George Gamow
George Gamow (pronounced
"GAM-off") (
March 4,
1904 –
August 19,
1968) , born
Georgiy Antonovich Gamov ("еоргий Антонович "амов) was a
Ukrainian born
physicist and
cosmologist. He worked on subjects including the
atomic nucleus,
star formation,
stellar nucleosynthesis,
Big Bang nucleosynthesis,
nucleocosmogenesis, and
genetics.
Gamow was born in
Odessa, in the
Russian Empire, now in
Ukraine. He was educated at the
Novorossiya University in
Odessa (1922–23) and at the
University of Leningrad (1923–1929). Gamow studied under
Alexander Friedmann for some time in
Leningrad, though Friedmann died in 1925. On graduation he studied
quantum theory in
Göttingen, where his research into the atomic nucleus provided the basis for his doctorate. He then worked at the
Theoretical Physics Institute of the
University of Copenhagen, from
1928 to
1931 with a break to work with
Ernest Rutherford at the
Cavendish Laboratory,
Cambridge, he continued to study the atomic nucleus (proposing the
"liquid drop" model) but also worked on stellar physics with
Robert Atkinson and
Fritz Houtermans.
In the early 1900s, radioactive materials were known to have characteristic exponential decay rates or half lives. At the same time, radiation emissions were known to have certain characteristic energies. By 1928, Gamow had solved the theory of the
alpha decay of a nucleus via
tunnelling. Classically, the particle is confined to the
nucleus because of the high energy requirement to escape the very strong potential. Classically, it takes an enormous amount of energy to pull apart the nucleus. In
quantum mechanics, however, there is a probability the particle can tunnel through the potential and escape. Gamow solved a model potential for the nucleus and derived a relationship between the
half-life of the particle and the energy of the emission.
Gamow then worked at a number of Soviet establishments before deciding to flee the increased oppression in Russia. His first two attempts to defect with his wife
Lyubov Vokhminzeva were in 1932 and involved attempting to kayak across the iron curtain, first a 250 kilometer paddle over the Black Sea to Turkey and then from Murmansk to Norway. Poor weather foiled the attempts. In 1933 the two tried a less dramatic approach, Gamow managed to obtain permission for himself and his wife (who was also a physicist) to attend the
Solvay Conference for physicists in
Brussels. The two attended and promptly defected and in 1934 they moved to the
United States. Gamow became a
naturalized American in
1940. He began working at
George Washington University in 1934, where he published with
Edward Teller,
Mario Schoenberg, and
Ralph Alpher.
Gamow produced an important
cosmogony paper with Alpher which was published as the
Alpher-Bethe-Gamow theory in 1948. Gamow had added the name of
Hans Bethe (who had not had any role in the paper) to make a
pun on the first three letters of the
Greek alphabet,
alpha beta gamma. The paper outlined how the present levels of hydrogen and helium in the universe (which were and are thought to make up over 99% of all matter) could be largely explained by reactions that occurred during the "
Big Bang". This lent support to the Big Bang theory, although it did not explain the presence of elements heavier than helium (this was done later by
Fred Hoyle). Gamow was a strong advocate of the Big Bang theory, and in 1946 postulated on the existence and made an estimate of the strength of residual
cosmic microwave background radiation. However astronomers and scientists did not make any effort to detect this radiation at that time, due to a lack of interest and the immaturity of microwave observation. Consequently, this important observation in support of the Big Bang was not made until its 1965
discovery.
After the discovery of the structure of
DNA, Gamow realized that the sequence of
nucleotides formed a code. He corresponded with researchers in the field about this concept.
He remained in
Washington until
1954, then worked at
University of California, Berkeley (1954), and
University of Colorado at Boulder (1956–1968). In
1956 he was awarded the
Kalinga prize by
UNESCO for his work in popularizing science with his
Mr. Tompkins... series of books (1939–1967),
One Two Three ... Infinity, and other works.
*Gamow was an imposing figure at six feet, three inches (190.5 cm) and over 225 pounds (102 kg) but was known for his impish sense of humor. He was once described as "the only scientist in America with a real sense of humor" by a United Press International reporter.
*He was highly regarded in the Soviet Union before his defection, and had once been a commissioned officer in the Red Army, a fact which likely prevented the US from putting him to work on the
Manhattan project during World War 2. The Americans were apparently not swayed by the arguments that Gamow was only given officer status so that he could teach science courses to soldiers and that the USSR had sentenced him to death for his defection.
Mr. Tompkins in Paperback, 1965, Cambridge University Press, 1993 Canto edition with foreword by
Roger Penrose, ISBN 0-521-44771-2. Originally published in two books as
Mr. Tompkins in Wonderland in 1940 and
Mr. Tompkins Explores the Atom in 1945, following serial publication in
Discovery magazine (UK) in 1938. Creatively illustrated by the author, and complete with a scored musical composition ("The Cosmic Opera"), the book explains the principles of relativity and quantum theory in a fashion that is entertaining to young people and adults.
One, Two, Three...Infinity, 1947, Viking Press (copyright renewed by Barbara Gamow, 1974), Dover Publications, ISBN 0-486-25664-2, illustrated by the author. Dedicated to his son, Igor ("who wanted to be a cowboy") The book winds from
mathematics to
biology, through
physics,
crystallography, and more.
Thirty Years That Shook Physics: The Story of Quantum Theory, 1966, Dover Publications, ISBN 0-486-24895-X. Illustrated by the author and with period photographs, Gamow describes an insider's view of the development of quantum theory. Having worked with
Niels Bohr and
Ernest Rutherford, he not only can expound the theory, he supplies candid photos of
Edward Teller on skis, Bohr on a motorcycle,
Werner Heisenberg having a swim, and
Enrico Fermi playing tennis. The finale is a dramatic playscript (also illustrated) of the history of atomic physics with the scientists cast in roles after the model of
Goethe's
Faust.
*
RNA Tie club*
Urca process*
Ylem*
Memorial Lecture Series (University of Colorado, at Boulder)*
Brief biography*
"Getting a Bang Out of Gamow"*
"The Big Bang and the genetic code" ~ Nature (30 March 2000)*
"DNA: An "Amateur" Makes a Real Contribution"*
"A Respectable Scientist" ~ Signal + Noise : All Models Are False, Some Are Useful (28 November 2003)*
Brief biography (in
PDF)
*
Gamow Books* Complete
Gamow bibliography*
Annotated bibliography for George Gamow from the Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues
