PHYSICIST

Chien-Shiung Wu

1912 - 1997

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Chien-Shiung Wu (Chinese: 吳健雄; pinyin: Wú Jiànxióng; Wade–Giles: Wu2 Chien4-Hsiung2; May 31, 1912 – February 16, 1997) was a Chinese-American particle and experimental physicist who made significant contributions in the fields of nuclear and particle physics. Wu worked on the Manhattan Project, where she helped develop the process for separating uranium into uranium-235 and uranium-238 isotopes by gaseous diffusion. She is best known for conducting the Wu experiment, which proved that parity is not conserved. This discovery resulted in her colleagues Tsung-Dao Lee and Chen-Ning Yang winning the 1957 Nobel Prize in Physics, while Wu herself was awarded the inaugural Wolf Prize in Physics in 1978. Read more on Wikipedia

Her biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Chien-Shiung Wu is the 259th most popular physicist (down from 219th in 2019), the 209th most popular biography from China (up from 214th in 2019) and the 3rd most popular Chinese Physicist.

Chien-shiung Wu is most famous for her work in the field of particle physics. She was the first woman to be elected to the National Academy of Sciences and the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Physics.

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Among PHYSICISTS

Among physicists, Chien-Shiung Wu ranks 259 out of 851. Before her are Leon M. Lederman, John L. Hall, John Archibald Wheeler, Igor Kurchatov, Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, and Abdus Salam. After her are Serge Haroche, Julian Schwinger, Toshihide Maskawa, Carlo Rubbia, John Hasbrouck Van Vleck, and Osborne Reynolds.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1912, Chien-Shiung Wu ranks 44. Before her are Patrick White, Julius Axelrod, Woody Guthrie, Karl Malden, Pierre Boulle, and Herbert C. Brown. After her are Elsa Morante, Kim Philby, James Callaghan, Sonja Henie, Jozef Gabčík, and Otto Ernst Remer. Among people deceased in 1997, Chien-Shiung Wu ranks 39. Before her are Allen Ginsberg, Aldo Rossi, Helenio Herrera, John Eccles, Chaim Herzog, and Dora Maar. After her are Eugene Merle Shoemaker, Dodi Fayed, Zoltán Czibor, Otto Ernst Remer, Colonel Tom Parker, and Willem de Kooning.

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In China

Among people born in China, Chien-Shiung Wu ranks 209 out of 1,610. Before her are Tao Yuanming (365), Wang Wei (699), Yesün Temür (1293), Zu Chongzhi (429), Xiahou Dun (155), and Wang Zhaojun (-50). After her are Emperor Wen of Han (-202), Empress Xiaoyichun (1727), Jiang Wei (202), Charles K. Kao (1933), Donnie Yen (1963), and Shitao (1642).

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Among PHYSICISTS In China

Among physicists born in China, Chien-Shiung Wu ranks 3. Before her are Walter Houser Brattain (1902), and Tsung-Dao Lee (1926). After her are Yang Chen-Ning (1922), Daniel C. Tsui (1939), Qian Xuesen (1911), and He Jiankui (1984).

Chinese born Physicists

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