Feza Gürsey''Feza Gürsey'' was elected to The American Physical Society Fellow in 1986 for his important contributions to symmetries of particles through the use of Group Theory; the introduction of chiral symmetry and the SU(6) symmetry of the quark model; and the introduction of exceptional groups to particle physics.
/ref> (; April 7, 1921 – April 13, 1992) was a Turkish

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

and

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

. Among his contributions to

theoretical physics Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict List of natural phenomena, natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental p ...

, his work on the chiral model and on SU(6) symmetry of the

quark A quark () is a type of elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nucleus, atomic nuclei ...

model are the most well-known.

Early life

Feza Gürsey was born on April 7, 1921, in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, to Reşit Süreyya Gürsey, a military physician, and Remziye Hisar, a chemist and a pioneering Turkish scientist. He graduated from

Galatasaray High School Galatasaray High School (, ), established in Istanbul in 1481, is the oldest and Selective school, highly selective high school in Turkey. It is also the second-oldest Turkish educational institution after Istanbul University, which was establi ...

in 1940, and received his degree in Mathematics – Physics from

Istanbul University Istanbul University, also known as University of Istanbul (), is a Public university, public research university located in Istanbul, Turkey. Founded by Mehmed II on May 30, 1453, a day after Fall of Constantinople, the conquest of Constantinop ...

in 1944.

Career

Through a scholarship from the Turkish Ministry of Education he received while he was an assistant in Istanbul University, he pursued a doctorate degree at the

Imperial College London Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a Public university, public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a Al ...

in the United Kingdom. He completed his work on the application of

quaternions In mathematics, the quaternion number system extends the complex numbers. Quaternions were first described by the Irish mathematician William Rowan Hamilton in 1843 and applied to mechanics in three-dimensional space. The algebra of quaternion ...

quantum field theory In theoretical physics, quantum field theory (QFT) is a theoretical framework that combines Field theory (physics), field theory and the principle of relativity with ideas behind quantum mechanics. QFT is used in particle physics to construct phy ...

in 1950. After spending the period from 1950 to 1951 in postdoctoral research at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, he worked as an assistant at

, where he married Suha Pamir, also a physics assistant, in 1952, and in 1953 he acquired the title of associate professor. During 1957–1961 he worked at

Brookhaven National Laboratory Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) is a United States Department of Energy national laboratories, United States Department of Energy national laboratory located in Upton, New York, a hamlet of the Brookhaven, New York, Town of Brookhaven. It w ...

Institute for Advanced Study The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry located in Princeton, New Jersey. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent scholars, including Albert Ein ...

Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...

, and

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. In 1960s, he worked on the

nonlinear In mathematics and science, a nonlinear system (or a non-linear system) is a system in which the change of the output is not proportional to the change of the input. Nonlinear problems are of interest to engineers, biologists, physicists, mathe ...

chiral Chirality () is a property of asymmetry important in several branches of science. The word ''chirality'' is derived from the Greek language, Greek (''kheir''), "hand", a familiar chiral object. An object or a system is ''chiral'' if it is dist ...

Lagrangian, and produced results of relevance to

quantum chromodynamics In theoretical physics, quantum chromodynamics (QCD) is the study of the strong interaction between quarks mediated by gluons. Quarks are fundamental particles that make up composite hadrons such as the proton, neutron and pion. QCD is a type of ...

. Returning to Turkey in 1961, he accepted the title of professor from

Middle East Technical University Middle East Technical University (commonly referred to as METU; in Turkish language, Turkish, ''Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi'', ODTÜ) is a prestigious public university, public Institute of technology, technical university located in Ankara, ...

(METU) and took part in the establishment of

METU Middle East Technical University (commonly referred to as METU; in Turkish, ''Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi'', ODTÜ) is a prestigious public technical university located in Ankara, Turkey. As Turkey’s top ranked university, they focus on r ...

Department of Theoretical Physics. Continuing his work as a lecturer at

until 1974, he formed a research group. Being offered a position at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

in 1965, he started to work in both

and

, until 1974, when he decided to give up his position in

and settle in the United States to continue with

Yale Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and one of the nine colonial colleges ch ...

