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Wiley-Schnelllkurs Thermodynamik (Wiley Schnellkurs)
by Raimund RuderichMüssen Sie sich schnell ein solides Grundwissen in Thermodynamik aneignen? Dann ist dies genau das richtige Buch für Sie. Wilhelm Kulisch erklärt Ihnen die mathematischen Grundlagen, die Sie für die Thermodynamik brauchen, Zustandsgrößen,-änderungen und -gleichungen sowie die Hauptsätze der Thermodynamik und vieles mehr. Ein Eingangstest soll Ihnen dabei helfen, Ihre individuellen Schwächen aufzudecken, um sie danngezielt beheben zu können. Mit zahlreichen Beispielen und Übungsaufgaben können Sie Ihr neu erworbenes Wissen dann festigen und überprüfen. Dabei kommt der Autor schnell auf den Punkt und erklärt dieses manchmal etwas sperrige Thema so verständlich wie möglich.
Wiley's English-Spanish Spanish-English Chemistry Dictionary
by Steven M. KaplanThis Dictionary provides over 75,000 entries covering all areas of chemistry, such as Chemical Biology, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, and Nanochemistry, plus relevant terms in related spheres of expertise. In order to prepare this Second Edition, the First Edition was completely revised, and over 35,000 new terms were added. This new edition will continue to be the Dictionary that chemists, educators, students, translators, and those working in English and Spanish in chemistry and associated fields have been trusting since the First Edition was published in 1998.
Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen: Ein leuchtendes Leben für die Wissenschaft (Klassische Texte der Wissenschaft)
by Uwe BuschEs war eine der großen Sternstunden der Menschheit, als Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845-1923) am 8. November 1895 eine neue Sorte von Strahlung entdeckte. Er selbst nannte sie bescheiden „X-Strahlen“. Sein Name und seine Strahlen wurden weltberühmt. Am 10. Dezember 1901 erhielt Röntgen für die Entdeckung und Erforschung der nach ihm benannten Röntgenstrahlen den ersten Nobelpreis für Physik. Röntgenstrahlen haben seitdem nichts an Attraktivität verloren. Sie durchdringen nach wie vor alle Bereiche der Wissenschaft und Technik und begleiten uns im alltäglichen Leben.Röntgens wissenschaftliches Wirken kann aber nicht nur reduziert werden auf diese eine großartige Entdeckung. Er war insgesamt ein exzellenter Naturforscher, sein Forschergeist ist heute noch Beispiel für viele Wissenschaftler. Auch sein Spezialgebiet der Präzisionsphysik ist aktueller denn je.Zu Röntgens 175. Geburtstag und dem 125-jährigen Jubiläum der Entdeckung der Röntgenstrahlen im Jahr 2020 ermöglicht das Deutsche Röntgen-Museum einen anderen Blick auf den herausragenden Naturforscher und gibt Einblicke in seinen persönlichen Nachlass.Statements von nationalen und internationalen Röntgenwissenschaftlern zeigen dabei eines sehr deutlich: „Röntgen hat Zukunft“.Der HerausgeberDer Herausgeber Uwe Busch ist Medizinphysiker und Direktor des Deutschen Röntgen-Museums. Gemeinsam mit dem neu gestalteten Geburtshaus von Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen ermöglichen beide Häuser einen fesselnden Einblick in das Leben und Werk Röntgens sowie das Erlebnis der eigenen Entdeckung der faszinierenden Welt der Röntgenstrahlen. Einer Welt, die sich über viele räumliche und zeitliche Dimensionen von den Nanowelten des Mikrokosmos bis hin zu den unendlichen Weiten des Kosmos und von der Vergangenheit bis in die Zukunft erstreckt. Alle Welt ist voller Röntgenstrahlung. Sie sinnvoll zu nutzen, ist und bleibt das Ziel von Wissenschaft und Forschung von gestern, heute und morgen.Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen würde genau daran seinen Spaß haben. Forschung zur Erweiterung des eigenen Horizonts, tiefe Freude am Erkenntnisgewinn und der Nutzen für die Menschheit.
Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen: A Shining Life for Science (Classic Texts in the Sciences)
by Uwe BuschIt was one of the great moments of humanity when Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845– 1923) discovered a new kind of radiation on 8 November 1895. He himself modestly called them “X-rays”. Röntgen’s name and his rays became world famous. On 10 December 1901, Röntgen received the first Nobel Prize in Physics. X-rays have lost none of their appeal since then. They still permeate all areas of science, technology and medicine and accompany us in our everyday lives.However, Röntgen’s scientific work cannot be reduced to this one great discovery alone. He was an excellent natural scientist, and his spirit of research is still an example for many scientists today. Röntgen’s very special interest in precision physics is also more topical than ever.This carefully curated volume offers a multifaceted view of an outstanding natural scientist and provides insights into his personal legacy.
Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen: Die Geburt der Radiologie
by Gerd Rosenbusch Annemarie de Knecht-van EekelenWilhelm Conrad Röntgen Dieses Buch wendet sich an alle, die sich für die Geschichte der Radiologie und Physik interessieren. Es wirft ein neues Licht auf das Leben und die Karriere von Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, indem es zeigt, wie seine Persönlichkeit durch seine Jugend in den Niederlanden und sein Studium in der Schweiz geformt worden ist, wodurch er der Mann wurde, der ”eine neue Art von Strahlen” beschrieben hat. Die Entdeckung der X-Strahlen (Röntgenstrahlen) Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts fiel mit einer Reihe von Erfindungen zusammen. Heute können wir uns ein Leben ohne Elektrizität, Telefon oder Auto nicht mehr vorstellen. Dies waren alles Neuheiten zu jener Zeit. Wie wichtig die Röntgenstrahlen für die Bildgebung waren, wurde sofort erkannt; denn sie eröffneten ganz neue Möglichkeiten den menschlichen Körper zu untersuchen. Dies war die Geburtsstunde der Radiologie. Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845-1923) wurde in Lennep im Bergischen Land geboren und emigrierte mit seiner Familie 1848 in die Niederlande. Als 17-Jähriger zog er nach Utrecht um die Technische Schule zu besuchen. Er wohnte bei der Familie des Dr. Jan Willem Gunning. Die sehr anregende Atmosphäre in dieser Familie veranlasste ihn zu studieren und nicht das Geschäft seines Vaters zu übernehmen. In Zürich erwarb er das Diplom eines Maschineningenieurs am Polytechnikum und ein Jahr später seinen Doktortitel an der Universität. Mit seinem Mentor August Kundt arbeitete er in Würzburg (1870) und Straßburg (1872), was ihm erlaubte seine geliebte Bertha aus der Schweiz zu heiraten. In Gießen wurde er 1879 ordentlicher Professor der Physik. 1888 wechselte Röntgen nach Würzburg, wo er 1895 die X-Strahlen entdeckte. Von 1901 bis 1921 lehrte er an der Universität München. Für seine Entdeckung wurde ihm 1901 der 1. Nobelpreis in der Physik verliehen.
Wilhelm Ostwald
by Robert Smail Jack Fritz ScholzThis book is the translated and commented autobiography of Wilhelm Ostwald (1853-1932), who won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1909. It is the first translation of the German original version "Lebenslinien: Eine Selbstbiographie," published by Ostwald in 1926/27, and has been painstakingly translated. The book includes comments and explanations, helping readers to understand Ostwald's text in the historical context of Germany at the beginning of the 20th century. In his autobiography, Ostwald describes his impressive research career and his life from his own personal view. Readers will find information on how Ostwald immortalized himself through his research on catalysis, chemical equilibria, technical chemistry, and especially as one of the founders of modern physical chemistry. His broad interests in science, ranging from philosophy to the theory of colors and the idea of a universal scientific language are further remarkable aspects covered. This work will appeal to a broad audience of contemporary scientists: Wilhelm Ostwald has been tremendously influential for the development of chemistry and science, and many of today's best-known international scientific schools can be traced back to Ostwald's students. Ostwald was active in Germany and what is now Latvia and Estonia, while also travelling to the USA, England and France. In his discussions and analyses of the working conditions of the time, readers will find many issues reflected that continue to be of relevance today.
