Qian Sanqiang (1913.10.16-1992.6.28), formerly known as Qian Bingqiong, was born in Shaoxing, Zhejiang (originally in Huzhou City, Zhejiang), a nuclear physicist, the founder of my country's atomic energy science industry, "two bombs and one Winner of the "Star" Medal of Merit, member (academician) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He graduated from Tsinghua University with an undergraduate degree in 1936; in 1937, he studied for a doctorate at the Curie Laboratory of the Radium Institute of the University of Paris; in 1940, he received a French national doctorate; in 1946, he won the Henri Debard Microphysics Prize of the French Academy of Sciences; in 1947, he served as Researcher and research mentor at the French National Center for Scientific Research; returned to China in 1948 and served as a professor in the Department of Physics, Tsinghua University; in 1950, he served as deputy director of the Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences; in 1951, he took over as director of the Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences; in 1954, he was Appointed Secretary-General of the Academic Secretariat of the Chinese Academy of Sciences; elected as a member (academician) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1955; in 1956, he served as deputy minister of the Third Ministry of Machinery Industry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (renamed the Second Machinery Industry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences on February 11, 1958) (Ministry of Engineering, namely the "Second Machinery Department"); in 1978, he was appointed as a member of the Party Leadership Group and Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences; from 1978 to 1982, he concurrently served as the President of Zhejiang University; in 1999, he was posthumously awarded the "Two Bombs and One Satellite" Meritorious Service Medal.
Qian Sanqiang marked the turning point of China's nuclear weapons with his dedicated life. He is known as the "Father of China's atomic bomb ". He is a practitioner of "From Cow to Love", the discoverer of fission light, the pioneer of nuclear energy, and a sincere and pure patriot. His innovation in scientific research, his foresight in strategic judgment, his leadership in the development of "two bombs", his charisma in moral character, and his influence in social development fully demonstrate that Qian Sanqiang is an outstanding example of a strategic scientist. , an outstanding representative of the older generation of scientific and technological workers and a shining example of the new generation of scientific and technological workers.
Family background builds the background of life
Qian Sanqiang was born in a scholarly family in Huzhou, Zhejiang. His father Qian Xuantong was a famous philologist in modern China. He went to Japan to study in his early years and served as Peking University and Professor of at Beijing Normal University, he is an advocate of in the New Culture Movement. Qian Sanqiang's real name is Bingqiong, which means "pure in nature and ambitious in the sky." He lived with his father in Beijing when he was a boy, and studied at Kongde Middle School where Cai Yuanpei was the principal. This school is very enlightened and is a new-style school that is completely different from private schools. In addition to focusing on the "three educations" of moral, intellectual and physical education "In addition, we also pay attention to aesthetic education , labor, and music. Qian Sanqiang became a member of his class's basketball team when he first entered junior high school. He was the third-oldest member of the basketball team and had excellent grades, so the team members gave him the nickname "Sanqiang". His father Qian Xuantong accidentally learned about it and felt that the words "Three Strong" were not only easy to understand, but also meant "strong moral character, strong body and strong knowledge". After 1926, the word "Three Strong" replaced "Bingqiong".
In 1930, 17-year-old Qian Sanqiang was admitted to Peking University Preparatory School. In 1932, he was admitted to the Department of Physics of Tsinghua University and studied under famous professors such as Ye Qisun, Wu Youxun, Zhao Zhongyao and Sa Bendong who had returned from studying in the United States. Qian Xuantong wrote "From Ox to Love" in handwriting in 1933, hoping that Qian Sanqiang could carry forward the "ox energy" of the ox, be as diligent as an ox, and move in the direction of Newton and Einstein . The four-character motto "From cows to love" has become Qian Sanqiang's motto, spurring him on all the time. "From cattle to love" has become his life-long code of conduct, and it also foreshadows his life development trajectory: "Being strong enough to be strong" to study hard, "bravely holding on to the best", who would be better than me, willing to be a "Ruzi Niu" serving the people, The "pioneering cow" and the unpretentious "old scalper" who laid the foundation of atomic energy career.
In 1936, Qian Sanqiang served as the assistant to Director Yan Jici of the Institute of Physics of the Peking Academy. When the Marco Polo Bridge Incident broke out in 1937, Qian Xuantong, who was already suffering from high blood pressure, became aggravated because he was worried and angry about state affairs. His family and country were in trouble, and Qian Sanqiang was ready to give up the place he had obtained to study radium in France.But his father taught him: A man should worry about the immediate future, but he must be far-sighted. China does not have advanced science and technology, so you have to go to France to learn the most advanced technology. He encouraged Qian Sanqiang to seize the opportunity and achieve results in the field of radium, which was the most cutting-edge physics research at that time, so that he could serve the motherland.
