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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

George C. Caldwell (1834-1907): American Agricultural Chemist, Pat Munday Oct 2023

George C. Caldwell (1834-1907): American Agricultural Chemist, Pat Munday

Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences Articles

George Caldwell served as president of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in 1892. Prior to this time, the ACS had been a rather parochial New York City based organization. In 1890, the constituency of the ACS expressed its desire to become a truly national body. Toward this end, it forged closer ties with the Chemical Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and merged with the Chemical Section in 1891. As Caldwell had been active with the AAAS group for several years previous to this merger, his election to the presidency of the ACS can be …


Sympathetic Physics: The Keely Motor And The Laws Of Thermodynamics In Nineteenth-Century Culture, Robert Macdougall Apr 2019

Sympathetic Physics: The Keely Motor And The Laws Of Thermodynamics In Nineteenth-Century Culture, Robert Macdougall

History Publications

In Philadelphia in the 1870s, John Worrell Keely announced the invention of a fantastic new motor that could, he promised, drive locomotives, power factories, and even defy gravity without fuel or heat. The Keely Motor became the most notorious perpetual motion scheme of the nineteenth century, attracting believers and investors for nearly thirty years. This article explores the “work” the motor performed for Keely, his supporters, and his critics—not physical work, but financial, cultural, and psychological. To investors, the Keely Motor represented a dream of riches without effort. To Keely’s critics, the motor offered an opportunity to defend the legitimacy …


History Of Computing, George K. Thiruvathukal, David B. Dennis Sep 2017

History Of Computing, George K. Thiruvathukal, David B. Dennis

David B. Dennis

The social and organizational history of humanity is intricately entangled with the history of technology in general and the technology of information in particular. Advances in this area have often been closely involved in social and political transformations. While the contemporary period is often referred to by such names as the Computing and Information Age, this is the culmination of a series of historical transformations that have been centuries in the making. This course will provide a venue for students to learn about history through the evolution of number systems and arithmetic, calculating and computing machines, and advanced communication technology …


History Of Computing, George K. Thiruvathukal, David B. Dennis Sep 2017

History Of Computing, George K. Thiruvathukal, David B. Dennis

George K. Thiruvathukal

The social and organizational history of humanity is intricately entangled with the history of technology in general and the technology of information in particular. Advances in this area have often been closely involved in social and political transformations. While the contemporary period is often referred to by such names as the Computing and Information Age, this is the culmination of a series of historical transformations that have been centuries in the making. This course will provide a venue for students to learn about history through the evolution of number systems and arithmetic, calculating and computing machines, and advanced communication technology …


History Of Computing, George K. Thiruvathukal, David B. Dennis Aug 2017

History Of Computing, George K. Thiruvathukal, David B. Dennis

Computer Science: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The social and organizational history of humanity is intricately entangled with the history of technology in general and the technology of information in particular. Advances in this area have often been closely involved in social and political transformations. While the contemporary period is often referred to by such names as the Computing and Information Age, this is the culmination of a series of historical transformations that have been centuries in the making. This course will provide a venue for students to learn about history through the evolution of number systems and arithmetic, calculating and computing machines, and advanced communication technology …


The Visual Image Of Chemistry: Perspectives From The History Of Art And Science, Joachim Schummer, Tami I. Spector Jan 2007

The Visual Image Of Chemistry: Perspectives From The History Of Art And Science, Joachim Schummer, Tami I. Spector

Chemistry Faculty Publications

In this paper we investigate the most important visual stereotypes of chemistry as they occur in current portraits of chemists, depictions of chemical plants, and images of chemical glassware and apparatus. By studying the historical origin and development of these stereotypes within the broader context of the history of art and science, and by applying aesthetic and cultural theories, we explore what these images implicitly communicate about the chemical profession to the public. We conclude that chemists, along with commercial artists, have unknowingly created a visual image of chemistry that frequently conveys negative historical associations, ranging from imposture to kitsch. …