hungarian november january hungarian american theoretical physicist mathematician received half nobel prize physics contributions theory atomic nucleus elementary particles particularly discovery application fundamental symmetry principles graduate worked assistant berlin responsible introducing group theory physics particularly theory symmetry physics way performed ground breaking work pure mathematics authored number mathematical particular cornerstone mathematical quantum mechanics known research structure atomic nucleus princeton_university recruited moved united_states participated meeting resulted letter prompted president initiate manhattan_project develop atomic bombs afraid german nuclear weapon project develop atomic bomb manhattan_project led team task design nuclear convert weapons grade time existed paper gone critical disappointed given responsibility detailed design construction director early frustrated bureaucratic interference returned princeton postwar period served number government bodies including mathematics panel physics panel influential general advisory committee later life philosophical published best known work outside technical mathematics physics early life born austria-hungary november middle class jewish parents leather older sister known younger sister known later married british theoretical physicist home professional teacher age started school grade period developed interest mathematical problems age contracted doctors believed tuberculosis parents sent live weeks austrian mountains doctors concluded diagnosis mistaken family jewish secular studied secondary grammar school called school father attended religious education compulsory attended classes judaism taught fellow student year benefited instruction noted mathematics teacher escape communist regime family briefly fled austria returning hungary downfall partly reaction prominence jews regime family converted explained later life family decision convert heart religious decision anti communist religious views graduating secondary school enrolled known happy courses offer enrolled studied chemical engineering attended wednesday afternoon featured met physicist closest friend experience berlin formative worked met greatest teacher supervised thesis und formation decay molecules middle years returned went work father accepted offer berlin wanted assist work ray recommended months assistant went work explored quantum mechanics studying work group theory received request work assistant great mathematician proved disappointment aged abilities failing interests shifted logic nonetheless studied independently laid foundation theory quantum mechanics introduced known matrix responsible introducing group theory quantum mechanics written standard text easy understand especially younger application quantum mechanics group theory accessible wider audience works laid foundation theory quantum mechanics proved cornerstone mathematical quantum mechanics physical translations symmetry represented space states according symmetry transformation represented linear transformation space representation symmetry group space ordinary representation representation late 1930s extended research atomic papers drawing notice world physics princeton_university recruited year times salary drawing europe princeton recruited time collaborated papers names eugene john respectively year princeton offered year contract visiting professors half year responded teaching assignment half year timely nazis soon rose power germany princeton introduced sister physicist married princeton contract ran found new employment met wife physics student died unexpectedly leaving distraught accepted offer princeton return citizen united_states january brought parents united_states manhattan_project professed political amateur august participated meeting resulted letter prompted president initiate manhattan_project develop atomic bombs afraid german nuclear weapon project develop atomic bomb refused taken track germany won thoughts murdered later recalled focus mind wonderfully june married second wife professor physics completed yale_university war taught physics faculty new_jersey retirement remained married death november children led team included group task design production nuclear convert weapons grade time existed paper gone critical july chose conservative design water cooling present converted court stands university_of_chicago abandoned field december world atomic achieved controlled nuclear chain reaction disappointed given responsibility detailed design construction threatened resign february talked head sent vacation instead turned design decision additional load tubes saved project poisoning problem additional tubes run power burned produced run power set project year 1950s work regret working manhattan_project wished atomic bomb ready year earlier important discovery project effect swelling caused displacement radiation effect problem immediate post war period resulted production shut entirely eventually discovered overcome controlled heating manhattan project funding developed important general approach nuclear reactions theory published later years accepted position director research development tennessee early want involved administrative duties director laboratory handling administrative executive director newly created took charge laboratory operations start feared technical decisions washington saw army continuation wartime security policies laboratory oversight interfering research incident occurred march discovered scientists conducting experiments critical mass director manhattan_project major general forbidden experiments august death argued order superseded forced terminate experiments completely different killed feeling managerial role environment left end summer returned princeton_university maintained consulting role facility years postwar period served number government bodies including mathematics panel physics panel influential general advisory committee contributed civil defense near end life thoughts turned philosophical published classic article philosophy mathematics physics best known work outside technical mathematics physics argued biology origin physical concepts humans perceive happy coincidence mathematics physics matched hard explain original paper provoked inspired responses wide range disciplines included computer science data mining physics mathematics economics awarded nobel prize physics contributions theory atomic nucleus elementary particles particularly discovery application fundamental symmetry principles prize shared year half award divided professed considered possibility occur added expected newspapers wicked won franklin medal award peace award max medal albert award eponymous medal gave lecture mary died november married wife pat hamilton widow physicist dean died age published memoirs said meaning life collective meaning human desires fundamentally mystery grasp young man state affairs peace feel certain honor associated mystery collection essays reflections scientific essays commented possible laws quantum mechanics fully consistent way reference consciousness died pneumonia princeton new_jersey january survived wife children david martha sisters publications physical theory isbn application quantum mechanics new_york translation und die der reflections scientific essays isbn told isbn philosophical reflections
Eugene Wigner