Young talents discover the light of fission
Qian Sanqiang boarded a ship bound for France and started his own journey to explore the light of fission. While studying for a doctoral degree in the Curie Laboratory of the Institute of Radium Science of the University of Paris, France, under the guidance of Nobel Prize winner Joliot Curie and his wife, Qian Sanqiang quickly completed his doctoral thesis "Alpha Particles and Protons" Collision” and received his Ph.D. In the spring of 1946, Qian Sanqiang and his wife He Zehui collaborated to discover the phenomenon of tri-fission and quadruple fission of uranium nuclei, for which they won the Henri Debard Microphysics Prize of the French Academy of Sciences. This discovery is considered an important achievement of nuclear physics research after World War II. Western media reported it with titles such as "China's Curies Discovered a New Method for Splitting the Atomic Nucleus." In addition to his own thesis research work, Qian Sanqiang always takes the initiative to take on various additional tasks in the laboratory. His excellent qualities such as diligence, good at studying, and willingness to help others are fully recognized by teachers and colleagues.
Qian Sanqiang became the first Chinese scholar to receive the Henri Debard Microphysics Prize, and was appointed as a research mentor at the French National Center for Scientific Research. Due to his outstanding scientific research ability and outstanding organizational skills in his study and scientific research work, Joliot Curie and his wife wrote in their comments about Qian Sanqiang: He is full of enthusiasm for scientific undertakings, and he is intelligent and creative. Mr. Qian is also an excellent organizational worker. In terms of spirituality, science and technology, he possesses various qualities that a leader of a research institution possesses.
At that time, everyone believed that Qian Sanqiang and his wife would stay in Europe to engage in scientific research. However, their strong belief in scientific national salvation prompted them to resolutely give up the superior conditions abroad and decide to return to China to contribute to the prosperity of the motherland. In 1948, Qian Sanqiang found the person in charge of the CCP in Europe and expressed his wish to return to China. Qian Sanqiang later explained his motivation for returning to China: Although science has no national boundaries, scientists all have a motherland. It is precisely because the motherland is poor and backward that it requires scientific workers to work hard to change her appearance. In May 1948, Qian Sanqiang and his wife returned to their war-torn motherland with their half-year-old daughter in their arms, and began his journey of fighting for China's atomic energy science.
The "hero of two bombs" laid the foundation for the nuclear energy industry
Qian Sanqiang made a major foundational contribution to the establishment of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the development of science and technology in New China. His organizational work is like a " production ceremony and music" to the Chinese Academy of Sciences. ". He advocated the establishment of China's own "National Academy of Sciences" based on the Soviet Union and the French Academy of Sciences. The "Draft for the Establishment of the People's Academy of Sciences" that he participated in drafting outlined the basic framework of the Academy of Sciences and laid a good foundation for the preparations for the establishment of the Academy of Sciences. Zhu Kezhen commented on Qian Sanqiang: Qian was actually the soul of the Academy of Sciences when it was first organized.
Since the founding of New China, Qian Sanqiang has devoted himself wholeheartedly to the creation of the atomic energy industry. He served as deputy director and director of the Institute of Modern Physics (later renamed the Institute of Atomic Energy) at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Due to the severe shortage of instruments and equipment, members of the institute had no choice but to ride bicycles through the streets and alleys to find parts at garage sales and junkyards to make their own instruments. Qian Sanqiang joined the Communist Party of China in 1954. He wrote in his regularization report: I ask the party to give me the opportunity to work hard and allow me to become a regular member. I promise to work hard to reach the standards of a party member in the future. In 1955, the Party Central Committee decided to develop the country's nuclear power, and Qian Sanqiang was responsible for formulating the atomic energy development plan. In 1956, the Third Ministry of Machinery Industry, which led nuclear weapons research, was established (later changed to the Second Ministry of Machinery Industry, the "Second Machinery Department"), and Qian Sanqiang was appointed deputy minister in charge of scientific research.In 1958, Qian Sanqiang led the construction of China's first heavy water atomic reactor, the first cyclotron and a number of important instruments and equipment, laying the foundation for the further development of nuclear science and technology in my country. He also assisted Peking University, Tsinghua University, and the University of Science and Technology of China in establishing the Department of Technical Physics and the Department of Nuclear Physics to cultivate talents for China's nuclear science and nuclear industry. In June 1959, the Soviet Union unilaterally terminated the new defense technology agreement signed between China and the Soviet Union and withdrew all experts. Qian Sanqiang was appointed at the critical moment and served as the general person in charge and chief designer of China's nuclear bomb research technology.
With the profound vision and insight of a strategic scientist, Qian Sanqiang recognized the importance of atomic energy scientific research in national development very early, and actively invested in the creation and development of China's atomic energy scientific cause. His scientific foresight was more fully reflected in the development process of the hydrogen bomb . As early as June 1960, he proposed that the hydrogen bomb uses an atomic bomb as the detonator, but it has different principles and laws from the atomic bomb. Theoretical issues related to the light nuclear fusion reaction need to be explored first, sooner rather than later. Late. While studying the atomic bomb, he organized a group of theoretical physicists to conduct exploratory research on the mechanism of thermonuclear reactions, and made theoretical preparations for the development of the hydrogen bomb, which contributed to China's development of the first atomic bomb only two years after the explosion. Within eight months, the hydrogen bomb was successfully developed. " Two bombs and one satellite " meritorious scientist Peng Huanwu believes that Qian Sanqiang attaches great importance to "premeditation", that is, prior planning and preparation.
