li Yu said: "What I want to do this time is more complicated. It is a big subject that combines experiments with theory. Mr. Lord, President Huggins, you must have heard the term 'earth rays'?"

Li Yu knew about it from reading the current articles when he was on the boat—certainly not because he wanted to learn something, but simply to see how far the current science has progressed.

Lord Kelvin is an all-rounder in physics, so he naturally knows this hot topic: "I heard that two years ago, Rutherford wrote an article at McHill University in Canada, dividing the rays of radioactive elements into three categories: α, β, and γ. He also discovered that in addition to radium, polonium, and uranium, various rocks and soils are also radioactive, that is, earth rays."

Li Yu said mysteriously: "If I tell you, they should not be called earth rays, but come from the universe. A more accurate name is cosmic rays?"

President Huggins is a professional in astronomy, and immediately said: "Impossible! With such a thick atmosphere on the surface, it will definitely absorb all the rays!"

Li Yu said: "The chairman's worry is well-founded, but what if the intensity of this kind of radiation is unprecedentedly high? It's so big that it can easily pass through the atmosphere."

President Huggins was at a loss for words for a while: "But how to prove that they come from the universe?"

Li Yu said: "Therefore, effective experiments are needed to prove this."

In fact, Lord Kelvin didn't quite believe it, because the idea was too far-fetched, so he said, "If this is the case, I think the Holy See must be very excited, because there is something that science can't explain. You don't want to accept the inexplicable post of academician of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in the Holy See, and you deliberately conduct such an experiment?"

Li Yu smiled and said, "My lord, don't worry too much, you are not afraid of other dark clouds, are you?"

Lord Kelvin paused, and said: "I'm definitely not afraid, I'm even looking forward to it. If it's dark clouds, hurry up and let me experience the thunderstorm!"

President Huggins said: "If you want to do experiments, you must go to Cambridge University and use the Cavendish Laboratory. For the sake of the lord, and to apply for a Ph.D. in Cambridge, they will definitely let you use it. Rutherford just came back from Canada this year. He may be of great help."

Li Yu said: "It is because I know he is there that I dare to propose this idea."

Lord Kelvin said: "The more you listen, the more interesting it becomes. Let's set off for Cambridge now."

The three immediately got into the car and came to Cambridge University.

Seeing Lord Kelvin coming again, Thomson, the director of the Cavendish Laboratory, did not dare to neglect, and said with a smile: "My lord, what experiment do you want to do today? Let me know in advance, so that I can prepare for you."

"It's not me who did the experiment, but him," said Lord Kelvin, pointing to Li Yu, "I think you're not too unfamiliar even though you haven't met before."

Of course Li Yu knew about the big guy who discovered electrons in front of him, and said respectfully, "Mr. Thomson, Li Yu."

"You are the legendary Yu Li!" Thomson exclaimed, "Finally let me meet the real person! If you want to use the Cavendish Laboratory, I will never frown!"

Kelvin smiled and said: "It seems that you have more face than me."

Thomson invited them into the laboratory, and after listening to Li Yu talk about his vision, he said, "I think Rutherford and Richardson in the laboratory are more familiar with the contents mentioned by the sir."

He quickly called the two over.

Richardson, whose full name is Owen Richardson, has since been a Nobel laureate.In the famous photo of the Solvay meeting in 1927, Richardson is sitting on the far right in the first row.

The Cavendish Laboratory is really a scary place, full of bosses.

But now he is still very young, just an assistant in the laboratory, not even as famous as Rutherford (now Rutherford already has some minor fame).

At the beginning of the [-]th century, it was not easy to get the position of assistant professor.

Richardson is a graduate of Trinity College, Cambridge University, and was awarded the title of Fellow of Trinity College two years ago. He is also a young man who has shown talent early, so Thomson let him into the laboratory.

I have to say that Thomson is also a great Bole.

And Rutherford in front of Richardson was even more terrifying.

In his life, although Rutherford only won the Nobel Prize once in 1908, it was still the chemistry prize, but he was actually eligible to win two more physics prizes.

The α-particle scattering experiment in the textbooks of later generations was done in 1911, and it is definitely eligible for a physics prize.

In 1919, he completed "alchemy" for the first time in human history - obtained new atoms through particle collisions, and named the word "proton" for the first time!It is also a Nobel Prize-level achievement in physics.

In addition, he is good at guiding students, and 12 Nobel Prize winners have worked or studied under him. When he was in charge of the Cavendish Laboratory, he was nicknamed "Nobel Prize Kindergarten".

