I
was born in Copenhagen on June 19, 1922, as the fourth son of Niels
Bohr and Margrethe Bohr (née Nørlund). During my early childhood, my
parents lived at the Institute for Theoretical
Physics (now the Niels Bohr Institute), and the remarkable generation of
scientists who came to join my father in his work became for us children Uncle
Kramers, Uncle Klein, Uncle Nishina, Uncle Heisenberg, Uncle Pauli, etc. When I
was about ten years old, my parents moved to the mansion at Carlsberg, where
they were hosts for widening circles of scholars, artists, and persons in public
life.
I went to school for twelve years at Sortedam Gymnasium (H. Adler's fæellesskole)
and am indebted to many of my teachers, both in the humanities and in the
sciences, for inspiration and encouragement.
I began studying physics at the University of
Copenhagen in 1940 (a few months after the German occupation of Denmark). By
that time, I had already begun to assist my father with correspondence, with his
writing of articles of a general epistemological character, and gradually also
in connection with his work in physics. In those years, he was concerned partly
with problems of nuclear physics and partly with problems relating to the
penetration of atomic particles through matter.
In October 1943, my father had to flee Denmark to avoid arrest by the Nazis, and
the whole family managed to escape to Sweden, where we were warmly received.
Shortly afterwards, my father proceeded to England, and I followed after him. He
became associated with the atomic energy project and, during the two years until
we returned to Denmark, in August 1945, we travelled together spending extensive
periods in London, Washington, and Los Alamos. I was acting as his assistant and
secretary and had the opportunity daily to share in his work and thoughts. We
were members of the British team, and my official position was that of a junior
scientific officer employed by the Department of Scientific and Industrial
Research in London. In another context, I have attempted to describe some of the
events of those years and my father's efforts relating to the prospects raised
by the atomic weapons1.
On my return to Denmark, I resumed my studies at the University and obtained a
master's degree in 1946. My thesis was concerned with some aspects of atomic
stopping problems.
For the spring term of 1948, I was a member of the Institute
for Advanced Study in Princeton. On a visit during that period to Columbia
University and through discussions with professor I.
I. Rabi, I became interested in a newly discovered effect in the hyperfine
structure in deuterium. This led on to my association with Columbia University
from January 1949 to August 1950. As described in my lecture, this was for me a
very fruitful association.
Soon after my return to Copenhagen, I began the close cooperation with Ben
Mottelson which has continued ever since. The main direction of our work is
described in the lectures included in the present volume. During the last
fifteen years, a major part of our efforts has been connected with the attempt
to present the status of our understanding of nuclear structure in a monograph,
of which Volume I (Single-Particle Motion) appeared in 1969, and Volume II
(Nuclear Deformations) in 1975. We feel that in our cooperation, we have been
able to exploit possibilities that lie in a dialogue between kindred spirits
that have been attuned through a long period of common experience and jointly
developed understanding. It has been our good fortune to work closely together
with colleagues at the Niels Bohr Institute and Nordita,
including the many outstanding scientists who have come from all parts of the
world and have so greatly enriched the scientific atmosphere and personal
contacts.
I have been connected with the Niels Bohr Institute since the completion of my
university studies, first as a research fellow and from 1956 as a professor of
physics at the University of Copenhagen. After the death of my father in 1962, I
followed him as director of the Institute until 1970.
For our whole circle, it has been a challenge to exploit the opportunities
provided by the traditions of the Institute, of which I would like especially to
mention two aspects. One concerns the fruitful interplay between experimental
and theoretical investigations. The other concerns the promotion of
international cooperation as a vital factor in the development of science itself
and also as a means to strengthen the mutual knowledge and understanding between
nations.
In 1957, Nordita (Nordisk Institut for Teoretisk Atomfysik) was founded on the
premises of the Niels Bohr Institute, and the two institutes operate in close
association. I have been a member of the Board of Nordita from 1957 until 1975,
and since then director of this institute.
In March 1950, in New York City, I was married to Marietta Soffer. We have three
children, Vilhelm, Tomas, and Margrethe. Both for my wife and myself, the
personal friendships that have grown out of scientific contacts with colleagues
from many different countries have been an important part of our lives, and the
travels we have made together in connection with the world-wide scientific
co-operation have given us rich treasures of experiences.
1 Niels Bohr. His life and work as seen by his
friends and colleagues, p. 191. Ed. by S. Rozental, North-Holland Publishing
Company, Amsterdam 1967
From Les
Prix Nobel 1975.
|
IF
YOU SEE A YELLOW "ENTER" BUTTON ABOVE, PLEASE DO NOT "CLICK" ON IT.
THIS WILL TAKE YOU TO A GAMBLING SITE WHICH WAS ADDED TO OUR WEB SITE
WITHOUT OUR PERMISSION!
This web site is growing by 150 pages per month - Click
