著者
小島 智恵子
出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.47, no.246, pp.75-84, 2008 (Released:2021-08-05)

From 1919 to 1922, Marcel Brillouin published several papers on quantum theory. Some previous studies cited these works as paving the way for Louis de Broglie's matter wave. But few historical studies treated Brillouin's wave concept in his quantum theory in detail. In this paper, we first investigate Brillouin's wave concept, then analyze his motive for his study, and finally examine its influence on L. de Broglie, constrasting the differences between Brillouin's wave concept and L. de Broglie's matter wave.
著者
石橋 悠人
出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.47, no.246, pp.85-94, 2008 (Released:2021-08-05)

This paper aims to demonstrate institutional characters of the Board of Longitude for the purpose of examining the relationship between science and polity in the 18th century Britain. In 1714, British parliament established the Longitude Act and appointed Commissioners of the Board who were experts familiar with navigation, astronomy, and geography. Their main role was improving navigational science, especially achieving the practical solution for finding the longitude at sea. The Board as a scientific institution had close relations to two public bodies: the Parliament and Royal Navy. The Parliament financed the Board and rarely intervened into or controlled their activities. Nevertheless, the determinations which parliament made were obviously priority to the Board's, accordingly only through the parliamentary act, its reorganization could be carried out. Several scientific activities of the Board were operated for the service of the Royal Navy : introducing newly invented methods for finding the longitude and navigational instruments, transferring geographical knowledge, and cooperating actively for the voyages of discovery to the Pacific ocean and Arctic. It is well known that until second half of the 19th century, British government seldom patronized scientific activities and organizations. The example of the Board presents that from second half of the 18th century on, however, the state had put huge public money into scientific projects related to navigation, commerce, and exploration.
著者
白石 崇人
出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.47, no.246, pp.65-74, 2008 (Released:2021-08-05)

Tei Nishimura planned the Japanese Association for the Advancement of Science in 1888. According to his plan, the association was established through the union of educational, scientific and technological groups. The purpose was to enlighten people on the value of science, promote special research topics, improve the political position of science and scientists, and simplify the dissemination of research outcomes. The model adopted was that of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, although this association had no educational section in the 1880s. Nishimura's plan to unite educational and scientific groups within the association developed from his theory of education, which sought to relate education to science. He hoped for the development of pedagogy, and conducted research on the relationship between education and science. In addition, he thought that the theory of A. Bain was quoted, and that science assisted didactics. He thought that Bain applied psychology, physiology etc. to didactics, and was going to use their scientific method as a practical method. He began the reform of the Educational Society of Japan based on his plan. In 1888, he established a system of consultation with the Ministry of Education, to enable cooperation between science and technological research as well as education, and to conduct research into education.

1 0 0 0 OA 紹介

出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.47, no.245, pp.48-61, 2008 (Released:2021-08-05)
著者
山田 俊弘
出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.47, no.245, pp.13-25, 2008 (Released:2021-08-05)

In order to clarify the mutual influence between Robert Hooke and Nicolaus Steno in the history of geoscience, the present paper analyzes their collections of minerals as well as their texts about the Earth. Following a brief review of the circumstances of mineral collections and classifications in seventeenth-century England, I examine the text of Hooke's Discourse of Earthquakes (1668/1705) and the specimens that Hooke referred therein. I also note that Hooke utilized the specimens or related facts, or even fables, reported in natural histories, travel writings, classic texts, the Scriptures, letters and accounts of acquaintances, and so forth. Meanwhile, a study of the minerals referred to in Steno's Index of Natural Things and the contents of his Prodromus on Solid Bodies (1669) reveals that Hooke and Steno observed similar specimens, independently acquired, with some local differences between England (the Royal Society repository) and Italy (the Medici collection). Hooke, however, assumed that even fossil objects like ammonites or belemnites were of organic origin while Steno probably refrained from identifying such 'problematic' objects as being organic. Nevertheless, given the early interest of Steno in meteorological and terrestrial phenomena in his Chaos Manuscript (1659) and De thermis (1660), it is possible that Steno understood the significance of fossils in his early years, though Hooke's priority of publication is undeniable, given that he determined their organic origin in the early 1660s and published on them in Micrographia (1665).
著者
横田 陽子
出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.47, no.245, pp.1-12, 2008 (Released:2021-08-05)

