sign in sign up
<<
Home , Paul Rosbaud, Wolfgang Pauli

Wolfgang Pauli Writings on and Philosophy Wolfgang Pauli (1900 - 1958)

This photo was taken in 1953 in on the occasion of his nomination as Foreign Member of the Royal Society Wolfgang Pauli Writings on Physics and Philosophy Edited by Charles P Enz and Karl von Meyenn

Translated by Robert Schlapp

Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg GmbH Professor Dr. Charles P. Enz University ofGeneva. 24, quai EmeSI Ansennel eH-1211 Geneva 4, Dr. Karl von Meyenn Max-Planck-Institut für Physik,Werner-Heisenberg-Institut Föhringer Ring6, 0-80805 München, Gennany

Translator Dr. Robert Schlapp t

ISBN 978-3-642-08163-7 ISBN 978-3-662-02994-7 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-662-02994-7

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data. Pauli, Wolfgang, 1900-1958. Writings on physics and philosophy / Wolfgang Pauli; edited by C. P. Enz und K. von Mcyenn. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 3-540-56859-X (Berlin: alk. paper). ­ ISBN 0-387-56859-X (New York: alk. paper) I. Physics-Philosophy. 2. Philosophy. I. Enz, Charles P. (Charles Paul), 1925 - .11. Meyenn, K. v.m. Title. QC6.2.P38 1994 530' .01-dc20 94-15098 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is con­ cerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilm or in any other way. and storage in data banks, Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the German Copyright Law of September 9. 1965, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer-Verlag. Violations are liable for prosecution under the German Copyright Law.

@ Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 1994 Originally published by Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg New York in 1994. Softcover reprint ofthe hardcover Ist edition 1994 The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, etc, in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.

Cover Design: Struve & Partner, Atelier für Grafik-Design, Heidelberg Typesettig: Data conversion by K.Mattes, Heidelberg : 10763359 55/3111 - 5 4 3 2 - Printed on acid-free paper Contents

Preface: The History ofthis Translation: Paul Rosbaud, Friend and Publisher ofWolfgang Pauli. By Charles P. Enz Robert Schlapp (1899-1991). By . . . . 7 Wolfgang Pauli (1900-1958): A Biographical Introduction. By Charles P. Enz ...... 13

Wolfgang Pauli

1. ...... " 27 2. The Philosophical Significanceofthe Idea of Complementarity 35 3. Probability and Physics 43 4. on His 60th Birthday 49 5. Sommerfeld's Contributions to Theory 59 6. t 69 7. Rydberg and the Periodic System ofthe Elements 73 8. t ...... 79 9. Einstein's Contribution to Quantum Theory 85 10. Space, Time and Causality in 95 11. The and Science . . . . . 107 12. Impressions of 113 13. Albert Einstein and the Development of Physics 117 14. Theory and Experiment ..... 125 15. Phenomenon and Physical ...... 127 16. Science and Western Thought ...... 137 17. Ideas of the Unconscious from the Standpoint ofNatural Science and Epistemology ...... 149 18. Exclusion Principle and Quantum . . . . . 165 19. The Violation of Reflection Symmetries in the Laws ofAtomic Physics ...... 183 VI Contents

20. On the Earlier and More Recent History ofthe . 193 21. The Influence ofArchetypal Ideas on the ScientificTheories ofKepler . 219

Name Index . . 281 Preface

The History of this Translation: Paul Rosbaud, Friend and Publisher of Wolfgang Pauli

