TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY
NEWSLETTER • 8 JANUARY
On 8 Jan 1956, Greenleaf Whittier Pickard died, an American whose invention of the crystal detector was one of the first devices widely used for receiving radio broadcasts (a key component, until superseded by the triode vacuum tube, and later the transistor. Chances are, you don't know his name, yet he was one of the diligence inventors at the beginning of the radio age. As the earliest work was surpassed by new inventors, the names of the pioneers faded from attention. Yet it must have been an exciting time when Picard was exploring the possibilities of radio in its infancy. In An Untold Romance of Invention, an article from Popular Science (Sep 1922) you can learn how Pickard contributed to beginning of radio.
On 8 Jan 1942, Stephen Hawking was born. Today's book pick is: A Briefer History of Time: A Special Edition of the Science Classic, by Stephen Hawking, Leonard Mlodinow Hawking’s worldwide bestseller, A Brief History of Time, has been a landmark volume in scientific writing. Its author’s engaging voice is one reason, and the compelling subjects he addresses is another: the nature of space and time, the role of God in creation, the history and future of the universe. In A Briefer History of Time the authors make its content more accessible to readers—as well as to bring it up-to-date with the latest scientific observations and findings.
It is available from Amazon, typically about New from $9.91. Used from $1.61. (As of earlier time of writing - subject to change.)
 | A lot of prizes have been awarded for showing the universe is not as simple as we might have thought. — Stephen W. Hawking, English theoretical physicist and cosmologist (born 8 Jan 1942).  |
 | The effect of a concept-driven revolution is to explain old things in new ways. The effect of a tool-driven revolution is to discover new things that have to be explained. — Sir Frank Dyson, British astronomer (born 8 Jan 1868). |
 | Mathematics as an expression of the human mind reflects the active will, the contemplative reason, and the desire for aesthetic perfection. Its basic elements are logic and intuition, analysis and construction, generality and individuality. Though different traditions may emphasize different aspects, it is only the interplay of these antithetic forces and the struggle for their synthesis that constitute the life, usefulness, and supreme value of mathematical science. — Richard Courant, German-American mathematician (born 8 Jan 1888). |
| 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 8 Jan 1942, Stephen Hawking was born. He held the position of Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University, formerly held by Sir Isaac Newton (who became the second Lucasian Professor in 1669). How many people have been Lucasian Professors? |
 | Johannes Fabricius, born 8 Jan 1587, was a Dutch astronomer who may have been the first observer of a certain feature of the sun, made at dawn on 9 Mar 1611. What feature of the sun is credited to Fabricius as the first observer? |
| Deaths | |
 | Eli Whitney (1765-1825) was an American inventor, mechanical engineer, and manufacturer who is best remembered as the inventor of a machine which greatly influenced agriculture in the southern USA. Another important accomplishment was to developing the concept of mass-production of interchangeable parts, applied in particular to the manufacture of muskets. What was his famous invention that influenced agriculture in the southern USA? |
 | An Italian natural philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician (1564-1642) made fundamental contributions to the sciences of motion, astronomy, and strength of materials and to the development of the scientific method. His formulation of (circular) inertia, the law of falling bodies, and parabolic trajectories marked the marked the beginning of a fundamental change in the study of motion. Can you name this very famous scientist? |
| Events | |
 | On 8 Jan 1889, Dr. Herman Hollerith received the first US patents for a tabulating machine that used combinations of holes in a punched card to carry information. The information contained on numerous cards could then be tallied by passing the cards through electrical counters operated by electromagnets. The punched card idea was later adopted for input devices for computers. What was the first major application of Hollerith's system? |
 | In 1790, the U.S. President in his State of the Union address urged the U.S. Congress to support the introduction of new and useful inventions from abroad, and recognize the skill and genius of U.S. inventors. Within days, both the House set up a committee to draft a patent statute, because the congressmen agreed that promotion of science would contribute to the security of a free government. Which President proposed the patent law? |
Fast answers for the previous newsletter for January 7: coordinating the railway spanning the Canadian continent • plate glass (by his float glass process) • acetylene • a theoretical object that absorbs all radiation that falls on it • English Channel • francium.
If you enjoy this newsletter, the website, or wish to offer encouragement or ideas, please send feedback by using your mail reader Reply button. Your click on a Facebook, StumbleUpon, or other social button on the site webpages is also a welcome sign of appreciation. Thank you for using them.
© This newsletter is copyright 2020 by todayinsci.com. Please respect the Webmaster's wishes and do not put copies online of the Newsletter — or any Today in Science History webpage. (If you already have done so, please remove them. Thank you.) Offline use in education is encouraged such as a printout on a bulletin board, or projected for classroom viewing. Online, descriptive links to our pages are welcomed, as these will provide a reader with the most recent revisions, additions and/or corrections of a webpage. For any other copyright questions, please contact the Webmaster by using your mail reader Reply button.
--
If you do not want to receive any more newsletters, Unsubscribe
To update your preferences and to unsubscribe visit this link
Social Profiles
0 comments:
Post a Comment