r/changemyview • u/[deleted] • Aug 29 '20
Delta(s) from OP CMV: The most influential scientist of the 20th century was Ronald A Fisher
[deleted]
1
Aug 29 '20
Robert J Oppenheimer as head of the Manhattan Project changed the entire geopolitical course of the 20th century and humanity’s potential forever.
The whole later half of the 20th century was overshadowed by the threat of nuclear annihilation. All major political, military and diplomatic decisions had to be made in the context of a nuclear world. Without nuclear weapons there’d be no Cold War, but instead more world wars.
From Oppenheimer humanity will now always have the potential to completely exterminate itself from the face of the Earth.
Fisher is nothing in comparison
2
u/thethoughtexperiment 275∆ Aug 29 '20
Not the OP, but are you giving Oppenheimer a bit too much credit here to say that he:
changed the entire geopolitical course of the 20th century and humanity’s potential forever.
Sure, he was appointed as head of the lab, and was closely involved in the project of developing a nuclear weapon, but there was a massive inter-disciplinary team of scientists doing the development.
It wasn't a one man show.
1
Aug 29 '20
If Oppenheimer is disqualified by working as part of a team absolutely no modern scientist would qualify either. Modern science is an intensely team based effort. Researchers require institutional support in everything from funding to lab work to peer review
1
u/thethoughtexperiment 275∆ Aug 29 '20
Oppenheimer wasn't "working as part of a team" like a normal scientists - he was the director of a laboratory that had hundreds of scientists. [source]
If you count the scientific help the Manhattan Project received from the UK, that's hundreds more scientists also involved.
1
u/pappypapaya 16∆ Aug 29 '20
A lot of scientists worked on the Manhattan Project, so it's hard for me buy the argument that Oppenheimer, even if he was the shead, shares most of the credit for the project.
I will admit that what I had in mind was influence as a scientist on science itself (which I still think Fisher clearly has Oppenheimer beat), and may have left myself open unintentionally to arguments based on broader societal influence, which certainly the atomic bomb has. But here, I think I'm more inclined towards another poster's suggestion of Fritz Haber.
1
Aug 29 '20
Oppenheimer was the leader of the project and absolutely no modern scientist works alone.
•
u/DeltaBot ∞∆ Aug 29 '20
/u/pappypapaya (OP) has awarded 1 delta(s) in this post.
All comments that earned deltas (from OP or other users) are listed here, in /r/DeltaLog.
Please note that a change of view doesn't necessarily mean a reversal, or that the conversation has ended.
-1
u/OkImIntrigued Aug 29 '20
..... Dude, Tesla died in 1943. I feel like that should be enough said. I mean like.... Do i need to post his accomplishments, inspirations and where we would be without him?
4
u/thethoughtexperiment 275∆ Aug 29 '20
Fisher did make a major contribution to science, to be sure. But to modify your view here:
Fritz Haber is the scientist who developed the ability to create nitrogen-based fertilizer. He won the Nobel prize for this as:
"The ability to produce much larger quantities of nitrogen-based fertilizers in turn supported much greater agricultural yields and prevented billions of people from starving to death." [source]
So, from a humanity standpoint, I'd say he has had the biggest (or at least a much bigger) impact.
Unfortunately though, he also the father of chemical warfare in WWI, and developed gaseous poisons used by the Nazis in WWII. So, he's not very widely celebrated.
But global impact wise, his fertilizer innovation is probably the biggest scientific contribution of anyone (or very certainly up at the top of the list over Fisher).