United States
Martin Lewis Perl
said
It is always a good plan for a speculative experimenter to have two experiments going, or at least one going and one being built.
— Nobel Lecture, Martin L. Perl, The Nobel Prize in Physics 1995
Martin Lewis Perl
American scientist (1927–2014)
- Fame57.5
- Momentum0.2
- Scientists rank#77
Source-basedFalling
- Fame57.5
- Momentum0.2
- Scientists rank#77
- Wikipedia992
Lived 1927–2014, aged 87United States
Summary
Updated 2026-06-09
He found a particle no one was looking for. Martin Lewis Perl discovered the tau lepton — a heavy cousin of the electron that rewrote the family tree of matter — and collected a Nobel in 1995 for seeing what the standard models hadn't predicted.
Biography
About
Martin Lewis Perl was born June 24, 1927, and trained first as a chemical engineer before crossing into physics. His experimental work led to the discovery of the tau lepton, a finding that expanded the known structure of subatomic particles and earned him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1995. He died September 30, 2014, decades after the detection that secured his place in particle physics.
Voice
In their own words
Sourced, dated quotes from Martin Lewis Perl
Martin Lewis Perl
saidundated
The experimenter dealing with nature faces an outside and often hard world. Natures' curriculum cannot be changed.
— in his Nobel Autobiography, edited by
Martin Lewis Perl
saidundated
Experimental science is a craft and an art, and part of the art is knowing when to end a fruitless experiment.
— Nobel prize lecture
Martin Lewis Perl
saidundated
Common elements of creativity are originality and imagination. Creativity is intertwined with the freedom to design, to invent and to dream.
Martin Lewis Perl
saidundated
Imagination and obsession are the keys to getting a good idea. To help your imagination keep your eyes and ears open. Avoid the "not invented here prejudice".
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By the numbers
Score breakdown
The six component signals behind the Fame score, and their ranks across the leaderboards.
Fame
Falling57.5
Composite of search demand, mentions, audience & graph footprint.
Score components
Momentum0.2
Historical23.4
Source confidence60.0
Completeness70.0
Receipts
Sources
- WikipediaHigh confidencewikipedia · en.wikipedia.org
- WikidataHigh confidencewikidata · wikidata.org
- Pantheon 2.0High confidencedatabase · pantheon.world
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