Wilhelm Ostwald: Die wissenschaftlichen Grundlagen der analytischen Chemie (Klassische Texte der Wissenschaft)
by Georg SchwedtErst als sich die von Svante Arrhenius erstmals formulierte und von Wilhelm Ostwald weiter entwickelte Ionentheorie in dem noch jungen Fachgebiet der physikalischen Chemie um 1900 durchgesetzt hatte, wurden auch die Angaben von Mineralwasseranalysen in Form von Ionen-Konzentrationen angegeben. Sie sind erstmalig im Deutschen Bäderbuch von 1907 zu finden. Zuvor hatte man diese Angaben mehr oder weniger willkürlich in Form von Salzen, also von Verbindungen gemacht. Die analytische Chemie hatte sich im 19. Jahrhundert zu einem Fachgebiet entwickelt, das mit überwiegend handwerklichen, d.h. manuellen Verfahren schon zuverlässige Analysenergebnisse liefern konnte, wozu die Arbeiten von Carl Remigius Fresenius in Wiesbaden entscheidend beigetragen hatten. Jedoch fehlte vor allem in der universitären Lehre ein theoretischer Unterbau für diese bereits entwickelte Methodik. Diese Leerstelle wurde durch das in 7. Auflagen zwischen 1894 und 1920 erschienene Buch von Ostwald gefüllt, welches im zweiten Teil auch die Grundlagen der Praxis, die Anwendungen analytischer Verfahren in der anorganischen Analytik darstellt. Erst in der zweiten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts erschienen neue Lehrbücher zu den theoretischen Grundlagen der analytischen Chemie bzw. diese wurden auch in den Praktikumsbüchern ausführlicher dargestellt. Somit bildet das Buch von Wilhelm Ostwald auch einen Meilenstein in der Geschichte der analytischen Chemie.
Wilhelm Ostwald: Farbkunde (Klassische Texte der Wissenschaft)
by Georg SchwedtNachdem Wilhelm Ostwald die Universität Leipzig 1906 wegen anhaltender Streitigkeiten mit der philosophischen Fakultät verlassen hatte, ließ er sich in Großbothen als Privatgelehrter nieder. Hier entwickelte er seine Farbenlehre. 1923, in einem wirtschaftlich und politisch krisenhaften Jahr, erschien seine Farbkunde. Mit diesem Werk wandte er sich an eine breite Zielgruppe – an „Chemiker, Physiker, Naturforscher, Ärzte, Physiologen, Psychologen, Koloristen, Farbtechniker, Drucker, Keramiker, Färber, Weber, Maler, Kunstgewerbler, Musterzeichner, Plakatkünstler und Modisten“. Er stellt zunächst die bisher beschriebenen Farblehren und Theorien kritisch bewertend vor. In weiteren Kapiteln werden das Licht, die Vorgänge des Sehens und besonders ausführlich die Farben beschrieben. Als „Angewandte Farbkunde“ behandelt er die Messung der Farben, physikalisch-chemische und psychophysische Verhältnisse sowie die Farbe als Darstellungsmittel und die Harmonie der Farben mit Beschreibungen des Farbtonkreises, Vorschläge für einen Normenatlas mit praktischen Ausführungsformen. Ostwald schuf damit die Grundlagen für weit verbreitete Anwendungen, die im Kommentarteil ausführlich vorgestellt werden.
Wilhelm Reich, Biologist
by James E. StrickWilhelm Reich's experiments in the 1930s with cutting-edge light microscopy and time-lapse micro-cinematography were considered discredited, but not because of shoddy lab technique, as has been claimed. Scientific opposition to Reich's experiments, James Strick argues, grew out of resistance to his unorthodox sexual theories and Marxist leanings.
