Newsletter for Wednesday 12 August.

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TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY

NEWSLETTER • 12 AUGUST

Feature for Today

On 12 Aug 1812, Ephrain Ball was born, the American inventor and manufacturer whose “Ball's Ohio Mower and Reaper” was widely successful (1854). This machine was a leader in the change to double driving wheels. His factories annually produced up to 10,000 of this and later models.

In his day, he was a self-made man who was one of the world's benefactors to agriculture. If you are unfamiliar with his accomplishments, learn more from this short biography of Ephraim Ball from A History of American Manufactures (1866).

Book of the Day

On 12 Aug 1848, George Stephenson died, the English engineer and inventor who was a principal pioneer of the railroad locomotive. The first railway he built ran from Darlington to Stockton. When it opened on 27 Sep 1825, large crowds saw him at the controls of the locomotive as it pulled 36 wagons filled with sacks of coal and flour. Today's book pick is: , by . The Stephensons carried Britain into the modern age with dramatic speed, transforming the pace and style of everyday life. The author, with his own practical knowledge of mechanical and civil engineering, is an experienced writer of biographies on several great British engineers, including Brunel and Thomas Telford, as well as Narrow Boat.

It is available from Amazon, typically about (As of earlier time of writing - subject to change.)

Quotations for Today

	Frequently, I have been asked if an experiment I have planned is pure or applied science; to me it is more important to know if the experiment will yield new and probably enduring knowledge about nature. If it is likely to yield such knowledge, it is, in my opinion, good fundamental research; and this is more important than whether the motivation is purely aesthetic satisfaction on the part of the experimenter on the one hand or the improvement of the stability of a high-power transistor on the other. — William B. Shockley, English-American physicist and engineer (died 12 Aug 1989).
	I don't like it, and I'm sorry I ever had anything to do with it. [About the probability interpretation of quantum mechanics.] — Erwin Schrödinger, Austrian theoretical physicist (born 12 Aug 1887).
no image	We look down on our research scientists … if they engage themselves in outside consultation, or if they choose to augment their income from projects of a practical nature. We implicitly promote the ivory tower, the alienation of the persons of insight from those who do things. — Vikram Sarabhai, Indian physicist (born 12 Aug 1919).

Quiz

Before you look at today's web page, see if you can answer some of these questions about the events that happened on this day. Some of the names are very familiar. Others will likely stump you. Tickle your curiosity with these questions, then check your answers on today's web page.
Births
	On 12 Aug 1887, Erwin Schrödinger, an Austrian theoretical physicist, was born who contributed to the wave theory of matter and to other fundamentals of quantum mechanics. He shared the 1933 Nobel Prize for Physics with a British physicist. Can you name the scientist that shared the 1933 Nobel Prize in Physics with Schrödinger?
	On 12 Aug 1759, Thomas Andrew Knight was born, a British horticulturalist who initiated the field of fruit breeding. To investigate the geotropism of roots and stems, he invented a machine, rotating to simulate gravity with centrifugal force in either horizontal or vertical position. In each case, he noted the inwards towards the centre, or outwards, growth direction for the roots or stems. In each case rotating on this machine, in which direction did the roots grow? In which direction did the stems grow? (Towards the centre? Or away from the centre?)
Deaths
	William B. Shockley (1910-1989) was an English-American engineer and teacher, who shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1956 for the development of an important improvement on another device, able to do the same function with much less bulk and more efficiency. What device did he invent? What did it replace?
	George Stephenson (1781-1848) was an English engineer and principal inventor of the railroad locomotive. In the Rainhill trials of 1829, there was a competition as to who could build the fastest locomotive. He won with his locomotive which traveled at an unheard of speed of 36 miles per hour. What was the name of his winning locomotive?
Events
	On 12 Aug 1877, the American astronomer Asaph Hall discovered the first of two moons of Mars. A few days later, he observed a second moon. What name did he give this first-discovered moon of Mars?
	In 1977, the Enterprise, the prototype for the space shuttle, made its first flight on its own within Earth’s atmosphere. It was being launched on the back of a Boeing 747, separated, and then touched down in California’s Mojave Desert. Thus, the space shuttle Enterprise passed its first solo flight test. What was the origin of the Enterprise name?
	In 1883, the quagga became extinct when the last mare at Amsterdam Zoo died. It was not immediately realised that she was the very last of her kind. There was confusion caused by the indiscriminate use of the term “Quagga” for similar animals. In fact, the true quagga had been hunted to extinction, without this being realised until many years later. What animal did the quagga resemble?
	In 1865, after studying Louis Pasteur’s germ theory of disease (that infections are caused by bacteria), a surgeon was the first use disinfectant during an operation. He introduced phenol (carbolic acid) as a form of disinfectant into his surgery; the higher standards of hygiene reduce the surgical death rate from 45% to 15%. He was the first medical person raised to the peerage. Can you name this surgeon?

Answers

When you have your answers ready to all the questions above, you'll find all the information to check them, and more, on the August 12 web page of Today in Science History. Or, try this link first for just the brief answers.

Fast answers for the previous newsletter for August 11: cathode-ray tube • an attendant had been feeding his laboratory chickens with cooked white rice instead of whole rice, Eijkman discovered by accident that diet produced a disease resembling beriberi in human beings • Andrew Carnegie • S.O.S..

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