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Philipp Lenard

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Scientist

The Resume

    (June 7, 1862-May 20, 1947)
    Born in Bratislava, Slovak Republic
    Worked with cathode rays and discovered many of their properties
    Discovered the photoelectric effect: the energy of electrons ejected from a cathode depends solely on the wavelength of the incident light and not on the intensity of the light
    Recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics (1905)

Why he might be annoying:

    He complained about Wilhelm Roentgen winning the first Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering X-rays, arguing that he had invented the apparatus used to produce them and therefore was the true 'mother of X-rays,' while Roentgen was a 'midwife' who had merely assisted in their discovery.
    He was an outspoken proponent of 'Deutsche Physik,' and that Germany should ignore the 'Jewish fraud' of relativity.
    He used his membership in the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (the organization that awards the Nobel Prizes in Physics and Chemistry) to keep Albert Einstein from being honored as long as possible; when Einstein did win the Nobel Prize in Physics (1921), he made sure that the citation made no mention of relativity.
    He described Adolf Hitler as 'God's gift from times of old, when races were purer, people were greater, and minds were less deluded.'
    He joined the Nazi Party and was appointed Chief of Aryan Physics.
    A crater on the Moon had been named after him, but the International Astronomical Union dropped the name because of his Naziism (2020).

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was one of the first physicists to conclude that an atom was mostly empty space.
    He built a wind tunnel for meteorological studies, and with it discovered that large raindrops are not tear shaped; instead they are shaped like hamburger buns.
    Ironically, Einstein's Nobel Prize cited his explanation for the photoelectric effect that Lenard had discovered.
    By disparaging 'Jewish science,' he helped ensure that Nazi Germany did not develop the atomic bomb.

Credit: C. Fishel


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Year In Review:

    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying