CERN Courier December 2012 Inside Story Maurice Lévy and his impact on science Maurice Lévy, who was 90 in Themis Kannelopoulos, and became a star of theoretical physics as one of the three September, has had a long and physicists who predicted the existence of the charmed quark (in the Glashow-Iliopoulos- influential career in science, in Maiani mechanism). During the period where I was at the particular in France. École normale (before leaving for CERN in 1959) two important events took place. I had a friend, Louis Pons, who knew a certain Mr Partiot who wanted to sell a piece of Like many prominent French intellectuals, land in Cargèse, Corsica, for an educational including three Nobel laureates, Maurice purpose. In 1958, a meeting was organized Lévy came from North Africa, where he was between the four of us and Lévy’s secretary, born in Algeria. He had an incredibly rich Colette Movchet. During the meeting, and diverse career. During the Second World On 21 October 2002, the Institut d’Études Mr Partiot offered to let us try the Cargèse War, he studied at the University of Algiers, Scientifiques de Cargèse in Corsica site for a summer school, without any gained his PhD in molecular optics in Paris, inaugurated a new amphitheatre named in commitment on our part. We accepted. The moved to Manchester, where he switched honour of its founder, Maurice Lévy (left), courses were held in a barn, the participants to theoretical physics, and then to the seen here with André Martin. (Image credit: were accommodated at Hotel Thalassa Institute of Advanced Studies in Princeton, Schu Martin.) or in the camp Rocca Marina, or simply where he considerably impressed Robert camped. It was a complete success. After Oppenheimer. On his return to France in in joining him and we accepted immediately, that, Lévy tried various other possibilities 1952, Lévy launched the first French group becoming the first two members of the in Corsica, with the help of Rocard. In the of theoretical physics at the École normale group. A number of talented “normaliens” end, the Cargèse site was chosen and with supérieure and became a professor at the joined the group – Bernard Jancovici, Michel his cleverness and management skills Lévy University of Paris. The group moved to Gourdin, Madeleine Collin, Claude-Annette found the necessary financial support. The Orsay in 1959 but Lévy returned to Paris in Rive – as well as other distinguished first official summer school took place in 1971 as a professor at the University of Paris scientists, such as Philippe Meyer, Jacques 1960 in what is called now the “Institut VI. This professorship was interrupted by Mandelbrojt, Georges Bonnevay, Khrosrow d’Études Scientifiques de Cargèse”. several important responsibilities: scientific Chadan and Jean Tran Thanh Van. Lévy The second important event was the advisor at the French embassy in Washington also provided hospitality for Louis Michel creation of a group of experimental nuclear DC; president of the Centre National and his group, Claude Bouchiat, Henri and particle physics at the initiative of d’Études Spatiales, where he launched the Epstein and Gérard Flamand, from the École Rocard and Lévy. They convinced Hans programme for the construction of Ariane Polytechnique. We had many prestigious von Halban to come back with his group launchers; president of the European visitors, the most illustrious being Murray from Oxford to the École normale. The Satellite Research Organization and the Gell-Mann, Robert Oppenheimer and group moved to Orsay, where the linear European Space Agency; founder and first Chen-Ning Yang. accelerator was built. The Linear Accelerator president of the “Cité des Sciences de La Lévy’s plan was to conquer the university, Laboratory (LAL) became one of the most Villette”. After his retirement from the a thing that nobody before him had dared to important experimental laboratories in the university he continued to have advisory and try. The problem was that there was already world of particle physics (CERN Courier business activities. a chair of “physical theories” in the hands July/August 2006 p33). The linear injector Lévy played a considerable role in the of Louis de Broglie and his friends. By for CERN’s Large Electron–Positron resurrection of French theoretical physics playing with words, a chair of “theoretical collider was built there, for example, and the after the war. Several people – in Saclay, physics” was created with the help of laboratory was one of the main contributors the École Polytechnique and the Radium Gaston Berger, director of “enseignement to the discovery of neutral currents. Lévy Institute – were aware of the dismal situation supérieur”. Lévy started immediately to also helped choose André Blanc-Lapierre and tried to do something about it. Cécile teach quantum mechanics, field theory and and André