Go back to the past and be a schoolboy

Germany at the beginning of the 20th century was the center of international scientific activities. Especially before World War I, 42 of the 14 Nobel Prizes in natural science were awarded to Germans, and there were Germans in every academic field.

Even before Britain entered World War I, the British-led "The Times" directly expressed pessimism about Britain's participation in the war, and specially published an article "Protest of Scholars Opposing the War Against Germany". Physicist Joseph Thomson and chemist William Laura Mu directly warned:

"We see Germany as a leading nation in the sciences and arts, and we have all learned from German scholars and are still learning from them. A war against Germany in the interests of Serbia and Tsarist Russia would be a crime against civilization. "

It is a pity that with the official entry of the United Kingdom into the war, this kind of German voice disappeared, and they began to confront each other.

At present, the first wave of the Spanish flu epidemic has broken out, and nearly 50 German soldiers have been infected with influenza.While the Allies were also affected, their soldiers had better supplies and food and were therefore more resistant to epidemics.

Now Germany is in trouble at home and abroad, and it seems that it will not be able to survive.

It was against this background that Cheng Nuo pretended to be a Japanese and sneaked into Berlin, Germany.

After careful investigation, he was dazzled by various scientific research institutes inside.

What Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry, Rovinj Animal Station, Institute of Experimental Therapy, Institute of Brain Science, Institute of Aerodynamics and Fluid Dynamics, Institute of Hydrobiology, etc.

Carefully counting more than ten such large-scale research institutes, which are distributed in the frontiers of various disciplines, I don't know where to start.

But thinking about the previous agreement with Planck, Cheng Nuo decided to go to Berlin University to try his luck first.

"You mean you are looking for Professor Planck, sorry, Professor Planck is currently in a meeting at the Royal William Society, and he is not at school for the time being." The student looked him up and down, suspiciously said: "Yellow skin? Asian? Here is Can you come somewhere? Does the professor know you?"

Cheng Nuo immediately took half a step back and smiled contemptuously: "The Germans? They are just defeated by our Yamato nation. Do you need me to repeat what happened on the battlefield in the Far East?"

After saying this, he stepped on his wooden clogs and turned to leave.

With such an arrogant look, Cheng Nuo himself felt that he deserved it, let alone a passionate young man from Germany, the "losing side".

The students were about to catch up and beat Cheng Nuo hard.

It's a pity that Cheng Nuo's physical fitness is not comparable to that of ordinary people. The students tried their best to catch up, and they watched the distance between the two sides get farther and farther, but there was nothing they could do.

Originally, I thought about it, but I didn't expect the "Japanese" at the back corner to cut off his head, which was extremely arrogant.

"Auntie can bear it, uncle can't bear it." The student was so angry that he took off his shoe and threw it at the "Japanese". Unfortunately, the other party was agile and finally missed the target.

"Japanese, don't be too complacent. Right now we are a belligerent country. The outcome of the war is unknown until the end. I will make you pay the price."

The more the student thought about it, the angrier he became, and the more he couldn't bear it, he made a decision in his heart, then turned around and rushed in a certain direction.

On the other side, Cheng Nuo couldn't help being amused by the scene. Maybe it was because he laughed too much, or maybe his makeup needs to be improved, and the mustache on his lips was crooked.

That is to say, Cheng Nuo has a thicker skin. When he saw the strange eyes of passers-by, he immediately took off his hat and covered the lower half of his face as a signal.

In this way, Cheng Nuo inquired all the way, searched all the way, and finally found the Prussian Academy of Sciences. Unexpectedly, there was a good show waiting for him inside.

"President Harnack, I hope you can understand this. The primary task of our research institute is to meet the practical and scientific needs of the war situation during the war. We have nothing else to consider, and we The main funding comes from war money!"

In the auditorium, two people who disagreed were arguing with each other.

On the stage, the chairman of the Kaiser Wilhelm Society, the theologian Harnack who personally created the peak of German science, had a serious face.

Looking at the already turbulent meeting place and thinking about the terrible situation of World War I, Harnack was physically and mentally exhausted, but as the helm of the Royal William Society, he still stood up from his seat and tried his best to calm everyone's emotions: "Haber professor……"

Unexpectedly, the inventor of synthetic ammonia, that is, Haber, who just made a sharp point of view, did not let the other party finish his sentence, and interrupted him directly: "President Harnack, sorry to interrupt, I am now a captain, don't Call me Professor again, and Captain Harper!"

