Gertrude Scharff Goldhaber facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gertrude Scharff Goldhaber
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| Born | July 14, 1911 Mannheim, Germany
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| Died | February 2, 1998 (aged 86) Patchogue, New York, U.S.
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| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of Munich |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Physics |
| Institutions | University of Illinois 1939-1950 Brookhaven National Laboratory 1950-1979 |
| Doctoral advisor | Walther Gerlach |
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Gertrude Scharff Goldhaber (born July 14, 1911 – died February 2, 1998) was a brilliant physicist. She was born in Germany and became an American citizen. Gertrude was known for her work in nuclear physics, which is the study of the tiny parts inside atoms.
She earned her highest degree from the University of Munich. Her family faced terrible times during The Holocaust, but Gertrude managed to find safety in London and later in the United States. Some of her important research during World War II was kept secret until 1946. After the war, she and her husband, Maurice Goldhaber, worked for many years at a famous science lab called Brookhaven National Laboratory.
Contents
Early Life and Challenges
Gertrude Scharff was born in Mannheim, Germany, on July 14, 1911. She went to public school and quickly became interested in science. This was unusual for girls at that time, but her parents supported her passion. Her father had wanted to be a chemist himself.
Gertrude's early life was not easy. During World War I, she remembered eating bread made partly of sawdust. Her family also struggled through a time when money lost its value in Germany after the war. Despite these difficulties, she was able to attend the University of Munich.
Becoming a Physicist
At the University of Munich, Gertrude quickly fell in love with physics. Even though her family had supported her interest in science, her father suggested she study law. Gertrude told him, “I’m not interested in the law. I want to understand what the world is made of.”
Like many students then, Gertrude studied at different universities. She visited the University of Freiburg, the University of Zurich, and the University of Berlin. It was at the University of Berlin that she met her future husband, Maurice Goldhaber. She then returned to the University of Munich to complete her research with Walter Gerlach. Her research focused on how stress affects magnetism. She finished her degree in 1935 and published her findings in 1936.
With the rise of the Nazi party in 1933, Gertrude faced growing problems in Germany because of her Jewish heritage. Her father was arrested, but he and his wife later escaped to Switzerland. Sadly, they returned to Germany and lost their lives during The Holocaust. Gertrude stayed in Germany until she finished her degree in 1935, then she fled to London. Her sister, Liselotte, also managed to escape the Nazis.
Career and Discoveries
When Gertrude first arrived in London, she supported herself by selling her camera and translating German to English. She found it hard to get a job as a scientist because many other scientists were also seeking refuge. She wrote to 35 scientists, and only Maurice Goldhaber offered some hope, suggesting she might find work in Cambridge. She eventually found a job in George Paget Thomson's lab, studying how electrons behave.
In 1939, Gertrude married Maurice Goldhaber. She moved to Urbana, Illinois, to join him at the University of Illinois. However, the state had strict rules that prevented her from being hired by the university because her husband already worked there. Gertrude worked in Maurice’s lab as an unpaid assistant. Since his lab was set up for nuclear physics, she began researching in that field too. During this time, Gertrude and Maurice had two sons, Alfred and Michael. Eventually, the university found a way to pay her for her research.
In 1941, Goldhaber studied how neutrons interact with protons and other atomic centers. In 1942, she researched how gamma radiation is given off and absorbed by atomic nuclei. Around this time, she also observed that when an atom splits on its own (called spontaneous nuclear fission), it releases neutrons. This idea had been thought of before, but Gertrude was the first to show it. Her work on spontaneous nuclear fission was kept secret during World War II and was only published after the war ended in 1946.
Later, Gertrude and Maurice Goldhaber moved to Long Island and both joined the staff at Brookhaven National Laboratory. At the lab, Gertrude started a series of monthly talks called the Brookhaven Lecture Series. These talks are still happening today!
Awards and Recognition
Gertrude Goldhaber received many honors for her important work:
- 1947 — She was chosen as a fellow of the American Physical Society.
- 1972 — She was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, becoming only the third female physicist to receive this honor.
- 1982 — She received the Long Island Achiever’s Award in Science.
- 1984 — She was a Phi Beta Kappa visiting scholar.
- 1990 — She received the Outstanding Woman Scientist Award from the New York Chapter of the Association for Women Scientists.
Legacy
In 2001, the Brookhaven National Laboratory created special awards in her honor. These are called the Gertrude and Maurice Goldhaber Distinguished Fellowships. These highly respected fellowships are given to talented young scientists who want to do independent research at the cutting edge of their fields.
Images for kids
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Gertrude Scharff Goldhaber
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Gertrude Goldhaber's signature
See also
In Spanish: Gertrude Scharff Goldhaber para niños
