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Something to remark on: Abdus Salam (the Pakistani Nobel Physics laureate mentioned near the top) and Steven Weinberg (quoted two sentences later as saying he h

Something to remark on: Abdus Salam (the Pakistani Nobel Physics laureate mentioned near the top) and Steven Weinberg (quoted two sentences later as saying he hasn't read anything worthwhile from a physicist working in a Muslim country) collaborated together on the work that won them that same nobel prize (Glashow-Weinberg-Salam model of electroweak interaction).

amai 6y ago
Unfortunately the following happened according to Wikipedia: "The epitaph on his tomb initially read "First Muslim Nobel Laureate". The Pakistani government removed "Muslim" and left only his name on the headstone. They are the only nation to officially declare that Ahmadis are non-Muslim." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdus_Salam https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdus_Salam
jchb 6y ago
Abdus Salam belonged to a school/sect of Islam that encourages open debate and promotes a scientific interpretation of the Quran. "Salam was an Ahmadi Muslim, who saw his religion as a fundamental part of his scientific work. ... In 1974, the Pakistan parliament made the Second Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan that declared Ahmadi to be non-Muslim. In protest, Salam left Pakistan for London." [0] [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdus_Salam#Religion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdus_Salam#Religion
- WorkLobster 6y ago
  Thanks for that extra info. I'm wondering if Weinberg's comment may in fact have been in support of Salam and his (possibly frustrated) experiences in Pakistan, rather than in contradiction of it. I think it would have been a fruitful avenue for the article to pursue.
  - jchb 6y ago
    It seems so, a key part of that quote is "working in". https://books.google.co.jp/books?id=d2tF-L00-X8C&pg=PA216&lpg=PA216&dq=%22My+late+friend,+the+distinguished+Pakistani+physicist+Abdus+Salam%22&source=bl&ots=CgizFKnGgL&sig=ACfU3U2MOqTvCbPAoxMln1wyvk7IOBYRCw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi2_ebo66fsAhWOyosBHVqZBAQQ6AEwAHoECAEQAg#v=onepage&q=%22My%20late%20friend%2C%20the%20distinguished%20Pakistani%20physicist%20Abdus%20Salam%22&f=false https://books.google.co.jp/books?id=d2tF-L00-X8C&pg=PA216&lp... "My late friend, the distinguished Pakistani physicist Abdus Salam, tried to convince the rulers of the oil-rich states of the Persian Gulf to invest in scientific education and research, but he found that though they were enthusiastic about technology, they felt that pure science presented too great a challenge to faith. In 1981, the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt called for an end to scientific education. In the areas of science I know best, though there are talented scientists of Muslim origin working productively in the West, for forty years I have not seen a single paper by a physicist or astronomer working in a Muslim country that was worth reading"

amai 6y ago

Unfortunately the following happened according to Wikipedia: "The epitaph on his tomb initially read "First Muslim Nobel Laureate". The Pakistani government removed "Muslim" and left only his name on the headstone. They are the only nation to officially declare that Ahmadis are non-Muslim." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdus_Salam https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdus_Salam

jchb 6y ago

Abdus Salam belonged to a school/sect of Islam that encourages open debate and promotes a scientific interpretation of the Quran. "Salam was an Ahmadi Muslim, who saw his religion as a fundamental part of his scientific work. ... In 1974, the Pakistan parliament made the Second Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan that declared Ahmadi to be non-Muslim. In protest, Salam left Pakistan for London." [0] [0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdus_Salam#Religion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdus_Salam#Religion

WorkLobster 6y ago
Thanks for that extra info. I'm wondering if Weinberg's comment may in fact have been in support of Salam and his (possibly frustrated) experiences in Pakistan, rather than in contradiction of it. I think it would have been a fruitful avenue for the article to pursue.
- jchb 6y ago
  It seems so, a key part of that quote is "working in". https://books.google.co.jp/books?id=d2tF-L00-X8C&pg=PA216&lpg=PA216&dq=%22My+late+friend,+the+distinguished+Pakistani+physicist+Abdus+Salam%22&source=bl&ots=CgizFKnGgL&sig=ACfU3U2MOqTvCbPAoxMln1wyvk7IOBYRCw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi2_ebo66fsAhWOyosBHVqZBAQQ6AEwAHoECAEQAg#v=onepage&q=%22My%20late%20friend%2C%20the%20distinguished%20Pakistani%20physicist%20Abdus%20Salam%22&f=false https://books.google.co.jp/books?id=d2tF-L00-X8C&pg=PA216&lp... "My late friend, the distinguished Pakistani physicist Abdus Salam, tried to convince the rulers of the oil-rich states of the Persian Gulf to invest in scientific education and research, but he found that though they were enthusiastic about technology, they felt that pure science presented too great a challenge to faith. In 1981, the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt called for an end to scientific education. In the areas of science I know best, though there are talented scientists of Muslim origin working productively in the West, for forty years I have not seen a single paper by a physicist or astronomer working in a Muslim country that was worth reading"