May
Important dates in History
May
31:
Richard Lovell Edgeworth
(Born
May 31, 1744: Died June 13, 1817)
Anglo-Irish inventor of mechanical innovations
including an attempt at telegraphic communication (possibly the first), the creation
of various sailing carriages, a velocipede (cycle), a "perambulator"
(landmeasuring machine), a turnip cutter, improved agricultural machinery, and
made discoveries in the field of electricity. In the late 1790s, he proposed the
tellograph for "conveying secret and swift intelligence" using 30 tall
towers spaced between Dublin and Galway (130 miles). Relayed from tower to tower
using large triangular pointers, encoded messages could reach Dublin in just eight
minutes. Unfortunately, poor visibility due to the weather doomed the idea. Edgeworth
was also an educationalist.
May
30:
Voltaire
(Born
November 21, 1694: Died May 30, 1778)
(François Marie Arouet) Voltaire
was a French author who popularized Isaac Newton's work in France by arranging
a translation of Principia Mathematica to which he added his own commentary (1737).
The work of the translation was done by the marquise de Châtelet who was
one of his mistresses, but Voltaire's commentary bridged the gap between non-scientists
and Newton's ideas at a time in France when the pre-Newtonian views of Descartes
were still prevalent. Although a philosopher, Voltaire advocated rational analysis.
He died on the eve of the French Revolution.
May
29:
Nobel's will
In
1898, the heirs of Alfred Nobel sign a "reconciliation agreement" so
that lawyers and accountants can execute his will. The will's major bequest was
to create the Nobel Prizes, but first, there were disputes to be settled.
May
28:
Paul-Émile Lecoq de Boisbaudran
(Born
April 18, 1838: Died May 28, 1912)
French chemist who developed improved spectroscopic
methods which had recently been developed by Kirchhoff. In 1859, he set out to
scan minerals for unknown spectral lines. Fifteen years of persistence paid off
when he discovered the elements gallium (1875), samarium (1880), and dysprosium
(1886). He ranks with Bunsen, Kirchoff and Crookes as one of the founders of the
science of spectroscopy. Guided by the general arrangement of spectral lines for
elements in the same family, he believed the element he called gallium (in honor
of France) was the eka-aluminium predicted by Mendeléeff between aluminium
and indium. Since it is liquid between about 30 - 1700 deg C, a gallium in quartz
thermometer can measure high temperatures.
May
27:
Ernst Ruska
(Born
December 25, 1906: Died May 27, 1988)
Ernst August Friedrich Ruska was a German
electrical engineer who invented the electron microscope. For "his fundamental
work in electron optics and for the design of the first electron microscope"
he was awarded a share of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1986 (with Heinrich Rohrer
and Gerd Binnig). In 1928, found that a magnetic coil could act as a lens to focus
an electron beam. Adding a second lens he produced the first primitive (x17 power)
electron microscope. By 1933, his refinements increased the magnification to x7000,
exceeding what was possible with visible light. The first commercial model was
marketed in 1939. Since then, electron microscopes rapidly found applications
in biology, medicine and many other areas of science.
May
26:
Steel manufacture
In
1857, Robert Mushet, an English metallurgist, received a U.S. patent for a method
of manufacturing steel which improved the Bessemer process for making steel that
would be more malleable. (No. 17,389). His process added manganese in the form
of spiegeleisen, an alloy of iron and manganese derived from a Prussian iron ore
consisting essentially of a double carbonate or iron and manganese. The softness
or hardness of the steel could be regulated by diminishing or increasing the proportion
of the triple compound of iron, carbon and manganese. He chose to use the alloy
of the Prussian ore because it was more free of sulphur, phosphorus and silicon.
Mushet also discovered tungsten steel, an alloy with about 8% tungsten.
May
25:
Pieter Zeeman
(Born
May 25, 1865: Died October 9, 1943)
Dutch physicist who was an authority on
magneto-optics. In 1896, he discoveredthe "Zeeman effect," the "phenomena
produced in spectroscopy by the splitting up of spectral lines in a magnetic field."
He shared (with Hendrik A. Lorentz) the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1902 for his
discovery of the Zeeman effect.
May
24:
Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit
(Born
May24, 1686: Died September 16, 1736)
German physicist and maker of scientific
instruments. He is best known for inventing the alcohol thermometer (1709) and
mercury thermometer (1714) and for developing the Fahrenheit temperature scale.
He devoted himself to the study of physics and the manufacture of precision meteorological
instruments. He discovered, among other things, that water can remain liquid below
its freezing point and that the boiling point of liquids varies with atmospheric
pressure.
May
23:
John Bardeen
(Born
May 23, 1908: Died January 30, 1991)
American physicist who was cowinner of
the Nobel Prize for Physics in both 1956 and 1972. He shared the 1956 prize with
William B. Shockley and Walter H. Brattain for their joint invention of the transistor.
With Leon N. Cooper and John R. Schrieffer he was awarded the 1972 prize for development
of the theory of superconductors, usually called the BCS-theory.