Wolfgang Pauli wrote a highly sophisticated and beautiful German. This very fact is at the origin of the delay of almost 37 years since Pauli signed a contract on 15 July 1957 to publish the translation by Robert Schlapp contained in the present volume [Ref. 1, p. 5]. Anybody who has tried to translate Pauli's German into English must have experienced the dilemma ofthe choice between accurately reproducing Pauli's ideas and rendering the flavour of his particular style. Thus L. Rosenfeld comments on Schlapp's translations "I have found them competently done; the meaning is clearly and accurately rendered and the English, though lacking distinction, is rea­ sonably smooth.... I did try to modify the translation at one or two critical places, but did not succeed- at least not without departing rather much from the literal rendering , which again is dangerous!" [2]. In the M emorandum quoted above Rosbaud writes [Ref. 1, p. 1] "Pauli was insistent, from the outset, that to preserve the precise meaning and the individuality of presentation, the translation must be literal and not freely smoothed into 'good' English." Pauli hirnself seems to have adhered to this rule when he wrote in English, as may be concluded from the following remark ofRosbaud [Ref. 1, p.2]: "When in 1955I was instrumental in pub­ lishing a volume dedicated to Niels Bohr's 70th birthday [see Ref. 3], one of the Editors objected strongly to the English of Wolfgang Pauli's contri­ bution. However, the co-editor quite rightly insisted that it should remain unchanged. Pauli's contribution to the Niels Bohr volume has since become a very famous scientific document." The last quotation shows Paul Rosbaud's activity in science publishing which, in fact, went back to the late twenties in Berlin where he was offered the job of editor with the newly founded weekly magazine Metallwirtschaft [seeRef.4 for biographical information on P. Rosbaud]. Born in Graz on 18 November 1896he was the brother ofthe well-known conductor and expert in modern music Hans Rosbaud . In 1926 he graduated in chemistry at the 2 Preface

Paul Rosbaud (1896-1963)

Darmstadt Polytechnic and subsequently made a doctorate in Berlin in the new of X-ray physics. His editing activity there allowed Paul Rosbaud to travel widely all over Europe. And his Austrian charm and his enthusiasm made it easy for him to make friends with the elite in science and particularly in physics. In the early thirties Dr. Ferdinand Springer offered Paul Rosbaud the position of scientific adviser with the prestigious publishing house run by him and his brother Julius in Berlin. His most important deed in this func­ tion was to assure that 's report on got immediately published in Naturwissenschaften in January 1939.Forseeing very clearly the catastrophic political development in , Rosbaud became increas­ ingly hostile to the Nazi regime. And when he met Edward Foley who then became associated with the Secret Intelligence Service at the British Lega­ tion in Berlin, this was the beginning ofa liaison which made Paul Rosbaud the most valuable scientific informer of the British government throughout World War 11. Rosbaud's material covering all scientific developments in Germany but particularly nuclear research was channeled through the Nor- Preface 3

wegian, French and other Resistances. Towards the end ofthe war Rosbaud got trapped in Berlin and, after a mysterious incident of an alleged kidnap­ ping by the Russians, he was moved out in late 1945by British intelligence [4]. In London, Rosbaud resumed his editing activity, first with the pub­ lishing house of Butterworth and then with its new branch Butterworth Scientific, which in 1949 became Butterworth-Springer. In this year he was brought together with who then was buying and selling sei­ entific journals and later also books and who for that purpose founded the firm Lange, Maxwell and Springer [seeRef. 5for a biography ofR. Maxwell]. For financial reasons the association of the two men became inevitable and at the end of 1951 Rosbaud accepted Maxwell's invitation to become Seien­ tific Director of a new venture called . This name as weIl as the colophon had its origin in the head of Athena on a coin minted in the Asian city of Pergamon. Clearly, Rosbaud, who was an expert on ancient Greek coins, was involved in this choice [6].While at the beginning ofPerga­ mon Press decision making concerning new journals and books was large1y in Rosbaud's competence, Maxwell started to interfere more directly after having suffered his first bankrupcy in 1954; in September 1956 Rosbaud left Pergamon Press in profound bitterness. But his enormous reputation quickly brought hirn consulting functions with the leading scientific pub­ lishing houses, an activity he carried on until his death from leukaemia in 1963 and which was honoured a year before by the Tate Medal for scientific editing awarded by the American Institute of Physics. This brings the story back to the start: Paul Rosbaud's friendship with Pauli and the history ofthe present volume. "Pauli was very much in favour ofsuch a book, but at this stage [1955-56] we had no particular publisher in mind: Subsequently, he decided on Interscience Publishers, Inc ., New York" [Ref. 1, p. 1]. Concerning the choice of the translator "Professor Pauli pro­ posed Professor Kemmer, who, in turn, suggested Dr. Schlapp, Lecturer at his Department as an 'extremely suitable person to take this job, having just the right qualifications, both scientific and linguistic.' (2nd April, 1957). Dr. Schlapp consented, and met Professor Pauli in Edinburgh to discuss style and other ofdetail." [Ref. 1, p. 2]. Although Pauli's interest in the English translation of his essays was genuine, he was reluctant to read them hirnself. "To chat with you would be nice (to read myself in English, however, definitely not charming. Then I even prefer to write new articles)" he writes to Rosbaud on 2 November 1957 (my translation) [7]. In the Memorandum Rosbaud writes "October 1957: I persuaded Professor Pauli to spend an afternoon with me in Zurich, in his own horne, going through a batch of four or five of the translations. He offered several minor suggestions, raised one or two queries, . .. he sent me a 'One-way Street' diagram as a constant reminder to me that the postal traffic between Zurich-London must be in one way only: No more translations 4 Preface