"Gathering talents for the core" is only for national interests
Qian Sanqiang gathers talents for the core. He has the heart to love talents, the eye to recognize talents, the ability to gather talents, the method to select talents, and the courage to use talents. The atomic energy company he led has the reputation of being "loyal and loyal". As the organizer and implementer of the atomic bomb project, he mobilized troops from across the country and recommended the best talents to the Institute of Nuclear Weapons, recommending Wang Ganchang and Peng Huanwu as deputy directors of the Institute of Atomic Energy. In order to find someone who could take on the work of nuclear weapons explosion mechanics, he specially visited html student Qian Xuesen, and invited applied mechanics scientist html student Guo Yonghuai to participate in the research work. During the period of nuclear weapons development, he recommended Zhu Guangya to serve as General Li Jue's assistant. He personally talked to Deng Jiaxian and appointed him as the director of the theoretical department. Deng Jiaxian played a key role in the subsequent atomic bomb development project. Hundreds of scientific and technological elites gathered at the Institute of Modern Physics, including experimental physicists Zhao Zhongyao, Yang Chengzhong , Dai Chuanzeng, etc.; theoretical physicists Deng Jiaxian, Zhu Hongyuan, Wang Chengshu , etc.; radiation theoretical chemists Yang Chengzong , Xiao Lun , etc.; computer and vacuum device experts Xia Peisu, Fan Xinbi, etc. According to statistics, in the six years since 1959, the Institute of Atomic Energy has sent a total of 914 scientific and technological personnel to the country. Among the 23 commended "two bombs and one satellite" meritorious scientists, 15 were mobilized back to China by Qian Sanqiang, including Seven people were directly recommended by him to the front line of nuclear weapons development.
Qian Sanqiang’s principles for recommending talents are to prioritize national interests, focus on career development needs, focus on examining people in practice, focus on examining the moral character and work ability of talents, and select the best and most suitable talents. Recommend them to the most appropriate positions and have the courage to let young people stand out. Qian Sanqiang repeatedly emphasized: I am willing to use the best and most useful people where they are most needed and critical, regardless of whether they are yours or mine. In 1993, Song Renqiong, former minister of the Second Ministry of Machinery, gave a pertinent evaluation of Qian Sanqiang: Qian Sanqiang made unique contributions to the creation and development of my country's atomic energy industry. It has done a lot of work in popularizing atomic energy knowledge, cultivating and recommending scientific and technological talents, establishing comprehensive scientific and technological bases, introducing and absorbing foreign technologies, organizing and leading major scientific and technological research and scientific and technological collaborations, etc., and has played a role that others cannot.
Sincerity and purity show everyone’s style
In his speech to commemorate the first anniversary of the death of Marie Curie, Einstein particularly emphasized the dependence of creative talent on moral quality: the significance of first-class figures to the times and the historical process. Its moral quality may be greater than its mere intellectual achievements. Even the latter, they depend on character to a much greater extent than is usually supposed. This evaluation also applies to Qian Sanqiang. Zhou Guangzhao once commented on Qian Sanqiang: "Those who are familiar with Mr. Qian will never forget his broad mind, courage to shoulder heavy responsibilities, outstanding organizational skills, willingness to be a ladder for others, humble and simple style, and just In Mr. Qian, science and morality have reached a high degree of integrity and dedication. "Qian Sanqiang's deeds and character are consistent with the spirit of "two bombs and one satellite" as he devoted himself to the development of China's atomic energy science. Best comment.
Like many scientific people, they tend to be simple and serious in their work, focusing their time and energy on the most valuable scientific undertakings in their minds. He does not admit that he is the "father of China's atomic bomb", but prefers to call himself a "pebble" or a "grain of sand": As an old scientific and technological worker, I can turn myself into a pebble or a grain of sand to pave the way for thousands of troops. On the way to victory, I feel happy and relieved! Colleagues recalled how Qian Sanqiang felt: They could not tell that he was a great scientist, he was more ordinary than ordinary people.
"Putting what you have learned into practice and serving the motherland" is Qian Sanqiang's lifelong pursuit. He devoted himself to science during the war and returned home resolutely when the motherland needed it most. On the way to the summit of science, his deep footprints are imprinted with his firm belief in science and his infinite love for the motherland. He achieved not only himself, but also the motherland, and realized his ambition to serve the country of "Bright China, let my life burn for you".
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The article was published in the 7th edition of "Study Times" on June 29, 2022
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