May
22:
William Sturgeon
(Born
May 22, 1783: Died December 4, 1850)
English electrical engineer who devised
the first electromagnet capable of supporting more than its own weight (1825).
The 7-ounce (200-gram) magnet was able to support 9 pounds (4 kilograms) of iron
using the current from a single cell. Sturgeon built an electric motor (1832)
and invented the commutator, now part of most modern electric motors. In 1836,
he invented the first suspended coil galvanometer, a device for measuring current.
His interests also extended to improving the voltaic battery, and developing theory
of thermoelectricity, and even atmospheric charge conditions. From 500 kite flights
made in calm weather, he found the atmosphere is consistently charged positively
with respect to the Earth, and increasingly so at increased height
May
21:
Hans Berger
(Born
May 21, 1873: June 1, 1941)
Psychiatrist who recorded the first human electroencephalogram
(EEG). In 1929, he devised a system of electrodes which he attached to his son's
skull, and connected to an oscillograph. This gave a recording of brain waves
- the rhythmic changes in electric potentials. The most prominent of these rhythms
he labelled "alpha waves" and "beta waves."
May
20:
William Hewlett
(Born
May 20, 1913: Died January 12, 2001)
William Redington Hewlett was an American
electrical engineer who co-founded the Hewlett-Packard Company, a leading manufacturer
computers, computer printers, and analytic and measuring equipment. In 1939, he
formed a partnership known as Hewlett-Packard Company with David Packard, a friend
and Stanford classmate. (The order of their names was determined by a coin toss.)
HP's first product was an audio oscillator based on a design developed by Hewlett
when he was in graduate school. Eight were sold to Walt Disney for Fantasia. Lesser-known
early products were: bowling alley foul-line indicator, automatic urinal flusher,
weight-loss shock machine. The company's first "plant" was a small garage
in Palo Alto, with $538 initial capital.
May
19:
Sir Joseph Larmor
(Born
July 11, 1857: Died May 19, 1942)
Irish physicist, the first to calculate the
rate at which energy is radiated by an accelerated electron, and the first to
explain the splitting of spectrum lines by a magnetic field. His theories were
based on the belief that matter consists entirely of electric particles moving
in the ether. His elaborate mathematical electrical theory of the late 1890s included
the "electron" as a rotational strain (a sort of twist) in the ether.
But Larmor's theory did not describe the electron as a part of the atom. Many
physicists envisioned both material particles and electromagnetic forces as structures
and strains in that hypothetical fluid.
May
18:
Oliver Heaviside
(Born May 18, 1850: Died February 3, 1925)
English physicist who predicted
the existence of the ionosphere. In 1870, he became a telegrapher, but increasing
deafness forced him to retire in 1874. He then devoted himself to investigations
of electricity. In 1902, Heaviside and Kennelly predicted that there should be
an ionised layer in the upper atmosphere that would reflect radio waves. They
pointed out that it would be useful for long distance communication, allowing
radio signals to travel to distant parts of the earth by bouncing off the underside
of this layer. The existence of the layer, now known as the Heaviside layer or
the ionosphere, was demonstrated in the 1920s, when radio pulses were transmitted
vertically upward and the returning pulses from the reflecting layer were received.
May
17:
High voltage
In 1979, a voltage of 321.5 million volts, the highest ever generated, was produced
by the National Electrostatics Corporation, Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
May
16:
J. Georg Bednorz
(Born
May 16, 1950)
German physicist who, with Karl Alex Müller, was awarded
the 1987 Nobel Prize for Physics for their joint discovery of superconductivity
in a new class of materials at temperatures higher than had previously been thought
attainable. They startled the world by reporting superconductivity in a layered,
ceramic material at a then record-high temperature of 33 kelvin (that is 33 degrees
above absolute zero, or roughly -460 degrees Fahrenheit). Their discovery set
off an avalanche of research worldwide into related materials that yielded dozens
of new superconductors, eventually reaching a transition temperature of 135 kelvin.
Today, he develops complex oxide compounds with novel crystal structures for possible
uses in microelectronics.
May
15:
William Hume-Rothery
(Born May 15, 1899: Died: September 27, 1968)
British metallurgist, internationally
known for his work on the formation of alloys and intermetallic compounds. During
WW II, he supervised many government contracts for work on complex aluminium and
magnesium alloys. He established that the microstructure of an alloy depends on
the different sizes of the component atoms, the valency electron concentration,
and electrochemical differences. Hume-Rothery rules are an empirical guide to
when two metals are sufficiently similar to be completely miscible (form a single
phase at all relative concentrations). They are: (1). Atomic radii no more than
about 15% different. (2). Pure metals have the same crystal structure. (3). Atoms
have similar electronegativities. (4). Atoms have the same valence.
May
14:
John Chipman
(Born
April 25, 1897: Died May 14, 1983)
American physical chemist and metallurgist
who was instrumental in applying the principles of physical chemistry to constituents
in liquid metals and to the chemical reactions between slag and liquid iron that
are important in the production of pig iron and steel.
