TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY
NEWSLETTER • 9 NOVEMBER
On 9 Nov 1731, Benjamin Banneker was born, a Black-American astronomer, inventor and mathematician. A biography of Benjamin Banneker appears in Men of Mark (1887), which begins with him growing up in a poor family, but already an intelligent student. In 1770 he made a clock. His interests turned to astronomy, and he could calculate when the sun or moon should be eclipsed, and at what time every star would rise. There is a copy of an intriguing mathematical question propounded by Banneker concerning the dimensions of a wine vessel of unspecified shape, given by its proportions and volume. If you fancy yourself as having a skill in mathematics, it's a puzzle you should enjoy trying to solve, as you read more about his skills and achievements.
On 9 Nov 1825, Thomas Drummond made the first practical use of limelight. No, not for the theatrical stage. It was to enable work through misty days and night while surveying in Ireland. If you didn't know how limelight got its start, read this extract about Drummond's Heliostat and the Drummond Light from Memoir of Thomas Drummond (1867). He invented created an intense light from a lump of lime (calcium oxide) heated to incandescent by an oxygenated alcohol flame in front of a reflector.
On 9 Nov 1934, Carl Sagan was born, an American astronomer, exobiologist, author and popularizer of science. He is perhaps the best-known scientist on the planet through Cosmos, the first science television blockbuster science series. In his Cosmos, he energetically blends science and philosophy tracing modern knowledge and scientific methods from their historical roots. If you have not seen or read Sagan's irresistible work, it is such a classic that remains in print. You may wish to splurge on the video set and view all the episodes again. Long after his death, they remain his signature achievement. Today's book pick is: Cosmos, by Carl Sagan. If you do not already have this classic on your bookshelf, you may wish to buy a copy, to read and reflect on his thoughtful words again.
It is available from Amazon, typically about New from $39.99. Used from $0.25. (As of earlier time of writing - subject to change.)
 | I tried and failed. I tried again and again and succeeded. [Epitaph from Gail Borden's gravestone.] — Gail Borden, American manufacturer, inventor and food scientist (born 9 Nov 1801).  |
 | Before you generalize, formalize, and axiomatize there must be mathematical substance. — Hermann Weyl, German-American mathematician (born 9 Nov 1885). |
 | We are a way for the cosmos to know itself. — Carl Sagan, American astronomer, exobiologist and writer (born 9 Nov 1934). |
| 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 9 Nov 1934, Carl Sagan was born, an American astronomer and exobiologist, who was also a science writer, and studied such diverse aspects of the solar system as the conditions of planetary surfaces, their atmospheres and the possibility of extraterrestrial life. He is fondly remembered for his visionary public TV series, Cosmos. Can you add one word to complete his much-used quote: “We are star ...” |
| | On 9 Nov 1801, Gail Borden was born, an American manufacturer of food products. He created a meat biscuit from flour and meat extracts capable of long-term storage. His company's name is still on the labels of food products today. What is Borden's most famous food processing invention, which solved in its time a significant problem of shipping and storage? |
| Deaths | |
 | Chaim Weizmann (1874-1952) was a Russian-British-Israeli chemist who used bacteria for the synthesis of organic chemicals. During WW I, a recent immigrant into Great Britain, he discovered a way to use a bacterium to synthesize acetone during the fermentation of grain. Acetone was important in the manufacture of cordite for explosives. Weizmann was active in politics leading to the establishment of Israel (1948). What political position did this research scientist hold in Israel? |
 | Stephen Benton (1941-2003) is a scientist who said his fascination with optical phenomena began with the 3-D glasses he used as an 11-year-old to watch the 1953 “3-D” movie House of Wax. His name is not well-known, but his 1968 invention is in most adults' wallet or purse in America, and around the world. What example of Benton's invention are you likely to have in your wallet or purse? |
| Events | |
 | On 9 Nov of a certain year, the first successful test flight of a Saturn V rocket took place. What was the decade of this event? |
 | In 1957, Gordon Gould began to write down the principles of what he called a laser in his notebook during a sleepless Saturday night. What do the initials in the acronym “laser” stand for? |
 | On 9 Nov of a certain year, the confirmation of highly-penetrating extra-terrestrial radiation was announced to the National Academy of Sciences in Madison, Wisconsin by Robert A. Millikan, calling them “cosmic rays.” In what decade was this discovery made? |
Fast answers for the previous newsletter for November 8: Hermann Rorschach • 76 years • Titusville, Pennsylvania • infinity • astatine • Wilhelm Röntgen.
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