The Age of Physics

In London in September, the weather was deep autumn. A few light rains had passed, and the air carried a hint of cold.

On the streets, pedestrians hurried, their expressions fixed on the busy rhythm of daily life.

However, in the physical realm, inaccessible to many, a conference that would later be revered by countless individuals was about to begin.

At the strong invitation of Lord Kelvin, the world's top physicists, professors, students, and enthusiasts had all gathered in London.

This conference, organized by the Royal Society, was unprecedented in scale. The British government had even dispatched a large number of police to maintain order.

It was no exaggeration to say that if the venue were hit by a bomb, the development of world physics would be set back by at least 100 years, a price no one could bear.

As the 25th approached, more and more people arrived in London, causing the hotels near the Royal Society to be fully booked.

Many studying chemistry, biology, and medicine were incredibly envious. Physics was indeed the foremost of the natural sciences; this level of prestige was unattainable by other disciplines.

Initially, Lord Kelvin was troubled by the organizational format of the conference and had shared his concerns with Li Qiwei.

With so many scholars attending, it was impossible for everyone to speak on stage, and with so many people, discussions would become chaotic.

Unexpectedly, Li Qiwei wrote him a letter, proposing a brilliant idea.

However, after Lord Kelvin finished reading it, his expression turned peculiar, and he didn't know how to describe it.

It turned out that Li Qiwei stated in his letter that since the conference was to discuss the validity of Quantum, the authors of the papers should face all questions.

He was willing to stand in the center of the venue with Professor Planck, accepting questions from any physicist.

Questioners would raise their hands, and the moderator would call on them. Questions had to be professional, and for those who tried to confuse the issue, he and Planck could choose to ignore them.

Upon reading this, Lord Kelvin smiled knowingly. This Bruce had truly not changed at all, still so extremely confident.

To face countless top figures in physics with his own strength—this was indeed befitting of the one who proposed Quantum.

Since the protagonist agreed, Lord Kelvin had nothing more to say and agreed to hold the conference according to this suggestion.

Soon, time finally arrived, September 25, 1900.

Inside the Royal Society venue, the crowd was dense, and the atmosphere of knowledge was palpable.

An undergraduate student would have their graduation thesis sorted after just a few minutes here.

This was a conference without precedent or successor, and no description would be an exaggeration.

It was the dividing line between classical and modern physics, destined to be recorded in history.

Many years later, the famous American five-star physics reviewer MacArthur said in an interview:

"If the 1900 Berlin Physics Conference was the debut of the god of physics, Bruce Li, then the London conference in the same year signified his true rise, officially ushering in a new era for physics."

The conference was star-studded. Later generations summarized the individuals who were already prominent figures at the time:

United Kingdom: Lord Kelvin, Rayleigh (1904 Nobel Prize in Physics), Thomson (1906 Nobel Prize in Physics), Rutherford (1908 Nobel Prize in Chemistry), Henry Bragg (1915 Nobel Prize in Physics).

Germany: Röntgen (1901 Nobel Prize in Physics), Wien (1911 Nobel Prize in Physics), Boltzmann, Planck (1918 Nobel Prize in Physics), Nernst (Third Law of Thermodynamics, 1920 Nobel Prize in Chemistry), Braun (1909 Nobel Prize in Physics), Rubens, Lummer.

France: Becquerel, Curie (1903 Nobel Prize in Physics), Marie Curie (1903 Nobel Prize in Physics and 1911 Nobel Prize in Chemistry), Lippmann (1908 Nobel Prize in Physics).

Netherlands: Lorentz (1902 Nobel Prize in Physics), Onnes (Superconductivity, 1913 Nobel Prize in Physics).

Switzerland: Guillaume (1920 Nobel Prize in Physics).

United States: Michelson (1907 Nobel Prize in Physics), Millikan (1923 Nobel Prize in Physics).

As for Einstein, Grossman, Wilson, Max von Laue, Langevin, and others, they were all unknown figures at this time.

Not to mention, there were countless professors, lecturers, and graduate students from various British universities.

As for undergraduate students, unless someone brought them, it was unlikely anyone would have qualified to attend this conference.

At the entrance of the venue, Lord Kelvin shook hands with every distinguished guest, offering his welcome.

"Hi, Röntgen, you've finally arrived. I want to tell you, your discovery of X-rays is a remarkable achievement."

Röntgen laughed, "My Lord, do you finally believe it wasn't a farce?"

"Back then, when I wrote to you wanting to share my findings, your response was quite disheartening."

Lord Kelvin chuckled, "It was my fault. Look, now someone is here to 'strike' me."

"Hahaha." Röntgen and the others laughed.

He then said, "This must be Planck, he looks quite young."

Planck quickly stepped forward and said respectfully, "Thank you for your invitation, my Lord. This will undoubtedly be a world-shaking conference."

Lord Kelvin smiled, "Has your good student told you about the conference rules?"

Planck said helplessly, "That young fellow is always so unconventional and arrogant."

Lord Kelvin remarked, "It's good to be young. We are all old now; let's leave the stage to the young ones."

With that, he let the few of them enter the venue.

A moment later, the Curie couple and Becquerel also arrived.

Lord Kelvin teased, "Oh, look, here comes our little physicist girl."

In the entire academic community, perhaps only Lord Kelvin and a few others dared to address Marie Curie in such a manner.

"Your Lordship, you are as vigorous as ever. I wish you a perfectly successful conference today," Marie Curie said with a smile.

"Thank you for giving us this opportunity," Becquerel added.

Lord Kelvin was delighted to hear this, appearing even more radiant.

Guests arrived in waves, all showing him great respect and thanking him for his invitation.

This was due to his seniority.

Born in 1824, Lord Kelvin belonged to the same era as titans like Maxwell, Hertz, Clausius, Joule, Lenz, Faraday, and Helmholtz.

Yet, he was the only one left in the world now.

Watching the countless juniors pass by, Lord Kelvin sighed inwardly, "What a rich field of research they have opened up for the future!"

"What kind of revolution have they brought about in the scientific worldview! Compared to them, how small and inadequate I seem!"

From now on, he could only learn, not teach.

Just then, a younger figure caught his eye, his gaze as sharp and disdainful of all as ever.

Under his dazzling brilliance, even Röntgen and Marie Curie seemed like relics of a bygone era.

Lord Kelvin took a deep breath, strode forward, and extended his hand first, smiling.

"Bruce, you've finally arrived."

"Yes, Your Lordship, I have," Li Qiwei replied firmly.

--

(When writing this chapter, Old Xu felt a pang of pain. Without Li Qiwei, how could countless parallel worlds of China surpass the West? Although our total economic output is far ahead, our scientific foundation still lags far behind.)

Dear readers, please bookmark and follow this story. Any suggestions can be left in the comment section.