science newsletter: Newsletter for Saturday 2 February

Newsletter - February 2 - Today in Science History

TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY
NEWSLETTER - 2 FEBRUARY

Feature for Today

On 2 Feb 1923, gasoline was first sold with an anti-knock additive. That compound turned out to be deadly to some of the manufacturing plant workers from the start, and its health effect in the atmosphere was hotly disputed until it was withdrawn in the 1970s. Today's extended article comes from a radio talk by Charles Kettering in the early 1940s, and enthusiastically commends the discoverer of that compound, making no mention of its hazards. Nevertheless, the research work was - in its own way - a story of dedicated effort. The same inventor also originated the refrigerant known as Freon - another problematical chemical. These two chemicals, with epic unintended consequences, were developed by Thomas Midgley.

Also: a 1922 report on Midgley's discovery of the anti-knock compound, with additional links.

Book of the Day

On 2 Feb 1907, Dmitry Mendeleyev died,. He developed the periodic classification of the elements. Today's Science Store pick is Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleyev: His Life and His Work, by O. N. Pisarzhevsky, which outlines the life and works of this great Russian scientist. But his work encompassed more than just the Periodic Table. He drew up a long-term program for exploiting Russia’s extremely rich natural resources and applying chemistry to various brances of the nation’s economic life. He conducted the first serious agrochemical research in Russia and established the first network of agricultural experimental stations. Supervising the work of the Chamber of Weights and Measures he prepared the introduction into Russia of the metric system. Price $14.99 (as of time of writing) .
Yesterday's pick: A Mind Always in Motion: The Autobiography of Emilio Segrè. For picks from earlier newsletters, see the Today in Science Science Store home page.

Quotations for Today
	"Do experimental work but keep in mind that other investigators in the same field will consider your discoveries as less than one fourth as important as they seem to you." - attributed to Charles Manning Child, American zoologist (born 2 Feb 1869)
	"The universe may have a purpose, but nothing we know suggests that, if so, this purpose has any similarity to ours." - Bertrand Russell, Welsh mathematical logician and analytical philosopher (died 2 Feb 1970)
	"What science sows the people will reap." - Dmitry Mendeleyev (died 2 Feb 1907)

QUIZ
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
	François-Alphonse Forel, born 2 Feb 1841, was a Swiss physician, scientist, and founder of limnology, the study of lakes. Forel is credited with the discovery of density currents, which occur in the Alpine lakes because of the cold temperatures of entering glacier-derived streams. He also explained the mechanism of seiches (1901) and studied earthquakes and glaciers. *What is a seiche?*
	John Glover, born 2 Feb 1817, was an English chemist who developed the Glover Tower in 1859 to reclaim useful chemicals during the manufacture of a certain acid, the most important industrial chemical. *Which acid is the most important industrial chemical?*
Deaths
	On 2 Feb 1907, Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev, Russian chemist died, who developed the periodic classification of the elements. In his final version of the periodic table (1871) he left gaps, foretelling that they would be filled by elements not then known and predicting the properties of three of those elements. *In 1869, Mendeleyev's predicted there would be discovered an element close to aluminium. What name did he give it?*
Events
	On 2 Feb of a certain year, Edwin H. Land gave the first demonstration his invention of instant photography at a meeting of the Optical Society of America, which he applied in his Polaroid Land Camera. *In which decade was this form of instant photography first demonstrated?*
	On 2 Feb 1923, the first sale was made of gasoline containing a new anti-knock compound, after which this form of gasoline was named. This new formulation of gasoline, discovered by Thomas Midgely, Jr., was the the result of seven years of testing at least 33,000 compounds as additives to control the combustion rate of the fuel. It continued to be used for decades. *What was the name of this anti-knock compound?*

Answers

When you have your answers ready to all the questions above, you'll find all the information to check them, and more, on the February 2 web page of Today in Science History. Or, try this link first for just the brief answers.

Fast answers for the previous newsletter for February 1: antiproton; cytoplasm and nucleoplasm; Werner Heisenberg; $395; integrated circuit.

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