Will Black Holes Devour the Universe?: And 100 Other Questions and Answers About Astronomy (Astronomy Library #9)
by Melanie MeltonAn easy to read guide with questions and answers about stars, the sun, the planets, galaxies, space travel and exploration and much more.
Will It Float or Sink? (Properties of Materials)
by Lisa J. AmstutzA rubber duck floats in the tub. A rock sinks to the bottom of a lake. Why do some objects float and others sink? Find out in this series about materials and their properties. Informative, at-level text and engaging photos help readers understand the differences between objects that sink and float.
Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?: And Other Questions About Dead Bodies
by Caitlin DoughtyCan we give Grandma a Viking funeral?Why don't animals dig up all the graves?Will my hair keep growing in my coffin after I'm buried?Every day, funeral director Caitlin Doughty receives dozens of questions about death. Here she offers her factual, hilarious and candid answers to thirty-five of the most interesting, sharing the lore and science of what happens to, and inside, our bodies after we die. Why do corpses groan? What causes bodies to turn strange colours during decomposition? and why do hair and nails appear longer after death? The answers are all within . . .
Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?: Big Questions From Tiny Mortals
by Caitlin DoughtyNew York Times Bestseller Winner of a Goodreads Choice Award “Funny, dark, and at times stunningly existential.” —Marianne Eloise, Guardian Everyone has questions about death. In Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?, best-selling author and mortician Caitlin Doughty answers the most intriguing questions she’s ever received about what happens to our bodies when we die. In a brisk, informative, and morbidly funny style, Doughty explores everything from ancient Egyptian death rituals and the science of skeletons to flesh-eating insects and the proper depth at which to bury your pet if you want Fluffy to become a mummy. Now featuring an interview with a clinical expert on discussing these issues with young people—the source of some of our most revealing questions about death—Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? confronts our common fear of dying with candid, honest, and hilarious facts about what awaits the body we leave behind.
The Will to Technology and the Culture of Nihilism
by Arthur KrokerIn The Will to Technology and the Culture of Nihilism, Arthur Kroker explores the future of the 21st century in the language of technological destiny. Presenting Martin Heidegger, Karl Marx, and Friedrich Nietzsche as prophets of technological nihilism, Kroker argues that every aspect of contemporary culture, society, and politics is coded by the dynamic unfolding of the 'will to technology.'Moving between cultural history, our digital present, and the biotic future, Kroker theorizes on the relationship between human bodies and posthuman technology, and more specifically, wonders if the body of work offered by thinkers like Heidegger, Marx, and Nietzsche is a part of our past or a harbinger of our technological future. Heidegger, Marx, and Nietzsche intensify our understanding of the contemporary cultural climate. Heidegger's vision posits an increasingly technical society before which we have become 'objectless objects'? driftworks in a 'culture of boredom.' In Marx, the disciplining of capital itself by the will to technology is a code of globalization, first announced as streamed capitalism. Nietzsche mediates between them, envisioning in the gathering shadows of technological society the emergent signs of a culture of nihilism. Like Marx, he insists on thinking of the question of technology in terms of its material signs.In The Will to Technology and the Culture of Nihilism, Kroker consistently enacts an invigorating and innovative vision, bringing together critical theory, art, and politics to reveal the philosophic apparatus of technoculture.
Will We Ever Have a Quantum Computer? (SpringerBriefs in Physics)
by Mikhail I. DyakonovThis book addresses a broad community of physicists, engineers, computer scientists and industry professionals, as well as the general public, who are aware of the unprecedented media hype surrounding the supposedly imminent new era of quantum computing. The central argument of this book is that the feasibility of quantum computing in the physical world is extremely doubtful. The hypothetical quantum computer is not simply a quantum variant of the conventional digital computer, but rather a quantum extension of a classical analog computer operating with continuous parameters. In order to have a useful machine, the number of continuous parameters to control would have to be of such an astronomically large magnitude as to render the endeavor virtually infeasible. This viewpoint is based on the author’s expert understanding of the gargantuan challenges that would have to be overcome to ever make quantum computing a reality. Knowledge of secondary-school-level physics and math will be sufficient for understanding most of the text.
