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J. Ernest Wilkins Jr.
An African America, the youngest student in the University of Chicago at the age of 13, and a Ph.D. in Mathematics at the age of 19 – that is the genius of Jesse Ernest Wilkins Jr. His work on Multi Variable Calculus, Algebra, Nuclear Physics, and Engineering, have created and contributed extraordinary systems, not only in the fat man and a little boy nuclear explosions, but also in using nuclear energy for the generation of electricity as well Gamma-Ray protection. Unfortunately, he was an African-American, and it impacted him all his life and career. After his Doctoral achievement, Jesse Ernest Wilkins Jr., pursued Bachelors and Master’s Degree in Engineering to ensure he gains acceptance among the engineers that reported to him. Totally, he had five degrees in Science in his life.
He started his professional career teaching mathematics at the Tuskegee University in Alabama. Because of the colour of his skin, Wilkins would have never worked on the nuclear project, except for the intervention of Edward Teller, who insisted that he be brought into Site X. It was in relation to this, he started working on neutron absorption, dealing with Eugene Wigner that finally led to the creation of methods for Gamma-Ray absorption. Possibly drawing from here, he later went on to develop nuclear reactors for generating electrical power and eventually went on to become an owner of one such company.
Jesse Wilkins Jr. was born on 27th November, 1923 to Jesse Ernest Sr. and Lucile Beatrice Wilkins, and was twice married to Gloria Louise Stewart and Maxine G. Malone and has one child from the first marriage.
Ernest Wilkins Jr. has made many well-known contributions to the fields of Applied Mathematics and Physics, Theoretical Mathematics and Physics, and more importantly Nuclear Engineering. He had a spiral career growth, constantly moving between academics, industry, and government. He is known to have mentored and encouraged numerous young African-Americans, and encouraged them to pursue careers in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics. He is known to have contributed extensively in the now famous Manhattan Project that developed the first Nuclear Bomb, ever to be used in war, and more importantly; it is because of this bomb that the World War II came to an end.
Wilkins is known for his excellence in his works on Gamma-Ray Radiation Shielding, some of the earliest Nuclear Reactor designs, and also as a Physicist, he has contributed to the development of Optical Instruments in Space Exploration. Both his parents were highly educated, and his father had a dual degree in Mathematics and Law, while his mother held a Master’s Degree in Education. It is from this background that Wilkins was identified as a child prodigy who skipped grades and was in the fifth grade at the early age of 7 years. His two brothers followed his father’s footsteps and became lawyers, but Wilkins went on to pursue Mathematics, along with Track, Baseball, and Tennis pursuits. When he got his Ph.D. at the age of 19, the then print media proclaimed him as the ‘Negro Genius’.
Wilkins, though worked very intimately on the nuclear bomb, and contributed methods for production of fissionable material – plutonium 239, it was only in the August, 1945, understood the goal of his research. He moved quickly to the American Optical Company in Buffalo, New York, as a Mathematician, developing optical methods and techniques for development of large telescope lenses.
Many scientists associated with the Manhattan Project were fascinated by the possible applications – peaceful applications of atomic energy. Wilkins joined Nuclear Development Corporation of America, and continued into United Nuclear Corporation, becoming manager in Physics and Mathematics department, and finally as a manager of Research and Development department. He was elected as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Later in 1960, Wilkins moved to the General Atomic Division in General Dynamics Corporation (San Diego, California), as Administrator, then the Assistant Chairman of the Theoretical Physics Department. He later went on to becoming the Assistant Director of the Atomic Division. Wilkins move later in 1965, John J. Hopkins Laboratory, then Defence Science and Engineering Center, and finally as the Director of the Computational Research.
Wilkins’s best achievement is his research on penetration of Gamma rays along with Herbert Goldsteein, which was published in the year 1953. Wilkins did crucial work in this area and created several mathematical models for calculating the absorption of Gamma radiation by any given material. This work is crucial in developing shields to absorb Gamma radiation of the sun as well as several nuclear sources. This research is instrumental in nuclear reactor design as well as space research. Between the years 1943 and 1997, Wilkins contributed 46 mathematical research papers in the fields of Bessel functions, Differential and Integral Equations, and Calculus. He is also known for his papers on estimation of the number of real routes for Random Polynomials.
Wilkins Jr. proved that, when commitment is coupled with intelligence, there is nothing that can stop an individual in pursuit of his goals.
Works Cited
BlackPast.Org. Wilkins, J. Ernest, Jr. (1923-2011). 2011. 16 June 2014 <http://www.blackpast.org/aah/wilkins-jr-j-ernest-1923>.
Harverson, Erika. "Black History Month Little Known Facts!" The Grand Rapids Times 06 March 2014: 19.
Wilkins, Carolyn Marie. Damn Near White: An African American Family's Rise from Slavery to Bittersweet Success. University of Missouri Press, 2010.
Zerbonia, Ralph G. "Contemporary Black Biography." Gale Research Inc, Vol. 59, (2005).
