Voting Station

Brian David Josephson

Please vote to return to collections.

Scientist

The Resume

    (January 4, 1940- )
    Born in Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom
    Theoretical physicist
    Predicted the Josephson effect: a current that flows without any applied voltage between two superconductors coupled by a weak link
    Awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics (1973)
    Professor of Physics at Trinity College, Cambridge (1974-2007)
    Established the Mind-Matter Unification Project at Cavendish Labs (1996)

Why he might be annoying:

    He became a devotee of transcendental meditation.
    He caused an uproar at a scientific colloquium by urging attendees to read the works of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
    He continued supporting cold fusion ‘discoverers’ Stanley Pons and Martin Fleischmann long after their work had been discredited.
    He said he was ’80 percent’ confident that evolution was caused by intelligent design.
    He has also supported homeopathy and psychokinesis.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He made the discovery that won him a Nobel Prize when he was a 22-year-old graduate student.
    The Josephson effect led to the development of SQUIDs (superconducting quantum interference devices), which are used for extremely sensitive measurements in medicine and geology.
    He said his guiding principle is ‘Take nobody’s word for it.’

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying