Great Country Academician

(Added update 9/10 for the leader of the alliance, Xing Yan, there is still 1 update left, it’s fast, it’s fast (ω))

In the United States, far across the Atlantic Ocean is Binghamton, New York.

In the materials science and chemistry class of the State University of New York at Binghamton, Professor Stanley Whittingham, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2019 for his contribution to the research and development of lithium-ion batteries, is teaching these young students They teach in the field of electrochemistry.

For tasks such as teaching, some professors will leave the teaching tasks to their teaching assistants or their own students, or even randomly select a researcher from the research group to replace them.

For academia, this is already the default unspoken rule.

In addition to the field of mathematics, many professors in other subjects do this.

However, some people like to have people teach on their behalf, and naturally there are also people who like to teach students in person.

Professor Stanley Whittingham is one of them. He enjoys the feeling of imparting knowledge to young students in the classroom.

Perhaps to others, it seems like a waste of time for a Nobel Prize-level scholar to stand in the classroom and teach undergraduates and graduate students.

After all, it is difficult for young students who are new to academia to keep up with the ideas and pace of such big-name scholars.

However, the fact is quietly the opposite. Most Nobel Prize-level scholars prefer to teach students in person than ordinary professors, and are also happy to communicate with students in the classroom.

According to Stanley Whittingham, young minds can carry more light.

Sometimes, the questions or ideas raised by students in class can often bring them critical inspiration and inspiration.

After finishing a big class, in the last question-and-answer session of the class, I naturally faced students asking for advice.

"Professor, have you read the paper that Professor Xu from China recently published on the Arxiv preprint website?"

Hearing this question, Stanley Whittingham smiled and nodded, saying, "I've seen it, do you have any questions?"

"I would like to ask Professor Xu, has he really done it? He has established a set of accurate, effective and universally applicable many-body quantum theory and statistical theory for electrochemistry."

The students who raised their hands to ask looked at Stanley Whittingham with curiosity and expectation.

For those studying electrochemistry, this paper is really important.

If it is confirmed to be true, I am afraid that the world of chemistry, at least the field of electrochemistry, will usher in earth-shaking changes.

On this basis, even lithium dendrite problems, lithium-sulfur batteries, and lithium-air batteries are nothing.

After all, it benefits the entire field of electrochemistry, establishing a set of accurate, effective and universally applicable quantum theory and coordination work for electrochemistry, which is applicable to the entire electrochemistry, not just a certain technology.

You should know that many fields such as chemical power supply, electrochemical analysis, electrochemical synthesis, photoelectrochemistry, electrocatalysis, electrometallurgy, electrolysis, etc. are all electrochemistry.

More importantly, among the many branches of chemistry, electrochemistry is the only discipline based on large industry.

Based on this theory in the field of chemistry, the results extended are undoubtedly significant to the development of the industrial system.

If this result is accepted by the academic community, even if it is just one example, its status will be at the pinnacle of contemporary chemistry.

Even looking back in the field of electrochemistry, I am afraid that only Humphrey Davy, Faraday, Nernst and other historical greats who laid the foundation for the subject of electrochemistry can be compared.

After listening to the student's question, Stanley Whittingham thought seriously for a while before replying: "Honestly, I can't give you an answer to this question."

"Why?"

Stanley Whittingham pushed up his glasses on the bridge of his nose and replied: "Professor Xu's paper applied a large number of mathematical tools and some knowledge in the field of condensed matter physics. He established a system for the microscopic explanation of electrochemistry. It may not be possible to fully understand and accept these new theories in a short period of time.”

After a slight pause, he looked at the student who asked the question and continued:

"In fact, even verifying whether it is correct will take a long time. Therefore, based on scientific rigor, I cannot answer your question at the moment."

However, faced with this answer, the student who asked the question was obviously not satisfied. He changed the question and continued to ask.

"Professor, what if I want you to give me an opinion? Do you think he is more likely to be right or wrong?"

Stanley Whittingham smiled and replied: "Personal speculation is not rigorous for science and has little meaning, especially now that I have not fully understood the paper."

