近日， 一封来自瑞典的感谢信抵达清华大学物理系教授王向斌的邮箱 ，感谢他和学生木清（化名）发现并指出2022年诺贝尔物理学奖科学背景报告中的一处笔误。
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In December, a sophomore electronics major going by the alias Mu Qing was doing physics homework when he discovered an error in the last equation on page 11 of the scientific background report on the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics, according to Tsinghua University, who shared the story on Friday.
据清华大学介绍，量子纠缠是一种奇特的量子力学现象，此前三位科学家因开创性实验展示了处于纠缠状态的粒子潜力，获得诺贝尔物理学奖，引发学界广泛关注。
The equation was about quantum entanglement, a strange phenomenon in which two photons or other quantum entities behave as one unit even if spatially separated. Quantum entanglement is at the heart of many quantum technologies, including quantum computing, encryption and communication.
而在2022年12月，在完成“大学物理”课程延伸学习时，电子系大二学生木清发现2022年诺贝尔物理学奖科学背景报告的量子纠缠swapping推导中第十一页最后一个公式|Psi>_{1234}似乎有些不对。
“正确公式右边4项应该都取正号，然而它却是2正2负”难道公式出现笔误了？
The correct equation should have positive signs for all four factors on the right side of the equation instead of two positives and two negatives as was shown in the report.
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面前是权威的诺贝尔物理学奖，自己是才入门的学科“小白”，加之公式符号虽然有错但并不影响前后文逻辑。木清犹豫再三，还是将自己发现的问题告知了老师王向斌。
王向斌从教多年，第一时间为学生答疑解惑，已然成为他的习惯。两人的探讨一直持续到凌晨。一次次确认背景概念定义，一遍遍在稿纸上演算推导，结果表明，报告中确实笔误了！
Mu was perplexed at first. After all, he thought he was just a brash newcomer to physics who had the gall to question the highest authority in the field. Moreover, the erroneous labeling was inconsequential since it didn't affect the conclusion of the calculation. But the error kept gnawing at his mind, so Mu asked his professor Wang Xiangbin for help. Instead of being dismissive of the inquiry, Wang patiently tackled the problem with Mu late into the night. After several rounds of calculations, they confirmed that the Nobel committee had made a mistake.
于是，王向斌帮助木清把发现的问题反馈给了瑞典皇家科学院，对方诚挚接受并按照建议更新了报告版本。
Wang later presented the correction to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Sara Gustavsson, communications officer at the academy, recently replied to Wang, thanking him and Mu for notifying the academy about the error.
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记者得知此事，试图与学生取得联系。校方工作人员反馈称——木清此前就再三要求报道中不要出现他的本名，“什么时候要是能做出真东西，再用真名。”
After the story went viral, Mu asked reporters to keep him anonymous because he hadn't created any notable scientific breakthroughs. "When I get to make something really impressive, then please publish my real name," he said.
王向斌说，学生身上这种敢于质疑的精神是他最珍视的，“即使是笔误，也要修改不能含糊。科学面前人人平等，没有绝对的权威，谁都可以提出合理疑问。这正是学术的魅力，物理学的魅力”。
Wang said the quality he treasures the most from his students is the spirit of inquisitiveness. "Even if it was just a clerical error, it should be promptly corrected," he said. Through this event, Wang said his students should learn that in science, everyone is equal, and there is no absolute authority. "Everybody can pose a legitimate question. Such is the beauty of physics and academia," he said.
记者：张之豪
编辑：陈月华
来源：清华大学微信公众号 中国日报 中青报
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