“In his first philosophical lecture on modern physics that Pauli gave in November 1934 to the Zurich Philosophical Society he said that only a formulation of quantum theory would be satisfactory which expresses the relation between the value of [the fine structure constant] and charge conservation in the same complementary was as that between the space-time description and energy-momentum conservation.” PhysicsQuantum TheoryHistory Of ScienceFine Structure ConstantWolfgang PauliCharge Conservation Book:No Time to be Brief: A Scientific Biography of Wolfgang Pauli Source: No Time to be Brief: A Scientific Biography of Wolfgang Pauli
“For [Wolfgang] Pauli the central problem of electrodynamics was the field concept and the existence of an elementary charge which is expressible by the fine-structure constant ... 1/137. This fundamental pure number had greatly fascinated Pauli, .... For Pauli the explanation of the number 137 was the test of a successful field theory, a test which no theory has passed up to now.” SciencePhysicsFine Structure ConstantNumberWolfgang Pauli Book:Pauli Lectures on Physics: Volume 1, Electrodynamics Source: Pauli Lectures on Physics: Volume 1, Electrodynamics