Will We Ever Speak Dolphin?: And 130 other science questions answered
by New ScientistEver wondered . . . - what is earwax for?- when is the moon blue?- why are there only two sexes?- do doctors live longer?Informative, hilarious, sometimes unsettling and always unexpected, the questions and answers from New Scientist readers in the magazine's popular 'Last Word' column are endlessly fascinating. Will We Ever Speak Dolphin? brings the best of the bunch together in another witty, weird and wise compendium that's irresistible for 'Last Word' fans and new readers alike.If you've ever wanted to know why you can't hear shouting underwater,whether ants get scared of humans towering over them, how butterflies know where they're heading, or whether there really is a difference between martinis shaken or stirred, New Scientist has all the weird and witty answers.
Will We Survive on Earth? (Brief Answers, Big Questions)
by Stephen Hawking'Be brave, be curious, be determined, overcome the odds. It can be done'Will we survive on Earth?Should we colonise space?Throughout his extraordinary career, Stephen Hawking expanded our understanding of the universe and unravelled some of its greatest mysteries. In Will We Survive on Earth? the world-famous cosmologist and bestselling author of A Brief History of Time turns his attention to one of the most urgent issues for humankind and explores our options for survival.'Effortlessly instructive, absorbing and witty' GuardianBrief Answers, Big Questions: this stunning paperback series offers electrifying essays from one of the greatest minds of our age, taken from the original text of the No. 1 bestselling Brief Answers to the Big Questions.
Will You Miss Us If We Go? (If We're Gone series #2)
by Paige JaegerThis beautifully illustrated picture book tells the tale of 14 endangered species. The rhyming text is full of interesting facts and is perfect for opening conversations about caring for threatened animals or endangered species. Journey through Book Two in the If We're Gone series offering stories of the Addas, Red Panda, Cheetah, Tapir, Lemur, Lynx and other endangered animals speaking about the trouble they're in. If you love books about wild animals, zoos, lions, tigers, elephants, or endangered animals, then you'll love this book.This is a great book for readers who enjoyed Giraffes Can't Dance by Andreae; A-Z of Endangered Animals by Jennifer Cossins; How To Be An Elephant or If Sharks Disappeared.
Willard Cochrane and the American Family Farm (Our Sustainable Future)
by John Kenneth Galbraith Richard A. LevinsWillard Cochrane watched the dramatic decline in American family farming from a vantage point few can claim. He became one of the country’s premier agricultural economists and carried the standard of liberalism for President Kennedy in the last serious fight to save the family farm. Then, for forty long years, he held to the principles while traditional agriculture faded into what he once called “family farms in form but not in spirit.” This book is about the spirit of family farming: Thomas Jefferson’s dream of an agrarian democracy. What should we do in the face of globalization, high technology, and corporate control of our food supply? Willard Cochrane and the American Family Farm recounts how one man faced these issues and where he would wish us to go in the twenty-first century.
Willem de Sitter: Einstein's Friend and Opponent (Springer Biographies)
by Jan GuichelaarThis is a thorough, very readable and excellently illustrated biography of Willem de Sitter (1872-1934), one of the most influential astronomers of his time, and also a co-author and correspondent of Einstein. Authored by a physicist and skilled writer, the book gives a beautiful and accessible description of the physics debated by Einstein and de Sitter, as well as the latter's alternative cosmological model, later known as the De Sitter Universe. But this is just part of a fascinating and varied life story involving numerous contributions to astronomy, as well as many places and personalities of early 20th century physics. The book will appeal to all those interested in astronomy and physics and their history.
