George Gamow

U nás poměrně opomíjený fyzik a autor populárně naučné literatury. Jeho série "Mr. Tomkins..." byla ve své době velkým činem na poli popularizace vědy. Škoda, že u nás vyšel jen jeden titul.

Výbor pro udělování Nobelovy ceny za chemii v roce 2017 ve svém zdůvodnění udělení ceny za práci v oblasti kryogenní elektronové mikroskopie mimo jiné uvedl tuto pasáž:

"In 1968, George Gamow, a physicist, and Martynas Yčas, a microbiologist, published a popularscience book, Mr. Tompkins Inside Himself: Adventures in the New Biology, which tells a story about Mr. Tompkins as he explores the cellular architecture of his body on a dream journey through his bloodstream, guided by his doctor. While inspecting the structural details of single cells and organelles, Mr. Tompkins' guide enthusiastically informs him that this knowledge is based on studies using the electron microscope.
Mr. Tompkins' tour makes it obvious that at that time the instrument had already brought studies of biological material to a previously unimaginable level of detail. However, until just a few years ago scientists could still only dream of being able to use the electron microscope to zoom in further into cells and organelles, in order to uncover the atomic details of the biomolecules that underpin their architecture and function.
This dream became reality recently when ..."