TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY
NEWSLETTER • 6 DECEMBER
On 6 Dec 1799, Joseph Black died, a Scottish chemist and physicist who investigated and made quantitative experiments with a gas then known as “fixed air.” He also identified the latent (“hidden”) heat involved with a substance's change of state, realized the difference between heat and temperature, and measured specific heats. A chapter in Lives of Eminent and Illustrious Englishmen (1837) about Joseph Black gives more of the life and accomplishments of this now mostly overlooked scientist who contributed much in his era.
On 6 Dec 1877, Thomas Edison made the the first recording on his tinfoil phonograph, with the historic words “Mary had a little lamb.” The workmen gathering around the experiment were astonished to hear the playback of the voice so distinctly. His biographer wrote down Edison's account of that event. You can see an illustrated quote and Edison's description on this site's webpage for the Thomas Edison Quote - Tinfoil Phonograph - “Mary Had a Little Lamb.”(This is one of the first illustrated quotes added to this site in 2013.
There are more illustrated quotes, including from President Clinton on the human genome announcement, some Deforestation quotes (a couple by Prince Charles), Isaac Newton's famous “Playing on the Seashore” quote (Did He Really Say It?), and more. Each is accompanied by a description of its context.)
On 6 Dec 1863, Charles Martin Hall was born, the American chemist who while young invented the inexpensive electrolytic method to extract aluminium from its ore, which was immensely important to the commercial use of this metal. Today's book pick is: Made of aluminum;: A life of Charles Martin Hall, by Rosamond McPherson Young. Hall's accomplishment was made by dogged determination. His fascinating life story is exciting to read, and one that you should not miss. Hall's research—started in his garden woodshed as his laboratory—is a superb example of applied chemistry.
It is available from Amazon, typically about Used from $43.74. (As of earlier time of writing - subject to change.)
 | I have no doubt that we will be successful in harnessing the sun's energy. … If sunbeams were weapons of war, we would have had solar energy centuries ago. — Sir George Porter, English chemist (born 6 Dec 1920).  |
 | In the natural sciences, and particularly in chemistry, generalities must come after the detailed knowledge of each fact and not before it. — Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac, French chemist (born 6 Dec 1778). |
 | It is very difficult to say nowadays where the suburbs of London come to an end and where the country begins. The railways, instead of enabling Londoners to live in the country have turned the countryside into a city. — Anthony Trollope, , English novelist (died 6 Dec 1882). |
| 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 | |
| | Charles Martin Hall, born 6 Dec 1863, was a young chemist experimenting in a woodshed when he succeeded in inventing a method for extracting a certain pure metal from its ore. He had the idea that if he could find a nonaqueous solvent for the metal's oxide (from its ore), he could produce the metal by electrolysis, using carbon electrodes and home-made batteries. Which rare mineral did his process use as the solvent of the ore, and which country was the main source of that mineral? |
| | Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac, born 6 Dec 1778, is best known for his work on gases. In 1805, by exploding together given volumes of hydrogen and oxygen, Gay-Lussac discovered they combined in ratio 2:1 by volume to form water. By 1808, after researches using other gases, he formulated his famous law. What is this law? |
| Deaths | |
 | Werner von Siemens (1816-1893) was a German scientist who played an important role in the development of an industry, first in Germany, then elsewhere in Europe and Asia. Siemens combined his engineering brilliance with entrepreneurial skills to develop a multinational business. Which industry did he develop as his first major success? |
| | Joseph Black (1728-1799) was a British chemist and physicist who experimented with “fixed air,” discovered bicarbonates, and also identified latent heat when he observed that ice melts without change of temperature. What gas did he call “fixed air”? |
 | Nicolas-Jacques Conté (1755-1805) was a French mechanical genius who developed the method on which the manufacture of a certain product continues in modern times. What is this product, still associated with his name? |
| Events | |
 | On 6 Dec of a certain year, the first aerial photographs of Stonehenge - the first aerial photographs of any British archaeological monument - were displayed at the London premises of the Society of Antiquaries. They were probably taken about three months earlier. In which decade were the first aerial photos taken of Stonehenge, and how? |
 | In 1631, Johannes Kepler correctly predicted a transit of Venus across the face of the Sun. However, he did not observe it. The first observed transit of Venus took place eight years later, by Jeremiah Horrocks. Why did Kepler not observe the 1631 transit of Venus he predicted? |
Fast answers for the previous newsletter for December 5: pion (pi-meson) • spectral line fine-structure • radar • non-smear (“stays on you not on him”) kissproof lipstick • decade containing the year 1951 • Stillson.
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