1873 in science
Encyclopedia
The year 1873 in science
and technology
involved some significant events, listed below.
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
involved some significant events, listed below.
Mathematics
- Charles HermiteCharles HermiteCharles Hermite was a French mathematician who did research on number theory, quadratic forms, invariant theory, orthogonal polynomials, elliptic functions, and algebra....
proves that the mathematical constantMathematical constantA mathematical constant is a special number, usually a real number, that is "significantly interesting in some way". Constants arise in many different areas of mathematics, with constants such as and occurring in such diverse contexts as geometry, number theory and calculus.What it means for a...
eE (mathematical constant)The mathematical constant ' is the unique real number such that the value of the derivative of the function at the point is equal to 1. The function so defined is called the exponential function, and its inverse is the natural logarithm, or logarithm to base...
is a transcendental numberTranscendental numberIn mathematics, a transcendental number is a number that is not algebraic—that is, it is not a root of a non-constant polynomial equation with rational coefficients. The most prominent examples of transcendental numbers are π and e...
. - Henri BrocardHenri BrocardPierre René Jean Baptiste Henri Brocard was a French meteorologist and mathematician, in particular a geometer...
introduces the Brocard points, Brocard triangleBrocard triangleIn geometry, the Brocard triangle of a triangle is a triangle formed by the intersection of line from a vertex to its corresponding Brocard point and a line from another vertex to its corresponding Brocard point and the other two points constructed using different combinations of vertices and...
and Brocard circleBrocard circleIn geometry, the Brocard circle for a triangle is a circle having a diameter of the line segment between the circumcenter and symmedian. It contains the Brocard points. The Brocard circle is named for Henri Brocard....
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Meteorology
- September - Agreement for establishment of International Meteorological OrganizationInternational Meteorological OrganizationThe International Meteorological Organization was the first organization formed with the purpose of exchanging weather information among the countries of the world. It was born from the realization that weather systems move across country boundaries and knowledge of pressure, temperature,...
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Technology
- Christopher Miner SpencerChristopher Miner SpencerChristopher Miner Spencer was an American inventor, from Manchester, Connecticut, who invented the Spencer repeating rifle, one of the earliest models of lever-action rifle, a steam powered "horseless carriage", and several other inventions...
introduces the fully automatic turret latheAutomatic latheAn automatic lathe is a lathe whose actions are controlled automatically. Although all electronically controlled lathes are automatic, they are usually not called by that name, as explained under "General nomenclature"...
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Awards
- Copley MedalCopley MedalThe Copley Medal is an award given by the Royal Society of London for "outstanding achievements in research in any branch of science, and alternates between the physical sciences and the biological sciences"...
: Hermann Helmholtz - Wollaston MedalWollaston MedalThe Wollaston Medal is a scientific award for geology, the highest award granted by the Geological Society of London.The medal is named after William Hyde Wollaston, and was first awarded in 1831...
for Geology: Philip de Malpas Grey EgertonPhilip de Malpas Grey EgertonSir Philip de Malpas Grey Egerton, 10th Baronet FRS was an English palaeontologist and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1830 and 1881....
Births
- October 4 - Dimitrie PompeiuDimitrie Pompeiu-Biography:After studying in Dorohoi and Bucharest, he went to France, where he studied mathematics at the University of Paris . He obtained a Ph.D. degree in mathematics in 1905 with a thesis, On the continuity of complex variable functions, written under the direction of Henri Poincaré...
(d. 19541954 in scienceThe year 1954 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy:* November 30 - In Sylacauga, Alabama, an 8.5 pound sulfide meteorite crashes through a roof and hits Mrs...
), mathematicianMathematicianA mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
. - October 9 - Karl SchwarzschildKarl SchwarzschildKarl Schwarzschild was a German physicist. He is also the father of astrophysicist Martin Schwarzschild.He is best known for providing the first exact solution to the Einstein field equations of general relativity, for the limited case of a single spherical non-rotating mass, which he accomplished...
(d. 19161916 in scienceThe year 1916 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Chemistry:* Gilbert N. Lewis and Irving Langmuir formulate an electron shell model of chemical bonding....
), astronomerAstronomerAn astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
and physicistPhysicistA physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
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Deaths
- January 27 - Adam SedgwickAdam SedgwickAdam Sedgwick was one of the founders of modern geology. He proposed the Devonian period of the geological timescale...
(b. 17851785 in scienceThe year 1785 in science and technology involved some significant events.-Aviation:* January 7 - Frenchman Jean-Pierre Blanchard and American John Jeffries travel from Dover, England to Calais, France in a gas balloon, becoming the first to cross the English Channel by air.-Biology:* Antoine...
), geologistGeologistA geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
. - April 18 - Justus von LiebigJustus von LiebigJustus von Liebig was a German chemist who made major contributions to agricultural and biological chemistry, and worked on the organization of organic chemistry. As a professor, he devised the modern laboratory-oriented teaching method, and for such innovations, he is regarded as one of the...
(b. 18031803 in scienceThe year 1803 in science and technology involved some significant events.-Astronomy:* April 26 - A meteorite shower falls on L'Aigle in Normandy; Jean Baptiste Biot demonstrates that they are of extraterrestrial origin.-Botany:...
), chemistChemistA chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
. - March 30 - Bénédict MorelBénédict MorelBénédict Augustin Morel , was a French physician born in Vienna, Austria. He was an influential figure in the field of psychiatry during the mid-19th century....
(b. 18091809 in scienceThe year 1809 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy:* Carl Friedrich Gauss publishes Theoria motus corporum coelestium in sectionibus conicis solem ambientum in Hamburg, introducing the Gaussian gravitational constant and containing an influential...
), psychiatristPsychiatristA psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
. - September 15 - Alexei Pavlovich FedchenkoAlexei Pavlovich FedchenkoAlexei Pavlovich Fedchenko was a Russian naturalist and explorer well known for his travels in central Asia....
(b. 18441844 in scienceThe year 1844 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy:* Friedrich Bessel explains the wobbling motions of Sirius and Procyon by suggesting that these stars have dark companions.-Biology:...
), naturalistNaturalistNaturalist may refer to:* Practitioner of natural history* Conservationist* Advocate of naturalism * Naturalist , autobiography-See also:* The American Naturalist, periodical* Naturalism...
. - December 14 - Louis AgassizLouis AgassizJean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz was a Swiss paleontologist, glaciologist, geologist and a prominent innovator in the study of the Earth's natural history. He grew up in Switzerland and became a professor of natural history at University of Neuchâtel...
(b. 18071807 in scienceThe year 1807 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy:* March 29 - H. W. Olbers discovers the asteroid which Carl Friedrich Gauss names Vesta.-Chemistry:* Potassium and sodium are isolated by Sir Humphry Davy....
), zoologist and geologistGeologistA geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
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