Ukraine has been in the forefront of newsreels these days, and so is Russia, both for all the wrong reasons known to mankind! But Ukraine, in 1904, constituting the Russian empire, had given birth to one of the giants of science, who had not only been one of the greatest in the field but his hearty service to mankind stands stark opposite to what these countries today reflect, albeit apparently.
Whenever we talk about any scientist, the invariable question that will require an answer in due course, will be regarding the contribution, of that particular person, in the field of science. But the great, about whom I am referring to, not only did contribute significantly to science, but contributed nothing less to popularise it through his humour laced narratives that encompassed physics and cosmology and peeked into genes and computer architecture. Truly speaking, each of his serious writings penned with witty reliefs, surely will draw equal appreciation both as a literary classic as well as an unputdownable article of science.
Yes, George Gamow was truly a giant of a scientist as far as I am concerned, but he was also a prankster in his own right. One of his very notable pranks lies in a famous paper, made famous not just because of its content (in fact, the content apparently fell short of its original claim slightly) but the names of the authors who wrote it. Alpher, Bethe and Gamow authored that particular paper concerning the origin of elements that we see all around. The original was penned by Alpher, with Gamow advising. While publishing, the advisor noting that the names of Alpher and Gamow having closer resemblance to Alpha and Gamma, felt it would be unjust to omit Beta in between. To rectify this apparent defect, a Beta author was to be inserted. This resulted in filling the gap by inserting the name of a physicist of eminence, Hans Bethe, in the original manuscript, much to the dismay of the Alpha author but to the complete satisfaction of Gamma, the playful[1]. The Greek alphabets might have been satisfied though the contents of the paper had the chance to appear Greek to Prof Bethe himself. The Alphabet paper, as it was nicknamed, was pioneer in predicting correctly the proportions of hydrogen and helium formed in the early universe and was the stepping stone to the hypothesis of the Big Bang nucleosynthesis[2] that describes how the elements actually took birth.
My association with Gamow’s literary works dates back to my secondary years when my father handed me with a copy of a Mr Tompkins series and “Physics: Fundamentals & Frontiers”, though the sequence is now forgotten, thanks to my memory, which is the very definition of volatility.
Mr Tompkins is a very well known character in the popular science reading circle but those who are still trying to understand how the name of a Mr is popping up while describing a Prof, let me assure you that this Mr is a fictitious character, created none other than by the witty educator in Gamow to look into the world of science and technology through the eyes of the layman.
Mr Tompkins is a humble bank clerk with a keen interest in science and a physicist father-in-law. As fathers-in-law are prone to with their sons-in-law, frequent chats with the younger in-law listening becomes the order during the visits of the older. But this leads to the son-in-law dozing off at times while the lectures become scientifically too heavy for the simple mind of the humble clerk. Thus begins his series of dreams, just like Alice while she dreamt about the Wonderland, the difference being that these dreams take the dreamer to a wonderland of science as the subject opens up in a simpler perspective. The scientific constants are trimmed here and the fantasy of dream prevails as the dreamer and the reader alike journeys through the apparently complex but unavoidably quite real concepts of relativity, thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, computer processors, cells and genes, just to name a few and gets piqued as the scientific world unfurls the simple rationales that forms the basis of ground breaking ideas. I still remember that particular episode where Mr Tompkins understands relativity and space contraction just by watching a cyclist riding through blocks in a world where the speed of light is limited to a few metres/sec only. The series has yet another appeal and that is of the illustrator himself. As it happened, while the series was ongoing, the regular illustrator vacated the post only to be filled in by the author himself, who not only excelled in the job but presented a delightful array of sketches, throbbing with humour, very much in line with the original and augmenting the themes with visual reliefs, which could only be as perfect as possible.
The other book that was mentioned earlier, “Physics: Fundamentals & Frontiers”, is in the other hand, a textbook, but not like any other that I have gone through. Devoid of a single instance of calculus, higher secondary physical science is introduced with vivid illustrations accompanied by lucidly patient elaborations. Actually physics would have been a perennial fright for me but for some teachers and books like these as when in higher secondaries, physics starts with differential equations while calculus is formally reserved as a mathematical course for the next standard.
Thus started my tryst with this natural teacher mainly through his popular articles and is happily continuing till now.
