No Americans because I think US history would largely have been the same just with different leaders. We're not as 'great man' driven as other countries despite the hype.
If no Einstein, physicists would've figured this stuff out but 20-30 years later. No Churchill and I am not sure the Brits successfully hold out. Germany may have had another dictator in the 30's but not one as evil as Hitler. The Reds would've tried to take over Russia in 1917 but would they have succeeded without Lenin?
It's all subjective but for me...Churchill spoke but London was the first major city that held against aerial bombing...but others have since then...Hanoi being one of them.
And Brit was a story we all knew...but in reality it was primarily the Eastern front that was the major focus.
I don't think Hawking even makes the top five physicists of the 20th century.
Here are seven that I would easily rank ahead of Hawking (but there are more)...
1. Albert Einstein
2. Niels Bohr
3. Max Planck
4. Enrico Fermi
5. Werner Heisenberg
6. Richard Feynman
7. Ed Witten
Albert Einstein is the greatest physicist of all time, according to a survey of 100 leading physicists conducted by Physics World (the journal of the British Institute of Physics). In second place is Isaac Newton, closely followed by two other founding fathers of physics, Galileo Galilei and James Clerk Maxwell. However, seven of the ten are 20th-century particle physicists. Bohr, Rutherford, Dirac, Schrödinger, Heisenberg and Einstein himself were all major players in the great quantum revolution, which took place in the early years of the 20th century. Richard Feynman, in 7th place, epitomizes the emergence of modern field theory.
The votes for most important discoveries of all time went to quantum mechanics, Newton's mechanics and gravitation, and Einstein's relativity. The respondents were also asked what were the greatest unsolved problems in physics. Quantum gravity, high-temperature superconductivity and consciousness were among the choices, although one wit replied "getting tenure". PW
Top 10 physicists of all time
1. Albert Einstein 2. Isaac Newton 3. James Clerk Maxwell 4. Niels Bohr 5. Werner Heisenberg 6. Galileo Galilei 7. Richard Feynman 8. Paul Dirac 8. Erwin Schroedinger 10. Ernest Rutherford
Pretty good list IMO. Eisenhower will get some pushback but I think he was much more of an influence in the 20th century than, say, Teddy Roosevelt, who was more of a 19th century man.
You might substitute Mao for Eisenhower, although the John Lennon substitution is tempting as well.
I awoke at 7:00 AM here - midnight NY time - and my 1st thought was someone should have at least mentioned John Lennon in this thread, considering his cultural impact.
Well done.
can't have both jobs and gates in top 5, too similar Â
If you're going to mention him, how about Louis Armstrong, Chuck Berry, Bing Crosby?
Hard to put Lennon in the top 5 of the century, but unlike the others you list his contribution was beyond musical. Beatles and Lennon led a generation, changed the culture.
Freud is a good one. ( but to me Shakespeare and Buddha covered the life of the mind better and earlier)
Freud is a good one because he created a whole a new way of looking at things. Also, think about all the counseling and therapy. None of that existed before the Freudian age.
Also, little known fact, Freud's nephew by marriage, Bernays was the architect of the US propaganda campaign in WW I. He in effect created mass indoctrination procedures, applying Uncle Sigmund's theories.
Freud was also a man of incredible encourage. Refused to leave Vienna even though he had been targeted by the Nazis, who burned his books. Never backed down from publishing what he thought was the truth. Truly great man. Even if you disagree with some of his theories.
Because we have him to thank for trickle down economics for starters.
Unprecedented economic growth? Check.
Won the Cold War? Check.
So popular that his VP was elected to the Presidency in a landslide...which hadn't happened since 1837 when Martin van Buren succeeded Andrew Jackson...and hasn't happened since.
You may not like his politics, but you can't deny his greatness. I'm no fan of FDR's politics, but I wouldn't deny his greatness.
Communism had as much, if not more, to do with the fall of the Soviet Union than Reagan did. Star Wars was an impressive achievement, but you're kidding yourself if you think we're all speaking Russian right now had someone besides Reagan been in office. He also armed Iran, which certainly has never come back to bite anyone in the ass. I'm not even going to go into everything with the proxy wars. Just because he was popular does not make him great.
should be Muhammad Ali. Not top 5, but definitely deserves an honorable mention.
