William Shockley

Date of Birth: February 13, 1910

Zodiac Sign: Aquarius

Date of Death: August 12, 1989

Biography

William Bradford Shockley was an American physicist and inventor, best known for his work in the development of the transistor, for which he shared the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics with John Bardeen and Walter Brattain. Born in London, England, to American parents, Shockley spent most of his formative years in Palo Alto, California. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree from California Institute of Technology in 1932 and earned his Ph.D. from MIT in 1936. During World War II, Shockley contributed to the war effort by working on radar and other military technologies. After the war, he joined Bell Labs, where he led a team that included Bardeen and Brattain in the invention of the point-contact transistor in 1947. Shockley later founded Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Mountain View, California, which played a pivotal role in the birth of Silicon Valley. Shockley’s later years were marred by controversy due to his outspoken views on race and intelligence, which overshadowed his earlier scientific achievements. He passed away in 1989 in Palo Alto, California.

5 Interesting Facts about William Shockley

1. William Shockley was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1956.

2. He founded Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory, the first company to work on silicon-based semiconductors.

3. Shockley’s controversial views on race and intelligence led to significant public and academic backlash.

4. He was a passionate advocate for eugenics, which severely affected his reputation.

5. Shockley was posthumously inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1977.

5 Most Interesting Quotes from William Shockley

1. “If you have to make a choice between being a good scientist and a good human being – try to be a good human being.”

2. “It’s easy to see the faults in people, but it’s much harder to see the beauty.”

3. “The idea of eugenics is a very complicated one and not one easily dismissed.”

4. “Innovation is the key to economic and technological advancement.”

5. “Science is fundamentally a moral enterprise.”

Highest Net Worth Achieved

At the peak of his career, William Shockley’s net worth was estimated to be several million dollars, primarily due to his pioneering work in semiconductor technology.