Enrico Fermi has made a positive influence on humanity. He has done many things for the world (maybe even the universe), from important questions to life changing inventions. He helped end WWII and has inspired many – including myself – to follow in his footsteps (or at least try). He even invented the nuclear reactor which helps power millions of home currently and is also thought to be a possible alternative to fossil fuels. He also led the team that conducted the first ever controlled nuclear chain reaction. Ever! If you don't think he's notable, I don't know who is. 

 

First of all, before I get into Enrico Fermi himself, I'm going to discuss my research. In my research I've had many helpful and interesting sites, as well as challenges. I had a few sites which, after a few minutes of reading, gave me heaps of new information that certainly helped me with many of my tasks and, of course, becoming Enrico Fermi. If I hadn't had those sites, I would've been absolutely doomed. Apart from being lucky enough to have those sites, I've also had some challenges. Whenever I tried to find documents about Enrico Fermi's personal life that weren't Wikipedia, I couldn't find anything. This is because Enrico Fermi is, surprisingly, not that well known so there aren't as many sites about him. And, for the sites that do discuss Enrico Fermi, they usually didn't discuss his personal life because he isn't known for his personal life and more his contributions. In these cases, I either had to infer, modify my task, or keep looking around the internet for information which would take more than an hour (fun!). So, in short, my research has kind of been a roller coaster with constant ups and downs, throwing me off and leading me to the right place. Enough about my research, now let's get into stuff that might be interesting! 

 

I'll start with a basic outline of Enrico Fermi's life. Enrico Fermi was born on the 29th of September 1901 and died on the 28th of November 1954. He was the son of Alberto Fermi (father) and Ida De Gattis (Mother). He had two siblings, his sister was Maria Fermi and his brother was Giulio Fermi. From a young age, he pursued math and physics - like how a millennial might pursue gaming – because he wanted to. But, when he was 14, his brother Giulio died of throat abscess, a condition where puss builds up inside the throat. Enrico Fermi was distraught and turned to physics as a distraction from what had happened. Eventually, through this process of trying to distract himself, young Enrico became extremely talented in physics. He moved on to graduate university and continued on with his life. He later married Laura Fermi after meeting her at a soccer game in 1924. In 1938, he received the Nobel prize in physics for discovering neutron induced radioactivity (which led to the neutron bomb, atomic bomb, and finally, the hydrogen bomb and nuclear reactor). After receiving the prize, he moved the America where he helped them create new technology which would eventually end the war. In 1942, he led the team which conducted the first ever controlled nuclear chain reaction in human history. In 1944, he became an official U.S citizen and the next year, was present at the Trinity test which was the first ever deployment of an atomic bomb (he of course contributed to the creation of the bomb). This was the beginning of the end of the war. After the war ended, he went to Los Alamos where he worked on the hydrogen bomb or H-bomb. He was against the hydrogen bomb because he knew how much damage it could cause if it was created (which he doubted). He only worked on the bomb to try and show that it couldn't be made with current technology. Obviously, he was wrong as in 1952 the first ever hydrogen bomb was created and tested successfully. Around 1954, he developed stomach cancer and eventually succumbed to it on November the 28th, age 53. Yes, even in a basic outline of Fermi's life, quite long. 

 

Why is Enrico Fermi notable? He helped create many influential devices and made many great discoveries. He asked a question which could spell our fate and, he was awarded the Nobel prize to show his contributions to physics. He helped create the atomic bomb and hydrogen bomb. He led the team which, as I've said before, successfully conducted a controlled nuclear chain reaction for the first time ever. This played a major role in developing to atom bomb and, of course, the nuclear reactor which he invented. Enrico Fermi also gave to the world a question. An extremely important one. The Fermi paradox. "Where is everybody?" This is the question. It refers to extra-terrestrials and asks "Where are they?" It has great implications. If there are aliens out there, then we might be in danger if they don't plan on making peace with other societies. If we are alone in the universe, which many feel might be the answer to the paradox, implies that maybe there are other civilizations existed but they don’t exist anymore because of some sort of disaster. This means that we may fall to the same fate. That honestly scares me. There is a third solution though. It is that we are the first, the first civilization in the observable universe. If this is true, then we can relax a bit. It means that there are likely no threats that we are destined to fall to and no civilizations that may want to kill us. Enrico Fermi is notable. Society and history has been changed because of him. 

 

Finally, I'm going to describe how Enrico Fermi has inspired me. Enrico Fermi has inspired me to look into physics more and explore some of the questions it asks. I'm still not sure that I want to be a physicist when I grow up but I definitely enjoy studying physics, especially space. He has probably done the same to many others like me. I have always been into math, science, astronomy, and physics but once I found out about Fermi, all my feelings were enhanced. I've learnt a lot from Enrico Fermi and I want to explore physics a lot more now even if I don't make a career out of it. Enrico Fermi is an inspiration to many. 

 

To conclude, Enrico Fermi is a notable and inspirational physicist with a lot to learn about. He gave us inventions, scientific advances, and an important question. Things like the nuclear reactor, controlled nuclear reactions, and the Fermi Paradox. Let's also not forget that he has inspired many children like me to follow in his footsteps. Enrico Fermi is unquestionably notable and has influenced society. Like I said, if he isn't notable, who is?