Postscript on Chandra and Eddington

The letters from Arthur Miller and Kameshwar Wali (Physics Today, September 2006, page 10 ) present an interesting contrast to an objective reader. Allegations that are forthrightly rebutted, a waspish tone set against reasoned calmness, hearsay versus the protagonist’s own words. In sum, an entertaining interlude in a diet of other journals.

The following episode, of which I was a witness, says something about Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar and his relationship to Arthur Eddington. About two decades ago, Chandra was awarded the Michelson–Morley Prize by Case Western Reserve University. In the public lecture that followed, he spoke about black holes and such. When he had finished and sat down, the chairman invited questions and comments from the audience. A man stood up and made a short, complicated speech ending with “Can Professor Chandrasekhar explain the paradox?” Chandra returned to the podium and, in his characteristically soft voice, said he was reminded of his good friend Eddington, who once told him, “When you really understand physics, there are no paradoxes.”