Ernest RutherfordErnest Rutherford

From the modest farm in Spring Grove, New Zealand, to the prestigious laboratories of Cambridge, Ernest Rutherford's life is a scientific adventure that changed our understanding of the universe forever. This book tells the extraordinary story of the man who, from humble colonial beginnings, became the father of nuclear physics. In an engaging narrative style, we retrace the crucial moments of his life: from his childhood in a family of twelve children, through his years of study, to the revolutionary discoveries that won him the Nobel Prize. You will discover how Rutherford, with ingenuity and determination, unlocked the secrets of the atom through experiments as ingenious as they were elegant. His ability to visualise the invisible led him to discover the structure of the atom and achieve the first artificial transmutation of an element. But as well as the scientist, get to know the man: his infectious charisma, his cutting humour, his dedication to teaching and his ability to inspire a generation of brilliant researchers. From his collaborations with Marie Curie to his disputes with Einstein, from his ethical concerns about the use of atomic energy to his family life, this book offers an intimate and comprehensive portrait of one of the greatest geniuses in the history of science.