science newsletter: Newsletter for Friday 2 March

Newsletter - March 2 - Today in Science History

TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY
NEWSLETTER - 2 MARCH

Feature for Today

The fogged plate - Becquerel's discovery of radioactivity

On 2 Mar 1896, Henri Becquerel reported, to the French Academy of Sciences, the interesting result he discovered the previous day—a plate fogged by a uranium compound laying on a photographic plate, even though the plate was wrapped in heavy black paper, and they had remained for several days in a dark drawer. He had been investigating phosphorescence connected with exposure to sunlight. This plate had been significantly fogged despite the absence of sunlight exposure.

For scientists, the radioactivity train had just left the station, and now-famous scientists hopped on board!

A few years later, in 1903, J.J. Thomson wrote about the Becquerel Rays and the resulting discoveries by other scientists in the next few years following Becquerel's first report that alerted the scientific community. Becquerel had opened up a new puzzle box for science, which was quicked dubbed "radio-activity."

What we read about the structure of the atom in textbooks, is always presented as a chain of discoveries in a clear path. It wasn't. Read J.J. Thomson's article, and you'll see the path was not always clear. Even the best scientists experienced confusion at first.

J.J. Thomson is revered as the discoverer of the electron, who won a Nobel prize just 3 years following this article.

Yet Thomson, in this 1903 article, wrote this for the public to read:

"To make a body radio-active all that is necessary is to get a layer containing a large quantity of positive electricity close to the surface of the body. We can, in this way, make radio-active substances without the use of any material that is intrinsically radio-active."

Say what???

Well, you'll still get a good dose of worthwhile information reading Thomson's article on the history of Becquerel Rays, and it will raise a knowing smile as you recognize where Thomson was, as we know now, off the mark. Please don't be too smug as you see this wonderful snapshot of science unfoldingly. Hindsight is always 20/20.

It is also interesting to see how Thomson is biassed by his own research into cathode rays which frames his views on radio-activity.

Book of the Day

Selected popular writings of E.U. Condon

On 2 Mar 1902, Edward Condon was born, American physicist remembered for the Franck-Condon principle (1928) and his contributions to the development of radar and the atomic bomb. As director of the study commissioned by the U.S. Air Force on UFOs, his Condon Report concluded there was no credible evidence and that further studies of UFO phenomena would not be of scientific benefit (1969). Today's Science Store pick is Selected popular writings of E.U. Condon, by Edward U. Condon. The book contains articles he wrote on technical topics for such journals as The American Journal of Physics, Science, and Nature, as well as reflections on education, UFO's, and other topics. Available New from $18.45 or Used from $2.26 (as of time of writing).

Yesterday's pick: The Children's Machine: Rethinking School In The Age Of The Computers, by Seymour Papert.
For picks from earlier newsletters, see the Today in Science Science Store home page.

Quotations for Today
	"Mathematics education is much more complicated than you expected, even though you expected it to be more complicated than you expected." - Edward Griffith Begle, American mathematician (died 2 Mar 1978)
	"I think at the moment we did not even want to break the seal [on the inner chamber of the tomb of Tutankhamen], for a feeling of intrusion had descended heavily upon us... We felt that we were in the presence of the dead King and must do him reverence, and in imagination could see the doors of the successive shrines open one." - British archaeologist in the quiz below (died 2 Mar 1939)

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
	Georgii Nikolaevich Flerov, born 2 Mar 1913, who was one of the early Russian investigators of nuclear fission. In later research, as leader of the Dubna group, Flerov announced synthesis of isotopes of element 104 by smashing neon nuclei into plutonium (1965). Flerov gave this new element the name kurchatovium (Ku) in honour of the Soviet nuclear physicist Igor Kurchatov. Co-discoveries were made in the U.S., where a different name was used. For nearly two decades the world lived with three names for element 104 (including the interim name Unnilquadlium). The present name was finally adopted in 1997. *What is the present name of element 104?*
Deaths
	A British archaeologist (1873-1939) made one of the richest and most celebrated contributions to Egyptology: the discovery (1922) of the largely intact tomb of King Tutankhamen. *Can you name this scientist?*
	Wilhelm Olbers (1758-1840) was a German astronomer. He calculated the orbit of the comet of 1779, discovered the minor planets (asteroids) Pallas (1802) and Vesta (1807), and discovered five comets (all but one already observed at Paris). He also invented a method for calculating the velocity of falling stars. He is also known for Olber's paradox. . *What is Olber's Paradox?*
Events
	On 2 Mar of a certain year, the Concorde SST Supersonic jet aircraft made its maiden flight *In what decade was this maiden flight made?*
	On 2 Mar 1972, a U.S. spacecraft was launched. It passed close by Jupiter and Neptune before leaving the solar system. It is now more than six billion miles from Earth. *Can you name this space probe?*

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 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 March 1: paper partition chromatography; division ( ÷ ); Jacobus Henricus van't Hoff; the decade including the year 1970; Bikini Atoll.

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