Physics

Chien-Shiung Wu: Physicist

Chien-Shiung Wu: Physicist

Chien-Shiung Wu, Physicist was born May 29, 1912, Liuhe, Jiangsu province, China. In 1929 Wu was admitted to the National Central University in Nanjing and graduated in 1936 and then traveled to the United States to pursue graduate studies in physics at the University of California at Berkeley, studying under Ernest O. Lawrence. After receiving a Ph.D. in 1940, she taught at Smith College and at Princeton University. She made significant contributions in the field of nuclear physics. Her expertise in experimental physics evoked comparisons to Marie Curie. Her nicknames include “the First Lady of Physics”, “the Chinese Madame Curie”, and the “Queen of Nuclear Research”.