Ionosphere Quotes (3 quotes)
I am only a physicist with nothing material to show for my labours. I have never even seen the ionosphere, although I have worked on the subject for thirty years. That does show how lucky people can be. If there had been no ionosphere I would not have been standing here this morning.
Response to receiving an honour from the Institute of Mechanical Engineers. As quoted in New Scientist (22 Nov 1956), 33.
The ionosphere … provides a laboratory for ion chemistry in which reactions continue to completion without the influence of walls.
From 'Edward Uhler Condon, A Personal Recollection', presented at the Fourth International Conference on Atomic Physics, published in the Proceedings of this conference by G. zu Pulitz et al. (eds.), Atomic Physics (1975), Vol. 4, as collected in Asim O. Barut, Halis Odabasi and Alwyn van der Merwe (eds.), Selected Popular Writings of E.U. Condon (1991), 2.
The ionosphere had been critical in the development of atomic and molecular physics. … The upper regions of the atmosphere are a rich showcase of phenomena based on non-equilibrium energy distributions for both protons and electrons.
From 'Edward Uhler Condon, A Personal Recollection', presented at the Fourth International Conference on Atomic Physics, published in the Proceedings of this conference by G. zu Pulitz et al. (eds.), Atomic Physics (1975), Vol. 4, as collected in Asim O. Barut, Halis Odabasi and Alwyn van der Merwe (eds.), Selected Popular Writings of E.U. Condon (1991), 2.
In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion.
(1987) -- 