. During these years, he took part in the formulation of E(6)

grand unified theories A Grand Unified Theory (GUT) is any model in particle physics that merges the electromagnetic, weak, and strong forces (the three gauge interactions of the Standard Model) into a single force at high energies. Although this unified force has ...

Death and legacy

Gürsey died in 1992, in

New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. He is survived by his son, Yusuf Gürsey. The Feza Gürsey Institute, founded by the joint effort of

Boğaziçi University Boğaziçi University (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Boğaziçi Üniversitesi''), also known as Bosphorus University, is a Public university, public research university in Istanbul, Turkey, historically tied to a former American educational insti ...

and

TÜBİTAK The Scientific and Technological Research Institution of Turkey (, TÜBİTAK) is a national agency of Turkey whose stated goal is to develop "science, technology and innovation" (STI) policies, support and conduct research and development, and to ...

in Turkey, is named in his honor.

Edward Witten Edward Witten (born August 26, 1951) is an American theoretical physics, theoretical physicist known for his contributions to string theory, topological quantum field theory, and various areas of mathematics. He is a professor emeritus in the sc ...

notes:

Publications

* (With Chia-Hsiung Tze) On the Role of Division, Jordan, and Related Algebras in Particle Physics (1996),

Awards and honors

*1969

Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey The Scientific and Technological Research Institution of Turkey (, TÜBİTAK) is a national agency of Turkey whose stated goal is to develop "science, technology and innovation" (STI) policies, support and conduct research and development, and to ...

(TÜBİTAK) Science Award *1977 J. Robert Oppenheimer Memorial Prize together with

Sheldon Glashow Sheldon Lee Glashow (, ; born December 5, 1932) is a Nobel Prize-winning American theoretical physicist. He is the Metcalf Professor of Mathematics and Physics at Boston University, and a Eugene Higgins Professor of Physics, emeritus, at Harv ...

*1977 A. Cressey Morrison Prize together with R. Griffiths in Natural Sciences *1981

Collège de France The (), formerly known as the or as the ''Collège impérial'' founded in 1530 by François I, is a higher education and research establishment () in France. It is located in Paris near La Sorbonne. The has been considered to be France's most ...

Award *1983 Honorary title of " Commendatore" by Italy *1986

Wigner medal The International Colloquium on Group Theoretical Methods in Physics (ICGTMP) is an academic conference devoted to applications of group theory to physics. It was founded in 1972 by Henri Bacry and Aloysio Janner. It hosts a colloquium every tw ...

administered by the Group Theory and Fundamental Physics Foundation *1989 Award of Association of Turkish - American Scientists and Engineers *1989 METU Parlar Foundation Science Award *1990 Galatasaray Foundation Award The Feza Gürsey Institute in Istanbul and

Feza Gürsey Science Center Feza Gürsey Science Center () is a science museum in Ankara, Turkey. It is named after Feza Gürsey (1921 - 1992), the renowned Turkish mathematician and physicist. The center was founded by the Metropolitan municipality of Ankara. It was open ...

in Ankara are named in his honor. Boğaziçi University maintains a Feyza Gürsey Archive. His bronze likeness can be encountered at a number of places in Turkey, for example a sculpture by Charlotte Langlands is present at the Nesin Mathematics Village.

References

External links

Feza Gürsey Institute
(official web site)
Feza Gürsey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gursey, Feza 20th-century Turkish mathematicians Turkish emigrants to the United States 1921 births Scientists from Istanbul 1992 deaths Galatasaray High School alumni Alumni of Imperial College London Istanbul University alumni Academic staff of Middle East Technical University Yale University faculty Theoretical physicists Turkish nuclear physicists Recipients of TÜBİTAK Science Award Members of the Turkish Academy of Sciences Columbia University faculty Alumni of the University of Cambridge METU Mustafa Parlar Foundation Science Award winners Mathematical physicists American academics of Turkish descent Fellows of the American Physical Society Turkish expatriates in the United Kingdom Burials at Anadoluhisarı Cemetery