"but."

After a slight pause, he looked at the student who asked the question, and after scanning the classroom, he continued: "But if I have to give an opinion, I think he is more likely to do it. "

"Is it because of Professor Xu's reputation?" a student asked in the classroom.

Stanley Whittingham smiled and said: "Not only is Professor Xu's academic character always highly reputable, but also because in the paper, the theories related to the electrochemistry module And some experimental data on lithium batteries are basically self-consistent and have no problems. "

"This means that it is not that he has not seriously thought about this issue, but only issued it after careful calculation and confirmation."

"Based on that, I think he's more likely to do it."

After hearing the professor's answer, the sound of discussion rang out in the classroom.

Someone curiously asked: "Professor, if this paper is correct, what impact will it have on the chemistry world?"

Stanley Whittingham thought for a while and replied: "If it is correct, for the world of chemistry, at least for electrochemistry, it will bring us a brand new future."

Hearing this, the students in the classroom had various expressions on their faces such as shock, surprise, and disbelief.

If other chemists said this, many people might question it.

But Professor Stanley Whittingham, at least in the field of electrochemistry, is now ranked not only in the top three, but at least in the top five.

The 19-year Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry was awarded for his contribution to the field of lithium batteries. He discovered layered electrode materials that can store lithium ions and created "rechargeable" lithium batteries.

That’s right, before Professor Stanley Whittingham developed rechargeable lithium batteries, lithium batteries were disposable products and could not be used repeatedly.

After him, it can be said that the entire lithium battery era began.

And he is not only a Nobel Prize winner, but now also the director of the Materials Research Institute and the Materials Science and Engineering Program at the State University of New York at Binghamton University.

As the director of the materials science and engineering program at a top university, his judgment on the development of cutting-edge science and technology in the chemical industry is undoubtedly top-notch.

Looking at the students' reactions, Professor Stanley Whittingham smiled.

"That's it for today's class. As for homework, since everyone is very interested in Professor Xu's paper, this will be the title of the homework."

"I hope that by next Monday, you can all read the paper completely and write a cognitive paper on the field of electrochemistry."

"That's it, get out of class is over."

Knocking on the table, Stanley Whittingham announced that get out of class was over. Just as he was about to take his teaching materials and leave the classroom, a student shouted under the stairs.

"Professor, if this paper is proven to be correct, is it possible for him to win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry?"

Hearing this question, Stanley Whittingham's lips curved into a smile.

He pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose and said in a casual and joking tone: "If it is proven to be true, then it won't matter if the Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded to him."

"Because this paper itself is an honor!"

After leaving the classroom, Stanley Whittingham did not go back to his office. Instead, he went to the parking lot, lit a fire and headed to another branch of the State University of New York, the University at Buffalo.

In fact, the State University of New York is not an institution, but a university system composed of many institutions of higher learning in the state of New York, USA.

It is the largest higher education system in the world and the largest and most comprehensive state university education system in the United States, with a total of 64 member campuses and nearly 500,000 students.

This is a terrifying number, and it also means that the State University of New York system is strong in scientific research capabilities.

As for the paper Xu Chuan uploaded to the Arxiv preprint website, whether it is the establishment of a precise, effective and universally applicable quantum theory and coordination work in electrochemistry, or the exploration of the mechanism of lithium-air batteries, neither State University of New York has May be missed.

The former may be the future of electrochemistry, and the latter may be the future of lithium batteries.

No one wants to miss this kind of paper that can change the entire world, and the State University of New York is no exception. For Xu Chuan's paper, they set up a research group to study the correctness and value of the paper.

Stanley Whittingham was the leader of the team and was responsible for the theoretical chemistry part.

Unfortunately, their progress in analyzing and demonstrating the mathematical part of the paper was somewhat slow and difficult.

After all, it is still difficult to find a math guru who is proficient in mathematics in the chemistry world, or to find a math guru who is relatively proficient in chemistry.

PS: There will be another chapter tonight, please vote for me!