Ernest Rutherford was born on the 30th August 1871 in New Zealand where he was educated and brought up until 1895. In 1889 he was awarded a University scholarship and he proceeded to the University of New Zealand, Wellington, where he entered Canterbury College. He received a double first in Mathematics and Physical Science and he continued with research work at the College for a short time, receiving the B.Sc. degree the following year. In 1894 Rutherford went to Trinity College Cambridge as a research student. Here, Rutherford discovered that placing uranium near foil resulted in one type of radiation being easily soaked up or blocked, while a different type had no trouble penetrating the same foil. He labeled the two radiation types “alpha” and “beta.” As it turns out, the alpha particle was identical to the nucleus of a helium atom. The beta particle was, in fact, the same as an electron or positron.
In 1898 he went to Canada as the Macdonald Chair of Physics at McGill University, Montreal. Here, achieving fame for his contributions to the understanding of radioelements, Rutherford became an active public speaker, published numerous magazine articles and wrote the most highly regarded textbook of the time on radioactivity.
In 1907 Rutherford returned to England and became Langworthy Professor of Physics in the University of Manchester. Through further experimentation involving firing alpha particles at foil, Rutherford made the groundbreaking discovery that nearly the total mass of an atom is concentrated in a nucleus. In so doing, he gave birth to the nuclear model, a discovery that marked the inception of nuclear physics and ultimately paved the way to the invention of the atom bomb. Aptly dubbed the “Father of the Nuclear Age,” Rutherford received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1908. By 1919 he had made another monumental discovery: how to artificially induce a nuclear reaction in a stable element. Nuclear reactions were Rutherford’s main focus for the rest of his scientific career.
Rutherford was knighted in 1914; he was appointed to the Order of Merit in 1925, and in 1931 he was created First Baron Rutherford of Nelson, New Zealand, and Cambridge. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 1903 and was its President from 1925 to 1930. He died in the Evelyn Nursing Home, Cambridge, on 19 October 1937 of complications following an operation for a strangulated hernia
The Royal Society was established after a group of scientists met at Gresham College after a lecture by Christopher Wren on the 28 November 1660, and decided to found a college for the Promoting of Physico-Mathematicall Experimentall Learning. The group was given its first Royal Charter in 1662 by King Charles II and by the second Royal Charter it would be known as 'The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge'.
The early years of the Society saw revolutionary advancements in the conduct and communication of science. Hooke’s Micrographia and the first issue of Philosophical Transactions were published in 1665. Following the Great Fire of London, in 1666, the society moved to Arundel House. Under the Presidency of Isaac Newton, the Society acquired its own home, two houses in Crane Court, off the Strand. In 1731 a new rule was established which said that each candidate for election had to be proposed in writing and had that written certificate signed by those who supported his candidature.
The society moved premises to Somerset House in 1780, Burlington House in Piccadilly in 1857, Carlton House Terrace, London in 1967 and the Society acquired Chicheley Hall, Buckinghamshire in 2010. Chicheley Hall was transformed into Kavli Royal Society International Centre which will provide a prestigious residential centre for holding internationally significant scientific conferences and offering opportunities for concentrated academic reflection.
Over time, the criteria for, and transparency of election to the Fellowship became stricter, and Fellows were elected solely on the merit of their scientific work from 1847. The government granted the Society £1,000 to assist scientists in their research and to buy equipment in 1850. The Society now allocates nearly £42 million each year from government grants and donations and legacies from organisations and individuals.
The Society has 8,000 Fellows elected to the Society to date.
Date
1956
Scope and ContentComprises photocopied manuscript and typescript letters, edited for the Rutherford Memorial Committee of the Royal Society.
Extent9 volumes
Physical description9 vols ;
LanguageEnglish
Levelfonds
Repository nameScience Museum, London
Conditions governing accessThis correspondence is not public and should only be made available for purposes of private study to specifically authorized persons.
Conditions governing ReproductionCopies may be obtained only from Cambridge University Library.
System of arrangementLetters are arranged alphabetically by author and chronologically.
