Biography of Paul A. M. Dirac

By: Cole Jorgensen

Basics

• Full name: Paul Adrien Maurice Dirac • Born on 8th August, 1902, in Bristol,

England• Father was a Swiss immigrant• Mother was native of Cornwall England

Personal Life

• Had a miner form of autism• Had an abusive father• Said he never knew love as a child• Had 1 brother and 1 sister

Personal Life Continued

• Married Margit Wigner• Adopted her 2 children• Also had 2 more children with her

Autism• Helped him achieve his

goals• Made him self-centered

but determined• Gave him ability to solve

complicated problems systematically

• Was especially good at mathematical problems

Education

• Attended Bristol, St. John’s, and Cambridge, universities

• Obtained a degree in electrical engineering

• In 1926 graduated with a P.H.D. in mathematics

Profession• Mathematics

professor at Cambridge University

• Physics and mathematics philosopher

• Published several papers/books on physics and mathematics

Legacy• Founder of quantum

mechanics and quantum electrodynamics

• Developed theory of the electron and proton

• Developed several mathematical theories

• Published several books

Wave theory

• Paul’s largest contribution to physics• Helped tie relativity theory and quantum

theory• Proved the two theories are connected but

opposing

Honors and Awards

• Nobel Prize in physics• Awarded the Royal, Copley, and Max

Planck medals• Had several annual awards named after

him

Death and After

• In 1984, Dirac died in Tallahassee, Florida• A street in his hometown named after him• Several memorials around the world built

in remembrance

Bibliography

• "Paul A.M. Dirac - Biography." Nobelprize.org. The Nobel Foundation. Web. 22 Feb. 2010. <http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1933/dirac-bio.html>.

• "Paul Dirac -." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Web. 22 Feb. 2010. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Dirac#Early_years>.