Hearing this, Harnack was stunned and speechless.

However, this cannot be blamed on Haber for being so proud. It is precisely because he voluntarily proposed to the Ministry of War to undertake the task of solving the problem of raw material supply. When Chilean nitrate mines were blocked by the United Kingdom and caused a serious shortage of synthetic ammonia in Germany, Haber was temporarily appointed as the The person in charge of materials has successfully developed the synthetic ammonia technology.

This technology can not only produce ammonia in large quantities, alleviate the shortage of ammunition and agricultural fertilizers, but also relieve the pressure on Germany in time. It is considered to be one of the main reasons why Germany was able to survive in the middle and late stages of World War I.

It is also for this reason that, relying on its unique knowledge background, the Ministry of the Army saw the great military potential of scientific research, and the expected quick battle turned into a tug-of-war in the trenches. The German side was under enormous pressure economically, politically and psychologically. .

In order to break the situation, Haber led the Wudian Institute to develop a poison gas warfare experiment, intending to drive the enemy out of the trenches and quickly end the war. After that, the military tasks undertaken by Wudian continued to increase, and Haber began to be fully responsible for the poison gas warfare, including The selection and training of officers and soldiers, the issuance of relevant combat orders, etc.

It is precisely because of this dedication that Haber was trusted by the German military and obtained the "captain rank" he had longed for, and the suffix on his business card was changed from professor to captain.

Of course, in addition to the Institute of Materials and Electricity, similar research institutes also include the Institute of Experimental Treatment for Military Research, the Department of Bacteriology for Cholera and Typhoid Research, the Department of Chemistry for Glycerin and Glycerin Digestion, etc. The entire German scientific community was serving World War I.

But it is very rare to be as obsessed as Haber.

Seeing the other party's appearance like this, Harnack, the chairman of the Royal Society of William, couldn't help twitching his lips, hesitated for a long time, and finally decided that peace is the most important thing: "Captain Harper."

Haber's lips turned up, and the remaining reserve did not make him laugh too exaggeratedly: "President Harnack, what orders do you have?"

Harnack was expressionless: "I don't know if you still remember the purpose of the establishment of the Royal William Society?"

Haber frowned and thought for a moment, then shook his head helplessly: "Sorry, I don't remember."

Harnack cleared his throat, turned his gaze from Haber to the audience, and said word by word: "Autonomy, freedom, basic research, I would like to ask all of us present here, what has the team behind you achieved?"

As soon as this remark came out, the audience immediately fell silent, and no one dared to look directly at Hanak's gaze.

However, the hardliner Haberk was not so easily persuaded, he stood up abruptly and said bluntly: "Science and military power are the two pillars of the great Germany. Announce one thing!"

Harnack asked, "What is it?"

Haber opened his chair, walked to the rostrum with a document in his hand, put it in front of Harnack, then turned around and announced to the audience: "Today I solemnly tell you that our material The Electric Institute officially added the title of 'Royal Prussia' representing the identity of the empire, and changed its name to the Royal Prussian Kaiser Wilhelm Institute!"

After a pause, Haber continued enthusiastically, regardless of Hanack's expression on the stage: "Here, I can tell you clearly that the blind research autonomy will not bring you research funding or bread, as long as you join us The research institute, manpower and funds can meet everyone's requirements..."

"That's enough. As the president, I solemnly invite you to go out now. The Kaiser Wilhelm Institute does not welcome you!" Seeing that the atmosphere of the entire venue began to be distorted, Hanack clenched his fists and immediately amplified He snatched the weapon over and stopped Haber from speaking later.

"Professor Harper..." Harnack tried his best to calm down his anger.

"Please call me Captain Harper!" Harper said indifferently.
"Professor Haber, this is a scientific research conference, not the barracks that your military preached. Please leave now, immediately, you are not welcome here!" Hanak stared angrily.

"Hmph, extremely pedantic!" Haber laughed angrily, and got down from the rostrum with his hands, not forgetting to raise his arms and shouted in the middle: "My dear colleagues, if you want to have sufficient funds, only those who join our institute There is a way to go!"

During this period, Harnack on the rostrum did not say a word, until Haber completely left the venue, he said slowly: "It is undeniable that because of the mediation of the institute established by Professor Haber, a large number of young scientists can come from Withdrew safely from the battlefield, saving the vitality for our society.

