Volume 1: Student Life Chapter 406 "Rubber Ball"
Time passes slowly under Friedman's pen, just like the words being written.
Chen Zhou stood quietly by the side, waiting for Friedman to stop writing.
This made both Matheson and Coyle feel a little strange. They didn't hear the two people talking for such a long time.
They stretched their heads to take a look out of curiosity, and were surprised to find that this junior brother from China had been waiting silently.
The two people withdrew their gazes and looked at each other.
They all saw a hint of disbelief in each other's eyes.
They admired Chen Zhou's patience.
Nearing 11:30 am, Friedman finally put down his pen and prepared to get up to make a cup of coffee.
When I turned around, I saw a young man.
Friedman was slightly stunned, but quickly matched the young man's face with the photos he had seen before.
Friedman looked at Chen Zhou: "How long have you been waiting?"
Chen Zhou replied truthfully: "One hour and thirty minutes."
There was no trace of impatience in Chen Zhou's tone.
This made Friedman feel a little embarrassed.
"Sorry to have kept you waiting." Friedman said, and then asked curiously, "You could have called me, why didn't you?"
Chen Zhou smiled and explained, "I see that you are doing calculations seriously, immersed in the world of research. This is probably the happiest time, and it is also the time when you don't want to be disturbed by anyone."
Friedman was stunned for a moment, then he chuckled and said, "Thank you for your understanding."
Chen Zhou: "Professor, you are too polite."
Friedman then called out, "Matheson, please make two cups of coffee."
Matheson, who was sitting across the pile of papers, heard the professor's words and quickly responded, "Okay, professor."
Then he and Coyle looked at each other again, and they seemed even more surprised than before.
When will our Professor Friedman ask for a cup of coffee for his graduate students?
When the two cups of coffee were ready and Matheson brought them in, he saw Chen Zhou and Friedman having a friendly conversation.
This scene surprised him again.
Professor Friedman is notoriously difficult to talk to and is generally not very nice to graduate students.
Not to mention, they are students who originally belonged to the Department of Mathematics.
Otherwise, there wouldn’t be such rumors of a discipline contempt chain in the Department of Physics at MIT.
But what I see now is so harmonious.
It's simply incredible!
"Professor, your coffee." Matheson handed a cup of coffee to Friedman, and then handed another cup to Chen Zhou.
Chen Zhou took the coffee and said softly, "Thank you."
Matheson immediately showed a warm smile: "You're welcome!"
Friedman took a sip of his coffee and put it on the table.
He turned to look at Chen Zhou and asked, "Why did you choose to continue studying physics?"
Chen Zhou thought for a moment and replied, "Maybe it's because I like it. I want to understand the causes and consequences of things, to understand and experience this world with a deeper perspective on the essence of things, and to pursue the essence of the starry universe above our heads."
"In addition, scientific research itself is a romantic thing. Whether you look down at the earth or look up at the stars, you will have a romantic feeling."
Friedman didn't expect Chen Zhou's answer to be like this. For a moment, he didn't know what to say.
But it is precisely because of this kind of love and pursuit that people who regard the earth and the starry sky as a journey can achieve such brilliant achievements.
Friedman chuckled and said, "You are the most... the most romantic student I have ever met."
Chen Zhou smiled when he heard this: "Maybe they just didn't say it."
Friedman did not comment, but said, "I have read your graduation thesis, which is a good research result. So, is this the reason why you chose me as your mentor?"
Chen Zhou nodded gently: "Yes, professor. When I was at Yanda, my research field was basically in nuclear physics."
“And you are an expert in this area, so I hope to learn more from you.”
After Chen Zhou finished speaking, Friedman teased, "Your research field should have always been analytic number theory. Your achievements in mathematics are much higher than those in physics."
Chen Zhou smiled slightly: "I will take it as a compliment from you, professor."
Friedman laughed out loud when he heard this.
Then he said, "If I really want you to praise me, you have to achieve the same or even higher achievements in physics."
After a pause, Friedman continued, "I will go to SLAC next week. You can come with me then."
Chen Zhou was slightly stunned. SLAC was where Friedman won the Nobel Prize.
What does this mean?
As if he saw Chen Zhou's confusion, he casually handed the paper to Chen Zhou and said, "There will be an experiment on a linear high-energy electron accelerator ."
Although the words were not made very clear, Chen Zhou already understood.
This means I will have to follow him to do research on the project.
Chen Zhou looked at the contents on the paper and was stunned.
No way?
Am I so lucky?
This time, we encountered such an important experiment?
Chen Zhou looked up at Friedman and asked uncertainly, "Professor, can I participate in this experiment?"
Friedman nodded gently: "Follow me as a graduate student."
Chen Zhou immediately said gratefully: "Thank you, Professor!"
Friedman waved his hand: "Don't thank me, this is what a mentor should do. Besides, you should know what you need to prepare, right?"
Chen Zhou nodded heavily: "I know."
"That's good." Friedman was quite satisfied with Chen Zhou.
Of course, this is just my impression from this meeting.
The specific capabilities and so on still need to be observed.
After thinking for a while, Friedman picked up another stack of papers from the table and handed them to Chen Zhou: "Take these too, and take a look at them quickly."
After that, he called out, "Maison, leave me Chen Zhou's email address and send him a copy of the information later."
Matheson's uncertain voice came: "Professor, is this the data from the SLAC experiment?"
Friedman: “Yes.”
"Okay... okay, professor." Matheson's voice came again, already full of surprise.
Coyle was even more surprised.
He looked at Matheson in shock and asked in a very puzzled tone: "Is the professor crazy?"
Matheson glanced at him and said, "I don't know. Why don't you go ask the professor?"
Coyle quickly shook his head: "Then I will definitely go crazy first."
While sorting out the information, Ma Xisen said casually: "Maybe this is the difference... If Chen Zhou came and witnessed the 'rubber ball' we have been looking for, it would really drive people crazy..."