to be sent to hirn for his approval. .. . Professor Pauli agreed to see the translation ofDie Wissenschaft und das abendländische Denken and added to it a few pencilled notes. He asked that translation of the more philosophical papers should be checked by Professor Pryce, Kemmer or Rosenfeld. This was done. Very nearly all the translations were completed during Pauli's lifetime." [Ref. 1, pp. 3-4]. So why this delay of nearly 37 years? The tragedy was that Pauli un­ expectedly died of cancer of the pancreas on 15 December 1958. His wife Franca very courageously took command of all editorial projects concern­ ing her late husband. These projects now also included an agreement with Vieweg, Braunschweig, that Pauli himselfhad signed on 29 October 1958 to publish a German edition of the essays with the title "Aufsätze über Physik und Erkenntnistheorie" [8]and a plan suggested by Rosbaud to publish the Collected Papers with Interscience [9]. The "Aufsätze" were published in 1961 with the addition of "und Vorträge" in the title and of an obituary speech (Trauerrede) by V.F. Weisskopf.A second edition including an his­ torical introduction and an index by K. von Meyenn appeared in 1984 [10]. On the other hand, the Collected Papers appeared in 1964[11].While none of these publications acknowledges the important röle played by Paul Rosbaud, a memorial volume which originally had been planned to celebrate Pauli's 60th birthday on 25 April 1960 does mention Rosbaud in the Preface [12]. It is a sad fact that the relations between Franca Pauli and Paul Rosbaud - who with the Pauli's carried the nickname 'Steinklopfer Hans!' - came apart because, confused by the contradicting advice she received concerning the Schlapp translations, Mrs. Pauli lost confidence in Rosbaud.A letter Franca Pauli wrote on 27 January 1960 to E. Proskauer, the editor-in-chief with Interscience, contained plainly wrong statements concerning Rosbaud's handling ofthese translations and was personally offensive towards hirn [9]. Deeply hurt Paul Rosbaud whom I had met when I was Pauli's assistant and with whom I stayed in contact by letters, wrote in his defense the documents quoted in Refs. 1,2 and 7. In a letter dated 12 February 1960 Proskauer then proposed to Franca Pauli not to publish Schlapp's translations but to honour the conditions of the contract concluded on 15 July 1957 concerning pay­ and to wait for a satisfactory translation [9]. Thus the Schlapp translations went into total oblivion, and I was con­ vinced that they were lost. So my surprise was immense when Professor Kemmer, having secured the single carbon copy of the whole translation in Schlapp's horne in Edinburgh, contacted Springer Publishers in December 1988and, after examining the legal situation with them, sent the whole pack­ age to the Pauli Estate at CERN for reconsideration. Having accepted to act, together with K. von Meyenn, as editor I considered it my duty to tell this story as a tribute to Paul Rosbaud. As to the translations, I have read them only in recent times but thoroughly and in every detail. And although I have Preface 5