I think Jackie Robinson also deserves mention. Granted, if it hadn't been him it would've been someone else, but it's the way he handled it that helped ease the transition for all to come.
deserves mention with the rest of the scientists, simply for "Moore's Law" which still drives R&D and business plans in the IC business.
Oppenheimer - father of the atomic bomb
Werner von Braun - developed the V-2 rocket for the German's during the war and then worked on the US's ballistic missile program and later led the development of the Saturn V launch vehicle for NASA (booster for the Apollo missions).
And Madam Curie deserves recognition with the rest of the scientists.
Btw, Steve Jobs was a joke right? Almost as bad as Obama seeing as the iPod, which saved Apple, didn't even hit markets until 2001.
Stalin, Mao and Gandhi. Those three men controlled, consolidated and drove the fortunes of more lives and land than anyone by far. In 1950, China, the USSR and India (which at the time included Pakistan and Bangladesh) made up about half of the world's population and probably an equivalent % of total land mass. If you count the USSR's vassal states in Eastern Europe, you're probably over 50% on both counts. These men were not passive rulers. They created and drove the world they lived in.
The remaining 2 are up for debate.
500 years from now, Most Lasting Influence awards go to: Â
1. Einstein
2. Watson/Crick/Franklin
3. Norman Borlaug
4. Ghandi
5. Picasso
Name recognition is a long shot for Borlaug, but he's more responsible for the Green Revolution than any individual in the transistor/computer/internet revolution, the two most significant developments for the world in the 20th century.
some other influential figures of the last 115 years.
Made me remember what an absolutely amazing and revolutionary tool that Google has been. This is after all the instant-information age, and nothing exemplifies this new era more than Google. Maybe not top 5-worthy, but Sergey Brin and Larry Page deserve an honorable mention.
What did Obama do in the 20th century ;)
Quote:
and Obama.
Good point. Make that Gandhi and Einstein.
What did Obama do in the 20th century ;)
Adolf Hitler
John Gotti
Pablo Escobar
John F. Kennedy
And Ghandi. Gotta have Ghandi.
Mao
Lenin
Hitler
Watson and Crick
I was thinking of him as well, plus maybe the guy who discovered penicillin. I forget his name.
Einstein
Churchill
Gandhi
Next up would be Stalin and Mao.
No Americans because I think US history would largely have been the same just with different leaders. We're not as 'great man' driven as other countries despite the hype.
If no Einstein, physicists would've figured this stuff out but 20-30 years later. No Churchill and I am not sure the Brits successfully hold out. Germany may have had another dictator in the 30's but not one as evil as Hitler. The Reds would've tried to take over Russia in 1917 but would they have succeeded without Lenin?
And for who mentioned Obama the only list I would put him on is the biggest buffoon of the 21st century but that's for another discussion
And Brit was a story we all knew...but in reality it was primarily the Eastern front that was the major focus.
Btw...I think the penicillin guy was Dr Fleming.
Here are seven that I would easily rank ahead of Hawking (but there are more)...
1. Albert Einstein
2. Niels Bohr
3. Max Planck
4. Enrico Fermi
5. Werner Heisenberg
6. Richard Feynman
7. Ed Witten
Gahndi
Churchill
Einstein
Lenin
The votes for most important discoveries of all time went to quantum mechanics, Newton's mechanics and gravitation, and Einstein's relativity. The respondents were also asked what were the greatest unsolved problems in physics. Quantum gravity, high-temperature superconductivity and consciousness were among the choices, although one wit replied "getting tenure". PW
Top 10 physicists of all time
1. Albert Einstein 2. Isaac Newton 3. James Clerk Maxwell 4. Niels Bohr 5. Werner Heisenberg 6. Galileo Galilei 7. Richard Feynman 8. Paul Dirac 8. Erwin Schroedinger 10. Ernest Rutherford
Edison
Tesla
Philco
No, not predictable... just plain stupid...
Agreee, and no one has had the balls to follow... Just MHO...
Mandela
Martin Luther King
Churchill
Teddy Roosevelt
"The best definition of man is--a creature who walks on two legs and is ungrateful."
Well the OP said MEN?
Oppenheimer
Tesla
Einstein
Stalin
Hard to really limit this to 5, but as you can see from my middle 3, I'm kinda partial to scientists.