Gamow wrote “Thirty Years That Shook Physics: The Story Of Quantum Theory” that portrayed the scientific era of 1900 to 1930 as modern physics unfolded by the breathtaking leap to the quantum world. Being one of the chief protagonists in moulding modern physics, the author offers a vantage point of view of the limitations of classical theories and embarks on the world of quantized energy, wave mechanics, uncertainty principle, anti particles with explanations and elaborations and touching on the scientific minds of the giants who defined them. Blended with humour, the illustrator in Gamow presents some astoundingly appealing sketches of a few of the greatest scientific minds of the era as well as some Gamowish cartoons, as always.
The apparently mysterious atom is explained by Gamow in “Atomic Energy in Cosmic and Human Life Fifty Years of Radioactivity”, which elaborates the basics of science to understand the energy lying within and designs of engineering to harness the same. Touching on the destructive use that the risk poses, the constructive visions of utilizing the vast energy for space vehicles and the likes will astound the audience.
There are authors who write biographies of personalities, but Gamow sketched the biography of a subject! Physics had never seemed to be honoured more than what Gamow bestowed in “The Great Physicists from Galileo to Einstein”, which might only be categorised as a biography, but not of the people mentioned in the cover title and the contents, but of the subject itself! A fascinating journey of the evolution of physics from the primitive to the modern as the subject ages through stages of refinement forms the basis of the narrative. The breakthroughs of science that shaped physics could never be enjoyed more as the scientific minds of the readers will be stimulated while the funny bones continue to tickle.
Another difficult subject of stellar evolution is simplified for the ordinary readers with basics introduced in the opening chapters in “The Birth & Death of the Sun”, which discusses the formation of stars and planetary bodies that make up the universe. Written in the signature style of Gamow but a bit serious according to his standard, stellar science had never been so philosophically yet critically orated. The enchanting journey of the stellar universe has a high chance to bewitch the readers with the marvel that the vast expanse has in store for all. Personally, these chapters have philosophically humbled me and I think now of myself as a being residing in a speck of dust called Earth formed in a split second interval in galactic scale and is presented with a chance to savour the wonders that makes up the universe with apparently a femtosecond interval of his life which is generally wasted with petty trivialities and unnecessary conflicts that never save a single fraction of the lifetime that is offered. This is how Gamow appals you just by his writings!
Gamow was born Russian but defected as the political weather was growing too stifling for him[3]. He and his first wife, Lyubov Vokhmintseva, tried twice to flee, once trying to paddle a kayak across the Black Sea to Turkey and another time kayak across from Murmansk to Norway. The former, being a 250 km stretch as well as the later efforts failed due to weather, which just like the political one, turned unfavourable, but the funny part was, both times, the authorities were completely evaded. Incidentally, the wife of Gamow was given the nickname of Rho by her husband, which again indicates that either Gamow was fascinated to the extent of obsession with Greek letters or the name of his wife was really difficult to pronounce regularly, no disrespect to the lady and her name. Gamow could finally sneak out of Russia with his wife under the pretext of joining a scientific conference in Brussels, thanks to his brave persistence, that officials relented in allowing the couple to travel together.
Gamow was a first in the sense that under the guidance of Lev Mysovskii, Igor Kurchatov and him, started thr first design of a European cyclotron in 1932, just a couple of years after it was conceived and patented in America[2]. Previously, he was elected as a corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR as one of the youngest members in its history at the age of 28. While in America, he was thankfully not involved in the Manhattan project, though he had enough knowledge on the subject[2], which might be due to his Ukrainian lineage[3].
Thrice nominated for the Nobel prize in physics and recipient of the Kalinga award by UNESCO in 1956 for popularising science, I reiterate my query that whether this polymath was ever considered for the Nobel prize in literature?
George of Russia settled finally in USA in the institute named after the George of America and thus play of words might have bestowed on him salvation in the form of George Washington University (GWU) in a way that he could only appreciate.
In a world where humour seems vanishing, humility forgotten and scientific essence boils down to information piling, Gamow and his works reflect what science is all about and how the subject can be served with humility and humour. Science reading had never been more pleasing. The books that were mentioned earlier are only a few of the gems that Gamow penned. But these were enough for me to get a glimpse of the man within. Surfing the net helped that also highlighted the giant of a mind with a humour filled heart. I already scribbled my views on some of his books in my blog[4] at times that I wanted to advertise on his birthday. While trying to draft an atomic introduction for the purpose, the matter went way too macroscopic. So, hoping you enjoy, uploading the same as a separate blog article while wishing Prof Gamow happiness in the way he likes!
[1]. http://physicsbuzz.physicscentral.com/2009/05/easy-as.html?m=1
[2]. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Gamow
[4]. http://anirband.blogspot.com/search/label/written%20by%20George%20Gamow?m=0