William Adams: A Life in Engineering 1823-1904
by John WoodhamsWilliam Adams (1823 – 1904) is probably best known from his locomotive designs for the London & South Western Railway. The years at Nine Elms were the culmination of career which began formally in marine engineering, including a period at sea with the Royal Sardinian Navy, encompassed civil engineering and surveying before joining the North London Railway as locomotive, carriage and wagon superintendent. He has been described as the father of the suburban train, an inventive engineer, who pioneered the use of continuous train brakes, developed well designed, free-steaming locomotive boilers for services requiring rapid acceleration and frequent stops, and his invention of a bogie with controlled side-play revolutionized future locomotive design. His next move was to the Great Eastern Railway where his designs met with mixed success, before moving south of the Thames to Nine Elms. Here, over five hundred locomotives were built to his designs, with his later express classes regarded by many as his greatest achievement. Adams also proved himself a very capable designer in developing locomotive and carriage works at all three railways, improving efficiency and reducing costs. This book tells the story of a genial man with a love of music, who was undoubtedly one of the finest late Victorian locomotive engineers.
William and Caroline Herschel
by Michael HoskinThis beautifully structured book presents the essentials of William and Caroline Herschel's pioneering achievements in late 18th-century astronomy. Michael Hoskin shows that William Herschel was the first observational cosmologist and one of the first observers to attack the sidereal universe beyond the solar system: Herschel built instruments far better than any being used at the royal observatory. Aided by his sister Caroline, he commenced a great systematic survey that led to his discovery of Uranus in 1781. Unlike observers before him, whose telescopes did not reveal them as astronomical objects, Herschel did not ignore misty patches of light. Hoskins points out Herschel's achievement in surveying, cataloguing, and describing them as "nebulae" and even coming to the correct conclusion that their structure evolved over time, with Newton's gravity being the agent of change. Herschel's surveys established a new astronomy - looking at the universe rather than the planets! Michael Hoskin's account includes sketches and diagrams from Herschel's manuscripts in the Royal Astronomical Society Archives in which he attempts to delineate the structure of the Milky Way galaxy. While it is well-known that Herschel was a revolutionary in telescope design who constructed the world's largest telescopes, Hoskin also gives the full picture of the man as an entrepreneur who built and traded some 400 telescopes. Hoskin also pays close attention to the role of William's sister Caroline Herschel, who is usually portrayed as a "helpmate" to her brother. But in fact she became a significant astronomer in her own right. This book also offers a wealth of information of the wider Herschel family. It is enriched by a complete set of portraits of William and Caroline Herschel with an extensive set of images of their residences and closes with a charming appendix on how visitors to the Herschels recorded their encounters. William and Caroline Herschel - Pioneers in Late 18th-Century Astronomy will appeal to amateur astronomers and all those interested in popular astronomy. This book will rapidly establish itself as the primary introductory work for students, astronomers, and scholars working on the history of natural science in the late 18th century.
William Dawes: Scientist, Governor, Abolitionist: Caught Between Science and Religion (Springer Biographies)
by Richard de Grijs Andrew JacobThis book describes William Dawes’ life and professional achievements. William Dawes was a British Marine serving as the official astronomer on board the First Fleet making the 1787–1788 voyage from Britain to the new colony of New South Wales. Between 1788 and 1791, Dawes established not one but two observatories within a kilometre of Sydney’s present-day city centre, a full seven decades before the construction of Sydney’s historical Observatory at Dawes’ Point, today a stone’s throw from the Sydney Harbour Bridge. In this comprehensive biography, the authors discuss William Dawes’ life and his considerable impact—as astronomer, engineer, surveyor, ordnance officer and intellectual centre point—on the early colony in New South Wales (in essence, his impact on the earliest history of Sydney as a settlement) and, subsequently, on the British colonies of Sierra Leone on the West African coast and Antigua in the West Indies. Dawes’ life and professional achievements are closely linked to the earliest history of Sydney as a British settlement. He is often considered a man of high morals, and as such his interactions with the local populations in New South Wales, Sierra Leone and Antigua were mostly deemed respectful and above reproach. He is seen a truly enlightened individual, far ahead of his time. The authors of this book have a significant track record of successful and engaging communication of complex concepts in physics and astronomy with experts and non-experts alike. This biography touches on numerous aspects related to 18th century maritime navigation (“sailing on the stars”), societal relationships, the exploration of newly discovered lands, as well as the early history of Sydney and New South Wales, and the colonial histories of Sierra Leone and the West Indies. As such, this book will appeal to a wide range of readers, from scholars in the history of science and maritime navigation, to history enthusiasts ranging from local historians on Australia’s eastern seaboard to members of the public with a keen interest in British colonial history.