May
13:
Joseph Henry
(Born
December 17, 1797: Died May 13, 1878)
One of the first great American scientists
after Benjamin Franklin. Although Henry at an early age appeared to be headed
for a career in the theater, a chance encounter with a book of lectures on scientific
topics turned his interest to science. He aided Samuel F.B. Morse in the development
of the telegraph and discovered several important principles of electricity, including
self-induction, a phenomenon of primary importance in electronic circuitry. He
was the first Secretary (director) of the Smithsonian Institution (1846-1878),
where he established the foundation of a national weather service. For more than
thirty years, Henry insisted that basic research was of fundamental importance.
May
12:
Roy J. Plunkett
(Born June 26, 1910:
Died May 12, 1994)
American chemist and inventor of Teflon (the DuPont trademark
name for Polytetrafluoroethylene or PTFE). His discovery, while working for DuPont,
was accidental. On 6 Apr 1938, Plunkett found that a tank of gaseous tetrafluoroethylene
(CF2CF2) had polymerized to a white powder. During WW II this new polymer was
applied as a corrosion-resistant coating to protect metal equipment used in the
production of radioactive material. DuPont released its trademarked Teflon coated
nonstick cookware in 1960.
May
11:
Computer memory
In 1951, Jay Forrester patented computer core memory.
May
10:
Valence theory
In 1852, the theory
of valence was announced by English chemist Sir Edward Frankland (1825-1899).
The theory states that any atom can combine with a certain, limited number of
other atoms, which is remains fundamental to the understanding of chemical structure.
May
9:
Hindenburg
In 1936, the Hindenburg zeppelin arrived at Lakehurst, N.J. making the beginning
of regular commercial service across the Atlantic from Germany. The flight took
61-hr 38-min, carrying 51 passengers and 56 crew.
May
8:
Antoine Lavoisier executed
In 1794, Antoine Lavoisier, the father of modern chemistry, was executed on the
guillotine during France's Reign of Terror.
May
7:
Intergrated circuit
In 1952, the concept of the integrated circuit chip was first published, by Geoffrey
W.A. Dummer, in Washington DC.
May
6:
Hindenburg
In
1937, at 7:25 pm, The Hindenburg burned while landing at the naval air station
at Lakehurst, N.J. On board were 6l crew and 36 passengers. The landing approach
seemed normal, when suddenly a tongue of flame appeared near the stern. Fire spread
rapidly through the 7 million cubic feet of hydrogen that filled the balloon.
Within a few seconds the zeppelin exploded in a huge ball of fire. The ship fell
tail first with flames shooting out the nose. It crashed into the ground 32 seconds
after the flame was first spotted; 36 people died. Captain Ernst Lehmann survived
the crash but died the next day. He muttered "I can't understand it,"
The cause remains the subject of debate even today.
May
5:
Peter Cooper Hewitt
(Born May 5, 1861: Died August 25, 1921)
American electrical engineer who invented
the mercury-vapour lamp, a major step in electrical lighting. He studied the production
of light using electrical discharges (while Edison was still developing incandescent
filaments). The mercury-filled tubes he began developing in the late 1890s, gave
off an unattractive blue-green light. Thus, despite its brilliance, it was unsuitable
as a lamp in homes. However, photo studios widely adopted his lamps because the
black and white film of the time just needed very bright light, despite its colour.
There were also many industrial uses for the lamp. His manufacturing company (est.
1902) was bought by General Electric in 1919 which produced a new design in 1933.
May
4:
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
In 1780, the first U.S. national arts and science society was
incorporated. It was chartered in Boston, Mass. "to cultivate every art and
science which may tend to advance the interest, dignity, honor and happiness of
a free, independent and virtuous people." The first society president was
James Bowdoin (1780-90). The original incorporators were later joined by Benjamin
Franklin, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Charles Bulfinch, Alexander Hamilton,
John Quincy Adams, and others.
May
3:
Sir George Paget Thomson
(Born May 3, 1892: Died September 10, 1975)
English physicist who was the joint
recipient (with Clinton J. Davisson of the U.S.) of the Nobel Prize for Physics
in 1937 for demonstrating that electrons undergo diffraction, a behaviour peculiar
to waves that is widely exploited in determining the atomic structure of solids
and liquids. He was the son of Sir J.J. Thomson who discovered the electron as
a particle.
May
2:
Electrolysis of water
In 1800, English
chemist William Nicholson took wires from the poles of a battery he had built
and dipped them in water. He found bubbles of gas were released due to the effect
of current flow through water and thus became the first to observe electrolysis.
At the (positive) anode, oxygen was released and hydrogen appeared at the cathode.
Electricity had separated the molecules of water.
May
1:
BASIC
In 1964, first BASIC program
was run on a computer at about 4:00 a.m. Invented at Dartmouth University by professors
John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz, the first implementation was a BASIC compiler.
Basic is an acronym for Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code, designed
to be an easy programming language to learn quickly how to write simple programs.
Originally for mainframes, BASIC was adopted for use on personal computers when
they became available.
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