--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was quite the most incredible event…" description: "\"“It was quite the most incredible event that has ever happened to me in my life. It was almost as incredible as if you fired a 15-inch shell at a piece..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/ernest-rutherford-13268_atomic-science_it-was-quite-the-most-incredible-event-t_2170261.png" --- # It was quite the most incredible event that has ever… ![“It was quite the most incredible event that has ever happened to me in my life. It was almost as incredible as if you fired a 15-inch shell at a piece of tissue paper and it came back and hit you. [ Recalling in 1936 the discovery of the nucleus in 1909, when some alpha particles were observed…” quote by Ernest Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/ernest-rutherford-13268_atomic-science_it-was-quite-the-most-incredible-event-t_2170261.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/ernest-rutherford-13268_atomic-science_it-was-quite-the-most-incredible-event-t_2170261.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/ernest-rutherford-13268_atomic-science_it-was-quite-the-most-incredible-event-t_2170261.png) > ““It was quite the most incredible event that has ever happened to me in my life. It was almost as incredible as if you fired a 15-inch shell at a piece of tissue paper and it came back and hit you. \[ Recalling in 1936 the discovery of the nucleus in 1909, when some alpha particles were observed instead of travelling through a very thin gold foil were seen to rebound backward, as if striking something much more massive than the particles themselves. He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this discovery .\]”” [Ernest Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-rutherford/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rutherford describes the nuclear discovery as astonishing, likening it to a massive impact from a tiny projectile, highlighting the surprise of seeing particles rebound from a dense core. **In simple terms:** The discovery was unexpectedly dramatic, showing tiny particles bouncing off something huge. Key Takeaway Embrace unexpected results as breakthroughs. Themes science discovery surprise physics nuclear Mood wonderful excited inquisitive Type historical inspirational When to use this quote - research labs - education - public talks - science museums Key Concepts atomic structure particle scattering experimental physics Questions to Reflect On - How can we better communicate complex science? - What other phenomena seem impossible until observed? A Different Perspective The analogy may oversimplify complex quantum behavior. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atoms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atoms/) [Discovery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovery/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Nobel prize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nobel-prize/) [Nobel-laureate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nobel-laureate/) [Nuclear physics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear-physics/) [Physics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/physics/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) ## Related quotes > [From the results so far obtained it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that the long-range atoms arising from collision of alpha particles with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-rutherford/from-the-results-so-far-obtained-it-is-difficult-to-avoid-the/) [Ernest Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-rutherford/) > [“The void is 'not-being,' and no part of 'what is' is a 'not-being,'; for what 'is' in the strict sense of the term is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/the-void-is-not-being-and-no-part-of-what-is-is-a-not-being-for-what/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [Some months ago we discovered that certain light elements emit positrons under the action of alpha particles. 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I believe that international doors have opened, and that from now on, literate people will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naguib-mahfouz/the-arab-world-also-won-the-nobel-with-me-i-believe-that/) [Naguib Mahfouz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naguib-mahfouz/) > [When Doris Lessing won the Nobel Prize for Literature at the age of 88, she was the oldest person ever to receive the prize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-cartwright/when-doris-lessing-won-the-nobel-prize-for-literature-at-the-age-of/) [Justin Cartwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-cartwright/) ## More by Ernest Rutherford > [It was almost as incredible as if you fired a 15-inch shell at a piece of tissue paper and it came back to hit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-rutherford/it-was-almost-as-incredible-as-if-you-fired-a-15-inch-shell-at-a/) [Ernest Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-rutherford/) > [Physics is the only real science. 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