William Frederick Denning: Grand Amateur and Doyen of British Meteor Astronomy (Springer Biographies)
by Martin BeechThis book provides a detailed biographical account of the industrious late nineteenth-century astronomer William Frederick Denning who, in later life, rose to be a celebrated public figure and a highly respected amateur astronomer. The book also examines Denning’s many contributions to the astronomy of his time. As an indomitable promotor of amateur astronomy, Denning was closely involved in the formation of the short-lived, but historically pivotal, Observational Astronomy Society (OAS) in 1869. Readers will learn about the origins and the observational programs initiated by the OAS, and the author also presents a series of biographical sketches of its most industrious members. Furthermore, by examining Denning’s letters and publications, the author shows how he helped to nurture the growth of amateur astronomy, also teaching amateur observers how to make their efforts scientifically useful. A stalwart observer and enthusiast himself, Denning was a key player in the development of meteor astronomy in England, culminating in his being invited, in 1922, to be the first President of Commission 22 (meteors, meteorites and interplanetary dust) of the newly formed International Astronomical Union. The text follows the development and rapid growth of meteor astronomy during the nineteenth century, focusing upon the key observations and important theoretical advances. In addition, it pays tribute to pioneering practitioners, who, along with Denning, set out to unravel the story and secrets of the shooting stars. While not an openly forthright or strident figure, Denning, at the height of his career, became embroiled in two public and controversial issues. The first related to his pseudo-scientific theory of optical blurring, and his belief that large-aperture telescopes performed less efficiently than smaller-aperture telescopes when used in the study of planetary disks. The second concerned the mysterious issue of stationary meteor shower radiants—an apparent observational reduction that was completely at odds with both the standard theories of gravitational dynamics and the generally accepted notion of meteoroid stream structure. The book explores these two controversies and uses them to examine Denning’s outlook on scientific methodology.
William Hunter and his Eighteenth-Century Cultural Worlds: The Anatomist and the Fine Arts (Routledge Research in Art History)
by Helen McCormackThe eminent physician and anatomist Dr William Hunter (1718-1783) made an important and significant contribution to the history of collecting and the promotion of the fine arts in Britain in the eighteenth century. Born at the family home in East Calderwood, he matriculated at the University of Glasgow in 1731 and was greatly influenced by some of the most important philosophers of the Scottish Enlightenment, including Francis Hutcheson (1694-1746). He quickly abandoned his studies in theology for Medicine and, in 1740, left Scotland for London where he steadily acquired a reputation as an energetic and astute practitioner; he combined his working life as an anatomist successfully with a wide range of interests in natural history, including mineralogy, conchology, botany and ornithology; and in antiquities, books, medals and artefacts; in the fine arts, he worked with artists and dealers and came to own a number of beautiful oil paintings and volumes of extremely fine prints. He built an impressive school of anatomy and a museum which housed these substantial and important collections. William Hunter’s life and work is the subject of this book, a cultural-anthropological account of his influence and legacy as an anatomist, physician, collector, teacher and demonstrator. Combining Hunter’s lectures to students of anatomy with his teaching at the St Martin’s Lane Academy, his patronage of artists, such as Robert Edge Pine, George Stubbs and Johan Zoffany, and his associations with artists at the Royal Academy of Arts, the book positions Hunter at the very centre of artistic, scientific and cultural life in London during the period, presenting a sustained and critical account of the relationship between anatomy and artists over the course of the long eighteenth century.