ABSTRACT
For the physics com m unity the celebrations commemorated an im por tant episode the history of their discipline. For not only did Thom son and his colleagues represent the first generation of professional physicists, their work on X-rays, radioactivity, and the electron led to remarkable breakthroughs in understanding the internal working o f atoms. In turn understanding the atom provided a new basis for research in many areas o f physics. This new knowledge about the atom, quantum mechanics, and its practical outcomes, from electronic devices to nuclear weapons, changed the course o f hum an history. 2 Consequently, the celebrations marking the discovery of the electron were opportunities for physicists to draw the attention of a wide audience to the benefits (but usually not to the disbenefits), o f their work. In fact, accounts of the electron centenary reached a wide audience through mass media such as radio and television, and their newer electronic incarnations, whose operation depends on manipulating electrons.