Lagarrigue as successive Morette-DeWitt started the Les Houches particle physics. He asked us, his students, directors of LAL. theoretical summer school in 1951 and to help him and I remember that I gave some Maurice Lévy’s lasting impact on invited Lévy to lecture there in 1952. At this lectures at the École normale and the Institut French science is a result of his vision of session, Lévy told Loup Verlet and myself Henri Poincaré. The result was that Lévy how scientific organizations should be and that Yves Rocard had proposed the creation could recruit excellent people outside the his relentless efforts to build them for our of a theoretical physics group at the École “grandes écoles”. The best example is John community. normale. He asked us if we were interested Iliopoulos, who came from Greece, sent by ● André Martin, CERN. 41 CCDec12-Viewpoint.indd 41 07/11/2012 14:00 CERN Courier December 2012 Inside Story C S Wu: First Lady of physics research Chien-Shiung Wu is the Chien-Shiung Wu was born on 31 May 1912 subject of a new biography in Liuhe, near Shanghai. In 1957, Wu and her that marks her centenary. colleagues published their historic paper, “Experimental test of parity conservation in beta The author talks about how decay”, which established for the first time the non-conservation of parity. The study of nuclear the book came about. beta decay was a central focus of Wu’s research. In 1949 and 1950, through a series of beautiful experiments, Wu measured the allowed and It has been many years since the first idea forbidden beta spectra, corrected many previous of writing this biography occurred to me. During this period, I have talked to many mistakes and firmly established Fermi’s theory. people about Chien-Shiung Wu: some Almost single-handedly she cleared up the knew her a little, most had only vague confusion in beta decay that had existed for one understandings; some asked me why I should Chien-Shiung Wu, right, with Wolfgang and a half decades. (CERN Courier April 1997 write a biography of Wu, and some even Pauli in the early 1940s. (Image credit: Pauli p21.) asked who Wu was! Archive/CERN.) In 1956, Wu was the first to perform a rather difficult and precise experiment, her major research activities slowed down world, and therefore had no memory of many and confirmed the hypothesis [of parity gradually. She was in her 70s – a good time events. In addition, she was down-to-earth violation] proposed by C N Yang and for reflection. and of few words. The medicine that was T D Lee. Yang and Lee became the first two I received much encouragement when lowering her blood pressure also affected Chinese Nobel laureates. Although Wu did planning this biography, particularly her memory. The many hours of interviews not share the prize – to the surprise of many from C N Yang, who mentioned that a and reminiscences were not enough to – she was acknowledged as one of the most distinguished scientist such as Wu deserves reconstruct her past. distinguished experimental physicists in the to have a good biography. I discussed this I flew more than 30,000 miles, all over the world. proposal with Wu two years later. Always world, to interview more than 50 individuals Wu went to the US in 1936. By the time she matter-of-fact, modest and never seeking in China, Hong Kong, Europe, the US and earned a PhD in 1940, her achievements and fame, she declined. Only after many verbal Canada. The tape recording of tens of hours insights in research had already received the and written persuasions, and the argument was followed by telephones calls to confirm highest admiration from many professors put forward by Luke Yuan [her husband] details. at the University of California, Berkeley, that her biography would help in inspiring I used objective narrative as much as such as the great American scientists Robert Chinese youth in addition to publicizing her possible, avoiding subjective opinion or Oppenheimer and Ernest Lawrence. As achievements, was she finally convinced. novel-style descriptions. Basically, this a result, she was invited as a non-citizen With the inspiration of Yang, I realized the book conforms to the current trend in of the US to participate in the top-secret importance of using an objective narrative in biographic writing: using a style closer to “Manhattan Project”, working on atomic writing this book. As a result, I did not rely news reporting. In a way, its writing could bombs, and made critical contributions to only on her own account but would interview be regarded as an attempt to test the idea that the project. her colleagues, students, friends, relatives “news serves as a footnote of history”. Because of her significant achievements and even competitors, and make reference to ● Tsai-Chien Chiang, author of Madame Chien-Shiung and her profound influences in physics, Wu many documents and literature.