In this paper, I describe how public health officers in Japan in the period of the late Taisho and early Showa eras claimed their position as professionals in the sanitary administrations of central and local governments. In the background of this push for recognition, there were related international and national movements. Internationally, public health ministries were established in developed countries and the League of Nations Health Organization (LNHO) was created. LNHO wanted to improve the level of public health officials world-wide, so the organization sponsored international exchanges of officials. These activities made a strong impression on Japanese public health officials, who realized that they belonged to an internationally recognized profession and that they needed to work hard to improve the substandard Japanese public health situation. Meanwhile, at the level of domestic politics, there were several movements of technical experts in different fields of government administration that worked to fight the unfair treatment of administrative officials, a situation that had existed since Meiji Period. The public health officers collaborated with the other technical experts to improve their positions and to play key roles in society. But while the other technical experts actively pursued social leadership, public health officials wanted to remain scientists. This is because the sanitary departments in the local governments were organized within police departments. In this environment, the law was dominant and science was secondary. But public health officials insisted that the basis of public health should be science, so they emphasized their scientific expertise.

1 0 0 0 OA 紹介

出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.46, no.244, pp.268-269, 2007 (Released:2021-08-09)
著者
日野川 静枝
出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.46, no.244, pp.241-252, 2007 (Released:2021-08-09)

Harvard University's first cyclotron, constructed in the 1930s, was dismantled and moved from its original location in Boston to Los Alamos, New Mexico, which was the center for atomic bomb assembly. This cyclotron has never been analyzed in depth. This paper elucidates and analyzes the process through which Harvard's cyclotron was developed. It aims to clarify the distinctive features of cyclotron development at Harvard. Specifically, it describes the role of Harvard University President James B. Conant in the decision to construct a cyclotron; the role of private enterprise in achieving cyclotron technology; and the difficulties encountered in securing funds. The following conclusions are drawn: 1) To promote nuclear physics research, in which the university was lagging behind, Conant took direct initiative for building a cyclotron. Without his initiative, arousing opinion within the university and obtaining support from military and business sources would probably have been impossible; 2) The free loan of a radio transmitter from the Department of the. Navy was a major factor in the decision to construct a cyclotron. At the same time, it created new difficulties in actually achieving cyclotron technology. These difficulties were overcome through cyclotron technology accumulated by enterprises and research institutions in the United States and, more directly, by the spread of cyclotron technology through exchanges among cyclotron engineers; 3) University funds financed the cyclotron's construction, but support for its operation and maintenance were requested from outside sources.
著者
安孫子 誠也
出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.46, no.244, pp.231-240, 2007 (Released:2021-08-09)

The role of interchange between physicists and philosophers in advancing Japanese physics of the late-Meiji and Taisho era is explored. Their cooperation brought forth their common objective and motivation of activities: "modernization of Japan in its true meaning of the words. " Topics treated are the brotherhood relationship between physicist Ayao Kuwaki and philosopher Gennyoku Kuwaki, the controversy between Ayao Kuwaki and philosopher Hajime Tanabe, the colleague relationship between physicist Jun Ishiwara and Tanabe, and influence of these people upon philosopher Kitaro Nishida, who proposed inviting Einstein to Japan and asked him famous Kyoto address "How I Created the Theory of Relativity. " Also, are pointed out, the role played by the above philosophers in bringing forth the Taisho-democracy movement, which made Einstein's visit possible, and the relationship between the theory of relativity and the ideology of democracy.
著者
野村 恒彦
出版者
日本科学史学会
雑誌
科学史研究 (ISSN:21887535)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.46, no.244, pp.220-230, 2007 (Released:2021-08-09)

Charles Babbage (1791-1871) was a polymath at the Victorian Age in England. He is famous for his calculating engines, especially the Analytical Engine, which is a prototype of modern computers. Also it is well known that the range of Babbage's writings are spread over many fields. The Ninth Bridgewater Treatise is a typical book indicating another talent of his. This treatise is known as a critic of Whewell's words in his Bridgewater Treatise entitled Astronomy and General Physics Considered with Reference to Natural Theology. In his treatise, Whewell dismissed works of continental mathematicians, because they were injurious to devotion. However Babbage stood against Whewell's position. When Babbage was an undergraduate of Cambridge University, he organized "Analytical Society " with his friends. The Society's object was to introduce continental mathematics (Analysis) into England. Babbage had learned the importance of continental Analysis, so he criticized Whewell's words. Another topic of Babbage's treatise is Hume's argument about miracles. In Hume's essay, Babbage noticed the number of witness of miracles. Using Laplace's probability theory and singular points of curves of the forth degree, Babbage criticized Hume's thought. Thus Babbage manifested his idea about natural theology, as a mathematician who adhered continental analysis.