But the "garden director" Rutherford's background is very ordinary, from a peasant family.

He was born in New Zealand. At this time, New Zealand was not a good place, it could be called a wild land.In fact, the later generations are still sparsely populated, but the natural scenery is good, or the "Lord of the Rings" series would not have chosen New Zealand as the filming location.

The key point is that although Rutherford won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry the only time, he didn’t seem to have taken a few chemistry classes when he was young...

It's kind of magical.

Rutherford University was enrolled in New Zealand. The current universities in New Zealand are really not good. They are not much different from the universities that just started in the Qing Dynasty.

Rutherford majored in mathematics in college and minored in physics.

Because I chose physics, I must have a graduation design experiment to get a degree. The great master Rutherford chose a difficult topic for this: the influence of high-frequency magnetic fields on metallic iron.

Note that this is just a college graduation design experiment.

Rutherford's articles are now available on the Internet, and it is convincing to read casually: Although more than 100 years have passed, I still have to sincerely praise his ridiculously high level of experimental design.

Rutherford's final project was chosen by Li Yu, and few people could answer it before Li Yu's time travel.Most people who have studied electrodynamics may say a "skin depth", that is, only a thin layer on the surface of iron is magnetized.

But what is this depth?How many people can speak up?

Rutherford's experimental idea is very ingenious, using the speed of nitric acid to dissolve iron, there are many specific details, in short, it is extremely ingenious.

In the 100st century 21 years later, how many college students can come up with such an experimental design after graduation?But Rutherford did it more than 100 years ago, and he is really an experimental genius.

It was born to do physics experiments. ——Although he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (the expression of laughing and crying is too suitable for him)!
God will always look down on those who are hardworking and talented.

At that time, the United Kingdom happened to have a graduation design funding project: as long as the students from the Commonwealth of Nations got the quota, the British side would provide financial subsidies for them to continue their studies in their favorite universities.

And this funding program only gives New Zealand one place.

So Rutherford continued to deepen his graduation project, and based on this, he invented a magnetic field detector, which was later called the "Rutherford detector", which can measure nanosecond-level current pulses.This kind of accuracy can only be achieved by Marie Curie's radiation dose experiment and Michelson's interference experiment at the same time.

You must think that Rutherford is firmly number one, right?

Unfortunately, he got No.2...

No.1 is a brother who is engaged in chemistry. He invented a method of extracting gold from minerals using cyanide.

To be honest, if you were a judge, you would choose him too. Who can resist the temptation of gold?

But I never expected it!This old man actually thought that the amount of funding was too small, so he gave up the opportunity to study abroad and turned to become a civil servant!
So don't think that only Chinese people like public examination...

Then, as No.2, Rutherford got the spot as a substitute!
This incident was later interpreted into a very famous story:
It is said that in 1895, Rutherford, who was digging potatoes on the farm, received a notice from Cambridge University in the United Kingdom, informing him that he had been admitted as a scholarship student for the London International Exposition.After receiving the notice, Rutherford threw away the potato hoe and shouted: "This is the last potato I dug!"

This paragraph comes from an encyclopedia, but it is written incorrectly, and it is probably edited.

Because when Rutherford boarded the ship to Europe, he still didn’t know whether he was going to a university in England or Germany. He even taught himself German on board. After all, Germany’s science is really strong now.

However, after he arrived in London, he finally felt that the UK was better, at least the atmosphere was more relaxed than Germany, so he stayed at Cambridge University in London and became a graduate student of Thomson, which was also the first batch of graduate students of Cambridge University.

After two years as a graduate student for Thomson, Rutherford went to Canada's McHill University as a professor.

Don’t think that Canada is so good. At this time, Canada is the same as New Zealand, and it is also a cultural desert, basically on the same level as the Qing Dynasty.

The reason why I feel better than the Qing Dynasty is because I didn't suffer so many fat beatings, signed so many shameful treaties, didn't lose so many people, and the population was all European immigrants, that's all.

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Rutherford and Richardson were also shocked when they saw Li Yu's arrival. After all, Li Yu had already become famous and even became a foreign academician of the Royal Society, a title that Rutherford admired very much.

Rutherford said excitedly: "I have read all of Mr.'s works, and I have benefited a lot!"

Owen Richardson also said: "You and I are about the same age, and you are indeed the most eye-catching leader among your peers!"

To be praised by two Nobel laureates, Li Yu felt a little embarrassed, and said with a smile, "Both of you are overwhelmed!"

(End of this chapter)