Chien-Shiung Wu vs Chinua Achebe
Two child prodigies, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
The record, side by side
| Chien-Shiung Wu | Chinua Achebe | |
| Field | Science | Literature |
| Sub-field | Physics | Novelist |
| Born | 1912 | 1930 |
| Died | 1997 | 2013 |
| Country of birth | China | Colonial Nigeria |
| Star sign | Gemini | Scorpio |
Who they are
Chien-Shiung Wu
Wu Experiment 1956 — Proved parity violation, overturned a law of physics The First Lady of Physics · Columbia University · Wolf Prize 1978 Born May 31, 1912 · Liuhe, China · Died February 16, 1997
Full biography of Chien-Shiung Wu →
Chinua Achebe
Father of African Literature · Author of Things Fall Apart 20 million copies sold · 57 languages translated · Most widely read African novel in history Born November 16, 1930 · Ogidi, Nigeria · Died March 21, 2013
Full biography of Chinua Achebe →
What they share
- Their lifetimes overlap.
Where they part
- Different fields: Science for Chien-Shiung Wu, Literature for Chinua Achebe.
- Born in different countries: China and Colonial Nigeria.
- 18 years separate their births (1912 and 1930).
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Chien-Shiung Wu or Chinua Achebe?
- Chien-Shiung Wu. Chien-Shiung Wu was born in 1912, Chinua Achebe in 1930.
- What field is each of them in?
- Chien-Shiung Wu is filed under Science (Physics). Chinua Achebe is filed under Literature (Novelist).
- Were they contemporaries?
- Yes - their lifetimes overlap.