Peter Freund facts for kids

Peter George Oliver Freund (born September 7, 1936, in Timișoara, Romania – died March 6, 2018, in Chicago) was a smart professor of theoretical physics at the University of Chicago. Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that uses math to explain how the universe works. He made important discoveries in particle physics and string theory. He was also a talented writer.

Biography

Peter George Oliver Freund grew up and went to school in Timișoara, Romania. He studied at the Politehnica University of Timișoara. In November 1956, he took part in a protest against the Soviet influence in Romania. Because of this, he was arrested by the communist security police, called the Securitate. Luckily, he was not harmed.

In 1959, Peter Freund was able to leave Romania. He earned his PhD in theoretical physics from the University of Vienna in Austria. His teacher there was Walter Thirring. Since 1965, Freund taught at the University of Chicago. He lived in Chicago with his wife, Lucy, who was a psychologist. They had two daughters, Pauline and Caroline, and five grandchildren.

Research in Physics

Peter Freund was one of the first scientists to work on something called "two-component duality." This idea helped start what we now know as string theory. String theory suggests that tiny, vibrating strings are the basic building blocks of the universe.

He also helped develop the idea of unifying physics by adding extra dimensions of space. Imagine our world has three dimensions (length, width, height). Freund explored what would happen if there were more, hidden dimensions that are curled up very small.

Freund also made important contributions to other areas of physics. These included the theory of magnetic monopoles (hypothetical particles with only one magnetic pole), supersymmetry (a theory that relates different types of particles), and supergravity (a theory that combines gravity with supersymmetry). He also studied how numbers relate to string theory and how hadrons (particles like protons and neutrons) behave.

A Talented Writer

Besides his work in physics, Peter Freund was also a published author. He wrote a book called A Passion for Discovery in 2007.

Over the years, he wrote many short stories. He started publishing them in 2001 in online journals like Exquisite Corpse.

Freund also wrote two novellas, which are shorter than novels, called The Fine Underwear of Consciousness and Upside Down. He also wrote a full novel titled Belonging. With his childhood friend, Radu Ciobanu, he wrote a book in Romanian called Dialog peste Atlantic (Dialog Across the Atlantic). This book was about how two friends, separated for 50 years, saw the world differently. Freund had moved to the West, while Ciobanu lived under a communist government.

Two collections of his short stories were also published: West of West End in 2008 and Tales in a Minor Key in 2012.