But it is precisely because of this that our main business - the field of basic research has been greatly neglected. Compared with the research in the field of war medicine, pure natural science research has to take a back seat. Biochemistry, radioactivity, organic chemistry The field had to be interrupted.

If things go on like this, we will be farther and farther away from the frontier of international scientific research, and it will take more manpower, material and financial resources to catch up..."

Harnack on the rostrum is trying his best to steer the helm, but it is a pity that Haber's influence still remains under the rostrum.

Cheng Nuo, who sneaked in to listen to the meeting in the last row, heard with his own ears several scholars complaining in a low voice, saying that they couldn't make it through now, there was no funds for further research, and how to talk about the next development.

Obviously, I am very envious of the Institute of Physics and Electricity led by Haber.

Although Cheng Nuo did not attend the entire conference, he could still understand that the German scientific community was currently divided into two factions.

One is Haber, who studies practical science and technology, actively moves closer to the military, and obtains huge research funding through this.

The other is like Harnack, who studies basic science, has little use value on the battlefield, receives very poor research funding, and has become a problem for food and clothing.

For Cheng Nuo, an outsider, he didn't want to directly join a certain faction, but hoped that everyone's struggle would be as fierce as possible, so that only fish in troubled waters could be fished.

But right now, Haber, who had just slammed the door, was obviously more valuable to Cheng Nuo than Hanak, who was aloof on the rostrum.

Leaving quietly from the position, Cheng Nuo chased in the direction Haber left.

In fact, during the few days in Germany, Cheng Nuo did not directly contact the target person.

One is to familiarize yourself with the local environment, and if something happens, you can get out as soon as possible.

The second is to investigate the actual situation of the target person. Although there are records in the history books in my mind, there are inevitably some discrepancies with the actual situation. Blind copying will definitely not have a good result.

And it was during this period of investigation that Cheng Nuo's interest in Hubble was gradually higher than that of other scientific figures, such as Einstein, Planck, Prandtl and others.

In a society that has always held prejudices against the Jewish nation, as a Jew, Haber not only did not keep a low profile, but was keen on winning honors in science and politics to gain social identity recognition. This motivation made Haber more than other people More firmly devoted to military research.

"In a sense, is this another kind of convert fanaticism? It's really interesting, but there is only one great chemist in the world who is so keen on researching chemical weapons?"

Cheng Nuo was thoughtful as he followed Haber and watched him hurrying.

"However, for this great chemist, this year is both happy and sad. The happiness is that he will soon win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and the sadness is that Germany will soon be defeated. Some people in Berlin will definitely be liquidated... For Whatever I say, it can be a good thing."

After thinking about it, Cheng Nuo had a vague plan in mind, and began to walk forward quickly, running in front of Haber.

He solemnly bowed at 90 degrees in the standard Japanese style, and then said, "Captain Haber, it's nice to meet you!"

With what happened at the meeting just now, Haber was in a bad mood, but now that he saw someone stopping him, he was about to get angry immediately.

But when he heard the other party call him "Captain", the anger dissipated immediately, and he smiled and said, "Young man, are you from the Far East? I don't know what you can do with me? If there are any academic questions that you don't understand, I can answer everything? Even the doubts in life, you can try to answer one or two."

The corners of Cheng Nuo's mouth rose slightly, and then he got up and said with admiration, "Captain Haber, I'm Kazuno Watanabe from Japan, I'm just admiring your great achievements in military science research, and I'm here to pay you a visit .”

Hearing that the young man was from Japan, the smile on Haber's face disappeared immediately, and he said bluntly: "Your country and our country are at war, and I don't welcome you here. For the sake of admiring me, I won't call the guards." , for the sake of your personal safety, you'd better leave quickly."

The smile on Cheng Nuo's face did not decrease at all, but took a step forward: "No, no, Captain Haber, you have misunderstood, it is our country's tradition to go down and down!
We are different from those bureaucrats who have a vegetarian diet. We not only don’t want to make enemies with your country, but also want to make good friends with your country, especially in terms of chemical weapons that you are currently engaged in. We, the Empire of Japan, just have some experience, and we can help one or two, and conspire for a great cause! "

Haber took half a step back, looked up and down the ignorant Japanese young man, and said contemptuously, "Young man, you still have a long way to go."