Fermi
Nuclear physics pioneer
Fermi refers to Enrico Fermi, the Italian-American physicist who built the first nuclear reactor and made foundational contributions to quantum theory and nuclear physics.
His name appears in scientific terms: the fermi is a unit of length equal to one femtometer, used in nuclear physics; a Fermi problem is a rough estimation question solvable with limited data and reasonable assumptions How many piano tuners are in Chicago? ; Fermi's paradox asks why, given the universe's age and size, we haven't detected extraterrestrial civilizations.
Controlled fission apparatus
- fissionNuclear breakup releasing energy
- neutronsUncharged subatomic particles
- uraniumElement ninety-two
- plutoniumActinide, atomic number 94
pile · moderator · radioactive
Roughly calculated, informal
- approximationNear but inexact value
- guesstimateRough, intuitive calculation
- ballparkSports venue or estimate
- scalingClimbing or resizing
heuristic · quantification · uncertainty · judgment · rule-of-thumb · calibration · imprecision
Italian masculine name
- neutrinoUncharged, near-massless particle
- fermiumSynthetic actinide, atomic 100
- ItalianOf or from Rome's country
- naturalizedGiven citizenship status
Being from outer space
- SETIQuest for cosmic signals
- galaxyGravitationally bound stellar mass
- civilizationAdvanced organized human society
- contactCommunication or physical touch
silence · aliens · habitable · cosmic · probability · universe
reactor
Controlled fission apparatus
- fissionNuclear breakup releasing energy
- neutronsUncharged subatomic particles
- uraniumElement ninety-two
plutonium · pile · moderator · radioactive
back-of-the-envelope
Roughly calculated, informal
- approximationNear but inexact value
- guesstimateRough, intuitive calculation
- ballparkSports venue or estimate
scaling · heuristic · quantification · uncertainty · judgment · rule-of-thumb · calibration · imprecision
Enrico
Italian masculine name
extraterrestrial
Being from outer space
- SETIQuest for cosmic signals
- galaxyGravitationally bound stellar mass
- civilizationAdvanced organized human society
contact · silence · aliens · habitable · cosmic · probability · universe
Fermifirst name
Personal name, not surname
given name · forename · nickname · pet name · Christian name
- Fermi paradoxWhy no extraterrestrials yet?
- Enrico Fermi