Eugene Wigner

AKA:

E.P. Wigner

Birth Name:

Eugene Paul Wigner

Birth Date:

November 17, 1902

Birth Place:

Budapest, Hungary

Death Date:

January 1, 1995

Place of Death:

University Medical Center, Princeton, New Jersey

Age:

Cause of Death:

Pneumonia

Cemetery Name:

Princeton Cemetery

Claim to Fame:

Science

Eugene Paul "E. P." Wigner was a Hungarian theoretical physicist who also contributed to mathematical physics. He obtained American citizenship in 1937, and received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1963 "for his contributions to the theory of the atomic nucleus and the elementary particles, particularly through the discovery and application of fundamental symmetry principles". Wigner and Hermann Weyl were responsible for introducing group theory into physics, particularly the theory of symmetry in physics. Along the way he performed ground-breaking work in pure mathematics, in which he authored a number of mathematical theorems. In particular, Wigner's theorem is a cornerstone in the mathematical formulation of quantum mechanics.

Fun Fact

Wigner participated in a meeting with Leo Szilard and Albert Einstein that resulted in the Einstein-Szilard letter, which prompted President Franklin D. Roosevelt to initiate the Manhattan Project to develop atomic bombs. Wigner was afraid that the German nuclear weapon project would develop an atomic bomb first. During the Manhattan Project, he led a team whose task was to design nuclear reactors to convert uranium into weapons grade plutonium.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

Princeton Cemetery

29 Greenview Avenue

Princeton, New Jersey, 08542

USA

North America

Map:

Map of Princeton Cemetery in Princeton New Jersey

Grave Location:

Section 4, Block 31, Lot 31, Grave 1

Grave Location Description

As you drive through the entrance of the cemetery, past the office on your right, take the first right. Continue straight and stay to the right and drive 3/4 around the roundabout, bear right, and continue straight to the next curve and park. Walk to your right at an angle towards the far corner of the cemetery and E.P. Wigner’s upright monument should be visible about 150 feet from the road.