Newsletter for Thursday 17 October

TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY NEWSLETTER - 17 OCTOBER

Feature for Today

On 17 Oct 1887, Gustav Robert Kirchhoff died, who contributed to the theory of spectrum analysis. That his name appears in an introductory physics text, indicates that his contributions were significant. Reading this Memoir of Gustav Robert Kirchhoff (1888) will give you an overview of this scientist and his work.

Book of the Day

On 17 Oct 1956, the Queen opened Calder Hall, the first gas-cooled and Britain's first nuclear power station in the shadow of the massive chimneys of the plant where explosives were made for Britain's first atomic bomb. Today's Science Store pick is: Calder Hall - The Story Of Britain's First Atomic Station, by Kenneth Jay. It is available Used from $5.00. (As of time of writing.). For picks from earlier newsletters, see the Today in Science History Science Store home page.

Quotations for Today
	History in its broadest aspect is a record of man's migrations from one environment to another. - Ellsworth Huntington, American geologist, climatologist, explorer and geographer (died 17 Oct 1947).
	Lately we have been getting facts pointing to the “oceanic” nature of the floor of so-called inland seas. Through geological investigations it has been definitely established that in its deepest places, for instance, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, the Earth's crust is devoid of granite stratum. The same may be said quite confidently about the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Could the interpretation of these data be that inland seas were the primary stage of the formation of oceanic basins? - Vladimir Vladimirovich Belousov, Soviet geologist and geophysicist (born 17 Oct 1907).
	When I'm asked about the relevance to Black people of what I do, I take that as an affront. It presupposes that Black people have never been involved in exploring the heavens, but this is not so. Ancient African empires - Mali, Songhai, Egypt - had scientists, astronomers. The fact is that space and its resources belong to all of us, not to any one group. - Mae C. Jemison, Black-American physician (born 17 Oct 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
	Mae C. Jemison, born 17 Oct 1956, is an American physician and the first African-American woman in space. Jemison holds degree in chemical engineering (1977) and a Doctor of Medicine degree (1981). Before she became an astronaut, Jemison worked as a doctor in West Africa. In what decade did she fly in space?
Deaths
	A French scientist (1683-1757) was active in various fields, and the foremost entomologist of the early 18th century. His name is applied to a thermometric scale he devised. Can you name this scientist's scale?
	Gustav Kirchoff (1824-1887), working with the chemist Robert Bunsen, established the theory of spectrum analysis which he applied to determine the composition of the Sun. He remains known to science students for a pair of well-known electric circuit laws (1845) used in introductory physics problems. What is Kirchoff's Current Law?
Events
	On 17 Oct 1956, the Queen opened Calder Hall, Britain's first nuclear power station in the shadow of the massive chimneys of the plant where explosives were made for Britain's first atomic bomb. What is the name of the explosives plant?
	On 17 Oct 1855, a steel-making process was patented by Sir Henry Bessemer, a British inventor and metallurgist. His patent was for a method of making steel by blasting compressed air through molten iron. What major impurity was removed by using this method?

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 October 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 October 16: Robert Stephenson • the study of possible extraterrestrial life • ARPANET • the decade containing the year 1951 • inhaled from a blown glass flask.

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