Public Figure Profiles

Ernest Lawrence

Ernest Orlando Lawrence (August 8, 1901 – August 27, 1958) was a pioneering American nuclear physicist and winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1939 for his invention of the cyclotron. He is known for his work on uranium-isotope separation for the Manhattan Project, as well as for founding the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

A graduate of the University of South Dakota and University of Minnesota, Lawrence obtained a PhD in physics at Yale in 1925. In 1928, he was hired as an associate professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley, becoming the youngest full professor there two years later. In its library one evening, Lawrence was intrigued by a diagram of an accelerator that produced high-energy particles. He contemplated how it could be made compact, and came up with an idea for a circular accelerating chamber between the poles of an electromagnet. The result was the first cyclotron.

Lawrence went on to build a series of ever larger and more expensive cyclotrons. His Radiation Laboratory became an official department of the University of California in 1936, with Lawrence as its director. In addition to the use of the cyclotron for physics, Lawrence also supported its use in research into medical uses of radioisotopes. During World War II, Lawrence developed electromagnetic isotope separation at the Radiation Laboratory. It used devices known as calutrons, a hybrid of the standard laboratory mass spectrometer and cyclotron. A huge electromagnetic separation plant was built at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, which came to be called Y-12. The process was inefficient, but it worked.

After the war, Lawrence campaigned extensively for government sponsorship of large scientific programs, and was a forceful advocate of "Big Science", with its requirements for big machines and big money. Lawrence strongly backed Edward Teller's campaign for a second nuclear weapons laboratory, which Lawrence located in Livermore, California. After his death, the Regents of the University of California renamed the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory after him. Chemical element number 103 was named lawrencium in his honor after its discovery at Berkeley in 1961.

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Some of their strengths

Ernest Lawrence has many admirable traits.

Based on spiritual traditions from around the world, they are someone who can be described as Confident, Energetic, Extroverted, Passionate, Intelligent, Communicative, and Intuitive.

Bold and Confident

According to Mysticism’s Astrology tradition, Ernest Lawrence is someone who is a bold, confident, energetic, and optimistic person, who is able to combine personal warmth and charisma with intelligence. A person who is ambitious and motivated.

Constant and Serious

Based on Daoism’s Ba-Zi or ‘Chinese Zodiac’ tradition, people who know Ernest Lawrence well know them as someone who can be determined, unmoving, and firm, like a rock or a high mountain.

Courteous and Easygoing

According to Hinduism’s Jyotisha or ‘Vedic Astrology’ tradition, many would also describe Ernest Lawrence as someone who is polite, modest, and diplomatic.

A person who tends to be socially popular, who loves intellectual or creative activities, who has a talent for communicating with and understanding the needs of others, and who seems to have a knack for getting recognized for their efforts.

Communicative and Intelligent

Based on the Mayan Tzolk’in or ‘Mayan Astrology’ tradition, Ernest Lawrence is someone who tends to have a desire to communicate with others, either verbally, through written form, or otherwise, and to have a knack for understanding art, beauty, and aesthetics.

They are also someone who is active, giving, optimistic, and cheerful, and who possesses a charisma that attracts friends and admirers.

Creative and Leadership-oriented

According to Judaism’s Kabbalah tradition, Ernest Lawrence tends to be someone who is a natural leader, with determination, motivational powers, and who takes obligations seriously. Who has charisma, a sense of humor, and who tends to attract attention.

Some of Ernest Lawrence's challenges

While Ernest Lawrence has many strengths, nobody is perfect. They also have some challenging traits they need to manage.

For example, Ernest Lawrence can be Arrogant, Status-seeking, Indecisive, Hypocritical, Self-centered, Complicated, and Brusque.

Arrogant and Status-seeking

One of Ernest Lawrence's key challenges is that they are someone who can come across as arrogant and status-seeking.

Indecisive and Materialistic

Ernest Lawrence is someone who can be indecisive, indulgent, and materialistic, who can have difficulty focusing on a single career or profession, have difficulty following orders or respecting authority, and who can suffer from "analysis paralysis".

Domineering and Stubborn

Finally, Ernest Lawrence also can be too rebellious, not respond to criticism well, and be too emotional and extreme about things.

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