Chien-Shiung Wu: A Mighty Hero

Scientist Quick Facts

Name: Chien-Shiung Wu
Born: 1912 — Liuhe, China
Died: 1997 — New York, USA
Field: Nuclear Physics
Known For: The Wu Experiment proving parity violation in physics
Legacy: One of the most important experimental physicists of the 20th century, sometimes called the ‘First Lady of Physics.’

Who Was Chien-Shiung Wu?

Chien-Shiung Wu was a Chinese American physicist whose experiments changed how scientists understand subatomic particles. She was a leading expert in nuclear physics, contributed to the Manhattan Project during World War II, and later carried out the famous Wu Experiment, which transformed modern physics.

Joining the Manhattan Project

In 1944, World War II was raging. The US government was racing to build an atomic bomb before its enemies could. Many top scientists worked on the project, called the Manhattan Project. Some of them had known Chien-Shiung Wu as a student. They knew she worked hard and quickly and was an expert on atoms. Chien-Shiung was asked to join the project. Sometimes people underestimated her or treated her rudely because she was woman or because she was Chinese. That didn’t discourage her. She helped to make the fuel for the bomb. When a nuclear reactor kept shutting down, she figured out why. The project was successful. The US and its allies won the war.

Early Life and Education

How had a girl born in a small Chinese village in 1912 come to be part of the team that built the first atomic bomb? It had been a long road. Chien-Shiung had a bright smile, a name that meant “mighty hero”, and a talent for math. But getting a good education wasn’t easy. Many people in China at that time thought education wasn’t important for girls. Luckily, Chien-Shiung’s parents disagreed. Her father started an elementary school for girls which she attended. For middle school and high school, she went to a boarding school. She graduated at the top of her class. She wanted to study math and science in college but worried she hadn’t learned enough to do well. The summer before she started college, her father bought three textbooks to help her.

Studying Physics in the United States

“Imagine what a near miss it had been,” she said later. “If it hadn’t been for my father’s encouragement, I wouldn’t have had the courage to select physics as a major.” Like a mighty hero, her courage never again wavered. When she was 24, her uncle helped her travel to the U.S. to pursue her goal of getting a doctorate degree. At the University of California, Berkeley she studied the behavior of atoms. Her passion was doing experiments. She said experiments showed, “the courage to doubt what has long been believed.”

Early Career and Teaching

After finishing her doctorate degree, Chien-Shiung couldn’t find a job doing experiments. Instead, she took a job teaching physics at Princeton University where she was the first female professor. She didn’t stay long, though. She left to join the Manhattan Project. After the war, Chien-Shiung was finally offered a job at Columbia University where she could do experiments. She would be paid less than the male professors at Columbia. She took the job anyway so she could do what she loved.

The Experiment That Changed Physics

In 1956, two male physicists showed Chien-Shiung their theory about two subatomic particles. They thought the two particles might actually be the same particle. They wondered if Chien-Shiung could design an experiment to prove their idea. She could, and she did. Her experiment forever changed how physicists think about subatomic particles. She described working on this experiment as “moments of exhilaration and ecstasy.” In 1957 the two male scientists won the Nobel Prize for Physics, but Chien-Shiung was left out. Many people think she would have shared in the prize if she had been a man.

Returning to China

Chien-Shiung had always wanted to go back to China, but World War II disrupted travel. After that war, civil war broke out in China, and the Chinese Communist Party took over the country. Her parents warned her not to return. When she finally visited at age 61, both of her parents had died. Her uncle and brother had been killed by the Communist Party. She hadn’t seen any of them since she left China 37 years earlier.

Speaking Out for Women in Science

Chien-Shiung encouraged women and girls to choose careers in math and science. She often spoke out about ways women were treated unfairly. Once, another professor said women were best suited to staying home. She replied, “I wonder whether the tiny atoms…have any preference for either masculine or feminine treatment.” When she was 63, Columbia finally agreed to pay her as much as male professors.

A Lasting Legacy

Although Chien-Shiung retired when she was 69, scientists still often asked for her advice. She died at age 84. At her request, her ashes were buried in the courtyard of the school her father had founded. A mighty hero had come home.

Glossary

Atoms: the tiny building blocks of all matter. Every atom has a nucleus at the center with electrons orbiting the nucleus.

Atomic bomb: a bomb which works by breaking atoms apart, releasing huge amounts of destructive energy.

Nuclear reactor: a machine that breaks atoms apart in order to capture and use the energy that is released.

Physics: the scientific study of energy and matter, including motion, light, sound, electricity, magnetism, and atoms. Physics relies heavily on math.

Subatomic particles: particles of matter that are even smaller than an atom. Electrons are one example.