Newsletter for Monday 17 March

TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY NEWSLETTER - 17 MARCH

Feature for Today

On 17 Mar 1885, a medical report of the deformities of Joseph Carey Merrick was presented to the Pathological Society of London by Dr. Frederick Treves. You can read a short article from the New York Medical Abstract (1886) giving a medical description of the disease afflicting the "Elephant Man" to the extent it was understood at the time. The accompanying illustrations by Dr. Treves show that the deformities affected Merrick's whole body. For a contemporary article showing the compassion of the public toward Joseph Merrick, once his case was better understood, also read this Obituary in the Medical Mirror (1890).

Book of the Day

On 17 Mar 1885, Dr. Treves made a medical report on Joseph Merrick, the Elephant Man. The extreme deformities suffered by this young man were extraordinary, and most of his life was an unhappy existence. After Dr. Treves discovered him, Merrick was given a more comfortable and compassionate existence, while Treves continued to study his medical condition. Today's Science Store pick is The True History of the Elephant Man, by Michael Howells and Peter Ford, who a give a brilliantly reserched, factual account of Merrick's life, including modern information about his condition. Available Used from $1.00 (as of time of writing). Booklist for Joseph Merrick. Yesterday's pick: Searching the Stars: The Story of Caroline Herschel, by Marilyn B. Ogilvie. For picks from earlier newsletters, see the Today in Science Science Store home page.

Quotations for Today
	"There is no philosophy which is not founded upon knowledge of the phenomena, but to get any profit from this knowledge it is absolutely necessary to be a mathematician." - Daniel Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician (died 17 Mar 1782)
	"A recognized fact which goes back to the earliest times is that every living organism is not the sum of a multitude of unitary processes, but is, by virtue of interrelationships and of higher and lower levels of control, an unbroken unity. When research, in the efforts of bringing understanding, as a rule examines isolated processes and studies them, these must of necessity be removed from their context. In general, viewed biologically, this experimental separation involves a sacrifice. In fact, quantitative findings of any material and energy changes preserve their full context only through their being seen and understood as parts of a natural order." - Walter Hess, Swiss physiologist (born 17 Mar 1881)
	"That one must do some work seriously and must be independent and not merely amuse oneself in life—this our mother [Marie Curie] has told us always, but never that science was the only career worth following." - Scientist in the quiz below, French physicist and physical chemist. (died 17 Mar 1956)

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
	Charles Francis Brush, born 17 Mar 1849, was a U.S. inventor and industrialist who devised a form of lighting that was adopted throughout the United States and abroad during the 1880's. It preceded Edison's incandescent light bulb in commercial use and was suited to applications where a bright light was needed, such as street lights and lighting in commercial and public buildings. What form of lighting did Brush popularize?
Deaths
	A French physical chemist (1897-1956) was the daughter of Nobel Prize winners Pierre and Marie Curie, and was herself  jointly awarded the 1935 Nobel Prize for Chemistry with her husband for their discovery of new radioactive isotopes prepared artificially. What was the married name of this scientist?
	Christian Doppler (1803-1853) was a physicist who first described how the observed frequency of light and sound waves is affected by the relative motion of the source and the detector, known as the Doppler effect. In 1845, to test his hypothesis, Doppler used two sets of trumpeters: one set stationary at a train station and one set moving on an open train car, all holding the same note. As the train passed the station, it was obvious that the frequency of the notes from the two groups didn't match. What nationality was Doppler?
Events
	On 17 Mar of a certain year, the U.S. launched its first object into space, the Vanguard I satellite, during the International Geophysical Year. Launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, the three-pound satellite carried a radio transmitter, orbitted every 107.9 minutes. This was America's late entry into the Space Race, following the Soviet successes with their satellites In what decade was the Vanguard I launched?
	In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments whether a certain patent could be issued. Ananda Chakrabarty had appealed the rejection of his 1972 patent application related to a new method of breaking down crude oil. What was so novel about this patent that it required a Supreme Court Decision?

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 March 17 web page of Today in Science History. Or, try this link first for just the brief answers. Fast answers for the previous newsletter for March 16: Georg Simon Ohm; oceanography; the decade including the year 1926; Joseph Lister; hay fever.

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