MLK
Churchill
FDR
Mandela
Martin Luther King
Churchill
Teddy Roosevelt
Seconded.
MLK
Churchill
FDR
Pretty good list IMO. Eisenhower will get some pushback but I think he was much more of an influence in the 20th century than, say, Teddy Roosevelt, who was more of a 19th century man.
You might substitute Mao for Eisenhower, although the John Lennon substitution is tempting as well.
Paul
George
Ringo
Einstein
Paul
George
Ringo
Einstein
If you substitute FDR for Ringo, I'll go with that. :-)
I awoke at 7:00 AM here - midnight NY time - and my 1st thought was someone should have at least mentioned John Lennon in this thread, considering his cultural impact.
Well done.
maybe Lawrence Taylor? :)
If you're going to mention him, how about Louis Armstrong, Chuck Berry, Bing Crosby?
Quote:
John Lennon
If you're going to mention him, how about Louis Armstrong, Chuck Berry, Bing Crosby?
Hard to put Lennon in the top 5 of the century, but unlike the others you list his contribution was beyond musical. Beatles and Lennon led a generation, changed the culture.
Teddy
Hitler
Stalin
Mao
Ghandi
Churchill: leader and writer
FDR
MLK
Freud is a good one because he created a whole a new way of looking at things. Also, think about all the counseling and therapy. None of that existed before the Freudian age.
Also, little known fact, Freud's nephew by marriage, Bernays was the architect of the US propaganda campaign in WW I. He in effect created mass indoctrination procedures, applying Uncle Sigmund's theories.
Freud was also a man of incredible encourage. Refused to leave Vienna even though he had been targeted by the Nazis, who burned his books. Never backed down from publishing what he thought was the truth. Truly great man. Even if you disagree with some of his theories.
JFK
Einstein
Wozniak
Mandela
FDR
TR
Reagan
Eisenhower
Churchill
For the bad guys
Hitler
Stalin
Mao
Castro
Tojo
Howie Dorough
Nick Carter
Kevin Richardson
Brian Littrell
Kennedy
Hawking
MLK
Hitler
Why not?
Quote:
Seriously?
Why not?
Because we have him to thank for trickle down economics for starters.
Quote:
In comment 12386592 732NYG said:
Quote:
Seriously?
Why not?
Because we have him to thank for trickle down economics for starters.
The war on drugs has been a booming success as well.
Quote:
In comment 12386592 732NYG said:
Quote:
Seriously?
Why not?
Because we have him to thank for trickle down economics for starters.
Unprecedented economic growth? Check.
Won the Cold War? Check.
So popular that his VP was elected to the Presidency in a landslide...which hadn't happened since 1837 when Martin van Buren succeeded Andrew Jackson...and hasn't happened since.
You may not like his politics, but you can't deny his greatness. I'm no fan of FDR's politics, but I wouldn't deny his greatness.
2. My Brother
3. My Grandfather
4. My best friend
5. TBA
2. My Brother
3. My Grandfather
4. My best friend
5. TBA
Salk
Curie
Watson and Crick
Planck
Quote:
1. My Dad
2. My Brother
3. My Grandfather
4. My best friend
5. TBA
TBA? What are my chances?
No worse than they were an hour ago.
Oppenheimer - father of the atomic bomb
Werner von Braun - developed the V-2 rocket for the German's during the war and then worked on the US's ballistic missile program and later led the development of the Saturn V launch vehicle for NASA (booster for the Apollo missions).
And Madam Curie deserves recognition with the rest of the scientists.
Btw, Steve Jobs was a joke right? Almost as bad as Obama seeing as the iPod, which saved Apple, didn't even hit markets until 2001.
The remaining 2 are up for debate.
2. Watson/Crick/Franklin
3. Norman Borlaug
4. Ghandi
5. Picasso
Name recognition is a long shot for Borlaug, but he's more responsible for the Green Revolution than any individual in the transistor/computer/internet revolution, the two most significant developments for the world in the 20th century.
Mao
Truman
Hassan al-Banna
Castro
Ho Chi Minh
Martin Luther King
David Ben Gurion
Made me remember what an absolutely amazing and revolutionary tool that Google has been. This is after all the instant-information age, and nothing exemplifies this new era more than Google. Maybe not top 5-worthy, but Sergey Brin and Larry Page deserve an honorable mention.