interfered at many places, but with the sole aim of achieving greater precision (particular German expressions which have no precise translation are given in parantheses), I agree with Paul Rosbaud when he writes on 27 April 1959 in one ofhis many letters to Robert Schlapp: "It is only when comparing the translations with the original German manuscripts that I saw how terribly difficult your task must have been and how superbly you have mastered this" [13]. The translations, in fact stand as a worthy memory to Robert Schlapp who, unfortunately has not lived to see at last the fruit of his efTorts of half a lifetime aga [for biographical notes on R. Schlapp see the following account by N. Kemmer as well as Ref. 14]. In the contract signed by Pauli on 15 July 1957 the selection of essays arranged by Paul Rosbaud did not incIude what might weIl be considered Pauli's most important work outside physics: the study on . This omission may seem surprising and even regrettable, particularly since the Kepler paper is hard to get because ofits publication in aseparate book, together with an essay on by C. G. Jung [15]. However, we leam from Fierz's commentary to this book that in response to suggestions by some friends to publish his articIe separately from Jung's, Pauli told Fierz: "I have thought about it and I believe I should not do this. For, indeed, there comes the time when I must give documentary evidence of what I owe this man" (my translation) [Ref. 16, p. 191]. Today the motivation for keeping Pauli's and Jung's essays together has vanished, particularly because both have long since been incIuded in the respective collected works [for Pauli it is contained in Ref. 11,vol. 1, p. 1023]. The most beautiful manifestation of the high mutual esteem ofthe two men, however, is the recent publication of the Pauli-Jung correspondence [17]. I am pleased therefore to point out that the Kepler paper is incIuded here in the original translation as the highlight to cIose this collection (again, particular German expressions which have no precise translation are given in parantheses). The translator, Mrs. Priscilla Silz of Princeton, had been proposed by Pauli's friend, , who personally and actively oversaw the English edition ofthe Kepler paper [18]. Finally, I wish to address the thanks ofthe editors to Professor Nicholas Kemmer and to the Pauli committee at CERN for their cooperation.

Charles P. Enz 6 Preface

References

[1] Memorandum. 4th Apri/1960. Signed P. Rosbaud, enclosure in letter of P. Rosbaud to C. P. Enz of 16 May 1960. [2] Professor L. Rosenfeld to Dr. P. Rosbaud. August 31st, 1959. Excerpt of letter, enclosure in letter ofP. Rosbaud to C. P. Enz of 16 May 1960. [3] Niels Bohr and the Development ofPhysics, ed. W. Pauli, with the assis­ tance ofL. Rosenfeld and V. Weisskopf(Pergamon, London, 1955). [4] A. Kramish, The Griffin (Houghton Mifflin, Boston, 1986). I am par­ ticularly indebted for valuable biographical information to the nephew of Paul Rosbaud, Dr. Vincent C. Frank-Steiner, Basel, who also is the owner ofthe Pauli-Rosbaud correspondence ofthe period 1952-59. [5] T. Bower, Maxwell the Outsider (Mandarin, London, 1991). [6] R. W. Cahn, The Origins of Pergamon Press: Rosbaud and Maxwell, European Review 2, No. I, 37-42 (1994). [7] Excerpts from letters from Professor Pauli to Dr. Rosbaud, enclosure in letter of P. Rosbaud to C. P. Enz of 16 May 1960. [8] Vereinbarung signed on 16 October 1958 by Friedr. Vieweg & Sohn. Copy dated by Pauli, in the Pauli Estate, CERN Archive, Geneva. [9] Correspondence between Franca Pauli and Eric S. Proskauer, Editor­ in-Chief, Interscience Publishers, Inc., in Pauli Estate, CERN Archive, Geneva. [10] Wolfgang Pauli, Aufsätze und Vorträge über Physik und Erkenntnis­ theorie, ed. W. Westphal (Vieweg, Braunschweig, 1961; second edition 1984). [11] Wolfgang Pauli, Collected Scientific Papers, eds. R . Kronig and V. F. Weisskopf (Interscience, New York, 1964). [12] in the Twentieth Century, eds. M. Fierz and V. F. Weisskopf(Interscience, New York, 1960). [13] Letters of Paul Rosbaud to Robert Schlapp, in Pauli Estate, CERN Archive, Geneva. [14] N. Kemmer, Robert Schlapp, in Yearbook ofthe Royal Society ofEdin­ burgh (Edinburgh, to be published). [15] C. G. Jung, W. Pauli, Naturerklärung und Psyche (Rascher, Zürich, 1952). [16] M. Fierz, Naturwissenschaft und Geschichte. Vorträge und Aufsätze (Birkhäuser, Basel, 1988). [17] C. A. Meier(ed.), Wolfgang Pauliund C G. Jung. Ein Briefwechsel1932­ 1958 (Springer, Berlin Heidelberg, 1992). [18] Correspondence between W. Pauli, the (New York) and E. Panofsky (The Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton), in Pauli Estate, CERN Archive, Geneva.