Giancarlo Ghirardi (28 October 1935 – 1 June 2018)
was an Italian
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
and
emeritus professor
''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus".
In some c ...
of
theoretical physics
Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict List of natural phenomena, natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental p ...
at the
University of Trieste.
He is well known for the
Ghirardi–Rimini–Weber theory (GRW), which he proposed in 1985 together with Alberto Rimini and Tullio Weber,
and for his contributions to the
foundations
Foundation(s) or The Foundation(s) may refer to: Common uses
* Foundation (cosmetics), a skin-coloured makeup cream applied to the face
* Foundation (engineering), the element of a structure which connects it to the ground, and transfers loads f ...
of
quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics is the fundamental physical Scientific theory, theory that describes the behavior of matter and of light; its unusual characteristics typically occur at and below the scale of atoms. Reprinted, Addison-Wesley, 1989, It is ...
. He independently rederived, in a referee report to ''Foundations of Physics'', the
no-cloning theorem
In physics, the no-cloning theorem states that it is impossible to create an independent and identical copy of an arbitrary unknown quantum state, a statement which has profound implications in the field of quantum computer, quantum computing among ...
, before the works by
William Wootters
William "Bill" Kent Wootters is an American theoretical physicist, and one of the founders of the field of quantum information theory. In a 1982 joint paper with Wojciech H. Zurek, Wootters proved the no-cloning theorem, at the same time as De ...
and
Wojciech H. Zurek and by
Dennis Dieks in 1982,
but after the actual first derivation by James L. Park
in 1970.
His research interests related to a variety of topics of
theoretical physics
Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict List of natural phenomena, natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental p ...
, but focused beginning in 1983 mainly on the foundations of quantum mechanics.
Ghirardi was a member of the editorial boards of ''
Foundations of Physics
''Foundations of Physics'' is a monthly journal "devoted to the conceptual bases and fundamental theories of modern physics and cosmology, emphasizing the logical, methodological, and philosophical premises of modern physical theories and procedur ...
'' and ''
Studies in History and Philosophy of Science''. He was president of the Italian Society for the Foundations of Physics, of which he was one of the founding members.
The President of the Province of
Trieste
Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
,
Maria Teresa Bassa Poropat, conferred the ''Sigillo della Provincia di Trieste'' to Giancarlo Ghirardi for research and teaching, for his commitment to the promotion and development of physics in Trieste and for his intense and fruitful activity as the author of popular books and scientific publications.
In 2017, he was awarded the ''Spirit of Salam'' prize for his extraordinary contributions to the development of the
International Centre for Theoretical Physics
The Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) is a research center for physical and mathematical sciences, located in Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy.
The center operates under a tripartite agreement between the Gov ...
during its budding years, both at its scientific and organizational fronts.
See also
*
Continuous spontaneous localization model
Books
*
*
References
External links
GianCarlo Ghirardi Editorial Team member page at ''
Quanta''.
GianCarlo Ghirardiat
Google Scholar
Google Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text or metadata of Academic publishing, scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines. Released in Beta release, beta in November 2004, th ...
GianCarlo Ghirardi The Information Philosopher
AIPS Honours Ghirardi News from International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Trieste, Italy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghirardi, Giancarlo
1935 births
2018 deaths
20th-century Italian physicists
Italian theoretical physicists
Quantum physicists
Academic staff of the University of Trieste
Scientists from Milan