Chapter 40 The meeting begins
After a full hour, the venue was already full.
Lord Kelvin, as the host, stood at the front and looking around, roughly estimated that there were more than 200 people.
What a terrifying number! I'm afraid that at least half of the world's top physics talents are gathered here.
Even though Lord Kelvin was highly respected and experienced, he was actually a little nervous at this moment.
He felt extremely honored to have the opportunity of a lifetime to witness such a meeting and to serve as the host.
The hearty voice came out of the microphone and echoed clearly in every corner of the huge venue.
"First of all, I want to thank all of you who have come from afar and are willing to give me a little face. It seems that I still have some face in the physics community."
There was a sudden burst of applause and laughter in the venue.
“It has been three hundred years since Galileo opened the door to science and formally established the natural science system.”
"For three hundred years, countless physicists have worked hard and bravely to create a great and brilliant world of physics."
"Their names, like stars, will always shine in the sky of physics, pointing the way for those who come after them."
"250 years ago, Newton single-handedly created classical mechanics and proposed the laws of motion and the law of universal gravitation."
"He is like a torch, lighting up the sky of the whole world and leading people away from the ignorance and darkness of the Middle Ages."
"In the following years, in the four fields of physics, optics, wave physics, thermodynamics, and electromagnetism, countless geniuses continued to research and experiment, and finally achieved great results."
"Whether light is a wave or a particle has been debated for more than 300 years. Although Newton believed it was a particle, Thomas Young's double-slit experiment proved that light is indeed a wave."
"Seventy years ago, Hamilton used mathematical equivalence to unify optics and mechanics."
"Forty years ago, my good friend Maxwell unified electromagnetism and optics and proposed the famous Maxwell equations."
"As for thermodynamics, Clausius and I did a little work and proposed the second law of thermodynamics."
"Later, Boltzmann proposed statistical mechanics and used the entropy formula to successfully prove that thermodynamics is the foundation of statistical mechanics."
"So, in my eyes, the classical physics system has been perfected, with classical mechanics, classical electromagnetic theory, and classical statistical mechanics as its three pillars."
"Everything in the universe and in the world can be explained by these three physical theories."
Hearing this, everyone in the conference hall held their breath. They were fascinated by the history of physics narrated by Lord Kelvin.
What a magnificent and exciting physics epic it is.
Under such harsh conditions, our ancestors still created scientific myths that shine like a star.
And now, everyone here will continue to explore higher peaks of physics on the shoulders of our predecessors.
Everyone felt excited and thrilled.
Then, Lord Kelvin's powerful voice continued:
"So, a few months ago, still here, I made the bold statement that the edifice of physics has been completed, and what remains is just the repair work."
"At that time, a young man was sitting below and laughing. I noticed him and asked him what he was laughing at."
"He said physics is far from perfect and has only just begun. He made a bet with me that within five years, he would be able to prove himself with a paper."
"Many old friends privately asked me why I agreed to bet with the other party in the first place, as he was just a young boy."
"I smiled and said, first of all, I was moved by his courage. If a person does not even have the courage to challenge authority, then he will not have any scientific achievements."
"Another reason is that I am afraid that I will once again suppress the enthusiasm of young people."
"I once felt a hint of unusual changes in Roentgen's X-rays, Curie's radioactivity, and Thomson's electrons." "Now it is proven that these are very innovative results. Of course, I still think they are all within the framework of classical physics."
"So, when a young man younger than Roentgen vowed to overturn physics, I was led to believe him."
"This is what happened with the 'Two Dark Clouds' speech."
When everyone heard this, they realized that there was such a story. After several years, these will become celebrity anecdotes.
At this time, Lord Kelvin's face was obviously flushed and his tone became more excited.
"And that arrogant young man, he didn't just talk big, he actually fulfilled his promise."
“He really demonstrated in one paper that physics is far from perfect.”
"I know a lot of people oppose this theory, but I still want to say it."
"Bruce, you won the bet. I apologize for insulting you and your people before. I hope you can forgive me."
Wow!
This caused a complete sensation in the venue.
No one expected that Lord Kelvin would publicly apologize, especially on such an important occasion.
Given his status in the physics community at that time, it would be understandable if he had belittled a junior.
But he still apologized and regretted the mistakes he made. As a scientist, he should not be racist.
Even Li Qiwei was moved. He was sitting in the first row. He stood up suddenly, looked at Lord Kelvin with his eyes, and said sincerely: "Lord Kelvin, I accept your apology."
After hearing this, Lord Kelvin smiled with relief, as if a huge stone had fallen from his heart, and even his voice became relaxed.
"Well, Bruce and Plank, please come up to the stage now."
"I hope you can make my apology worthy of the name. I don't want to be slapped in the face again!"
Everyone laughed, and Li Qiwei also said, "Don't worry, Lord, I have confidence." Planck just looked at him kindly without saying anything.
So, under the gaze of everyone, Li Qiwei and Plank slowly walked to the center of the podium in the conference hall and stood upright.
Lord Kelvin walked to the side, where the host was.
Then he repeated the rules of the meeting, causing a commotion.
Obviously, everyone was stunned by Li Qiwei's courage, but of course some people thought that this guy was too pretentious.
For example, the physics professors at Oxford University were very angry when they heard this round-robin questioning format.
This shows that Bruce Lee didn't take the people present seriously at all.
If Li Qiwei knew what they were thinking, he would definitely cry out in injustice.
He just felt that this was more convenient and would help to fully ensure order in the meeting place so that everyone could speak.
It's better than the debate team format.
With Kelvin's guidance, the meeting officially began!
First, Ridgway and Planck respectively talked about the main contents of the paper.
Elaborate on the idea of the concept of [quantum] and its impact on the future of physics.
Of course, it was mainly Li Qiwei who talked throughout the whole process. Planck took the initiative to ask to listen quietly at the side, and only occasionally added a few words.
Soon, the two's speeches ended, and the doubts about [quantum mechanics] finally came.
Thanks to [MouSan] for the monthly ticket, and thanks to all the book friends for the recommendation votes.
(End of this chapter)