Andrew Whitaker

When John Bell graduated from Queen’s in mid-1949, he was lucky that, following the invention of radar and the atomic bomb in the Second World War, physics was very much in favor with the powers-that-be. In particular, under the leadership of John Cockcroft, the Atomic Energy Research Establishment at Harwell was just getting into its stride. Doubtlessly, many physicists would have liked to get a job there, so it was remarkable that a new graduate without experience. and without even a PhD, was appointed, and more than that, there was even competition for his services. The organization's aim was fundamental research in atomic physics, with no commercial or defence work, and John Bell was highly valued.

John Bell made contributions to many areas of physics, including accelerators, quantum field theory, and the physics of elementary particles, but his most important work was the so-called Bell's inequality, which reopened the study of the fundamental nature of quantum theory and made important conceptual advances. There have been many applications, both theoretical and practical.