Maksimovič - The Life of Bruno Pontecorvo

Inbunden, Engelska, 2026

564 kr

Kommande

Beskrivning

When Bruno Pontecorvo disappeared without a trace in 1950, he was already recognized as one of the most brilliant physicists of his generation. A key member of Enrico Fermi’s famed “boys from Via Panisperna,” he helped make Rome a world center of nuclear physics in the 1930s. In the 1940s, while working in North America, he made decisive contributions to neutrino physics, devising methods to detect one of nature’s most elusive particles. At the same time, Pontecorvo was a committed communist whose work for Western institutions placed him at the center of Cold War suspicions.His sudden disappearance sparked intense speculation: had he defected to the Soviet Union, was he a spy, and did he contribute to the Soviet atomic bomb? For years, nothing emerged from behind the Iron Curtain, until his reappearance in the Soviet press as Bruno Maksimovič Pontecorvo, publicly declaring his decision to seek political asylum and embrace a new life in Moscow.In this compelling and deeply researched biography, physicist Giuseppe Mussardo reconstructs the scientific achievements and human complexities of a figure who seems drawn from a spy novel yet shaped some of the most important ideas of modern physics. The book explores the unresolved mysteries surrounding Pontecorvo’s choices, beliefs, and knowledge, offering a penetrating portrait of a scientist for whom discovery, ideology, and personal sacrifice were inseparably entwined.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:2026-09-06
Mått:155 x 235 x undefined mm
Format:Inbunden
Språk:Engelska
Serie:Springer Biographies
Förlag:Springer Nature Switzerland AG
ISBN:9783032279613

Utforska kategorier

Biografier inom Biografier
Naturvetenskapens historia inom Naturvetenskap och teknik
Fysik inom Naturvetenskap och teknik

Mer om författaren

Professor of Theoretical Physics (SISSA), Scientific Director of the Journal of Statistical Mechanics and Applications and author of several scientific monographs on quantum field theory, including Statistical Field Theory, Oxford University Press 2020. He has written various popular science books, including: "Dio gioca a dadi con il mondo. La storia della meccanica quantistica" (Castelvecchi 2025); "Maksimovic. La storia di Bruno Pontecorvo" (Castelvecchi 2023); "The ABC’s of Science" (Springer 2022), "Sky and Earth. Travelling with Dante Alighieri and Marco Polo" (Springer 2023); "God Plays Dice with the World: The History of Quantum Mechanics" (Springer 2026). He is Academician of the oldest Italian academy, Accademia delle Arti del Disegno (Firenze). Author of 5 scientific documentaries, including "Galois: A Revolutionary Mathematician" (2017). Among his recognitions are the Italian Physical Society Outreach Award (2013), the Kramers Chair at Utrecht University (2017), and the Cosmos Award (2024).

Innehållsförteckning

The medlar tree (The story of the family Pontecorvo; the rise of Fascism; the decision to study physics).- The nature of things (The status of art in physics and science in general at the dawn of the XX century).- The goldfish fountain (the boys of via Panisperna in Rome; the slow neutron discovery and the industrial patent).- Two voices out of the chorus (Biographies of GianCarlo Wick and Ettore Majorana).- The paths of freedom (Pontecorvo in Paris, with Joliot Curie and his first political commitments, in relation to the Spain War and anti-fascism).- The last day of youth (Dramatic escape from Nazi Paris directed to USA).- The profession of diviner (Pontecorvo engage in oil companies for his nuclear expertise).- In the heart of the nucleus (decisive steps in understanding the atomic nucleus).- PO Box 1663, Santa Fe 165 (Story of the Manhattan Project).- Liebe Radioactive Damen und Herren (Neutrino physics).- War of shadows (McCarthyism, atomic espionage, spies).- Countdown (Last period of Pontecorvo in Canada).- Her Majesty's secret services (UK Soviet spies, Kim Philby and friends, Soviet spy network in UK).- Intrigue in Rome (How Pontecorvo and family suddenly disappeared).- Behind the scenes (What happened behind the scenes).- Bruno Maksimovicˇ (Pontecorvo in Moscow and Dubna).- Notes 397.- Selected bibliography 427.- Cronology 433.- Index of names 429.