march february american nuclear physicist researcher awarded nobel prize physics experiment alternating gradient proved certain reactions adhere fundamental symmetry principles specifically proved examining decay reaction run reverse path original reaction showed reactions particles indifferent time phenomenon violation discovered demolished faith natural laws governed symmetry born cattle ranch near nebraska drafted world war worked manhattan_project new_mexico later graduated completed physics columbia_university member faculty princeton_university retirement early life born cattle ranch near nebraska march youngest children cattle wife née school teacher older brother sister family farm square miles km2 size miles site wounded knee massacre ranch small father specialized raising breeding stock soon birth father badly injured horse riding accident longer work ranch family moved nearby town gordon nebraska father entered insurance business attended school graduating manhattan_project attended years transferred world war studies interrupted drafted completed basic training army sent training army specialized training program program soldiers attended colleges intensive courses program year manpower requirements war great army terminated program soldiers posted combat units soldiers joined provided needed technicians manhattan_project army sent manhattan_project new_mexico technicians met physics including cases attending courses physics taught worked group headed member acquainted techniques experimental physics participated drop testing mock atomic bombs conducted worked trinity site witnessed trinity nuclear test july discharged army continued work civilian year order earn money briefly return academic career wartime experiences led decide physicist head physics division offered graduate needed complete undergraduate degree return northwestern elected enter recommended graduated bachelor degree electrical engineering advice student columbia_university division head decided pursue doctoral studies columbia wrote letter introduction academic supervisor gave paper concerning electron replaced observed completely theoretical evidence existed good thesis topic designed built experiment measure gamma rays emitted turned good time search columbia recently commissioned produce developed activated gamma ray wartime advances electronics yielded advances components new needed bring initially found suggested expanding search energy range predicted basis accepted size radius atomic nucleus found looking discovering process nucleus closer completed writing thesis studies rays thesis published november married secretary worked laboratory columbia sons died married acquiring obtaining doctorate interest shifted strange particles took position princeton_university spent rest career professor professor professor physics retaining position retirement chair conducted research acquainted played bridge nights waited available built new kind spark chamber realized perfect experiments known yale_university physicist suggested interesting properties worth investigating decay matter colleagues set experiment alternating gradient discovered unexpected result decay neutral respect symmetry decayed faster decayed importance result immediately appreciated evidence big bang accumulated realized explained universe largely matter simply found answer physicist exist discovery received nobel prize physics addition nobel prize received orlando john price medal member jason defense advisory group president served number governmental science science policy committees including president died home princeton new_jersey age february publications notes feedback predecessor agency march high resolution scale columbia_university predecessor agency august neutral currents princeton_university predecessor agency march results performance broad band counter princeton_university
Val Logsdon Fitch