Martin J. Klein
Encyclopedia
Martin J. Klein (June 25, 1924 – March 28, 2009) was a science historian
of 19th and 20th century physics
. At Yale University
, he was the Eugene Higgins emeritus
professor
of the history of physics
and an emeritus professor of physics
. He was elected to the Académie Internationale d'Histoire des Sciences (1971), the National Academy of Sciences
(1977) and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
(1979).
In 2005 Professor Klein was the first recipient of the Abraham Pais Prize for History of Physics
, a joint award of the American Physical Society
and the American Institute of Physics
.
Editor
Subject
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
of 19th and 20th century physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
. At Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, he was the Eugene Higgins emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of the history of physics
History of physics
As forms of science historically developed out of philosophy, physics was originally referred to as natural philosophy, a term describing a field of study concerned with "the workings of nature".-Early history:...
and an emeritus professor of physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
. He was elected to the Académie Internationale d'Histoire des Sciences (1971), the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
(1977) and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
(1979).
In 2005 Professor Klein was the first recipient of the Abraham Pais Prize for History of Physics
Abraham Pais Prize for History of Physics
The Abraham Pais Prize for History of Physics is an award given each year since 2005 jointly by the American Physical Society and the American Institute of Physics for "outstanding scholarly achievements in the history of physics"...
, a joint award of the American Physical Society
American Physical Society
The American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
and the American Institute of Physics
American Institute of Physics
The American Institute of Physics promotes science, the profession of physics, publishes physics journals, and produces publications for scientific and engineering societies. The AIP is made up of various member societies...
.
Publications
Author- 1970: Paul Ehrenfest: The Making of a Theoretical Physicist. Biography of Paul EhrenfestPaul EhrenfestPaul Ehrenfest was an Austrian and Dutch physicist, who made major contributions to the field of statistical mechanics and its relations with quantum mechanics, including the theory of phase transition and the Ehrenfest theorem.- Biography :Paul Ehrenfest was born and grew up in Vienna in a Jewish...
. AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
: ElsevierElsevierElsevier is a publishing company which publishes medical and scientific literature. It is a part of the Reed Elsevier group. Based in Amsterdam, the company has operations in the United Kingdom, USA and elsewhere....
. ISBN 0-72040-163-1. 1985 edition: ISBN 0-44486-948-4 - 1993: Physicists' Inaugural Lectures in History. Amsterdam UniversityUniversiteit van AmsterdamThe University of Amsterdam or the UvA is a public research university located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Founded in 1632 as the Athenaeum Illustre by the scholars Gerardus Vossius and Caspar Barlaeus, it is the third-oldest university in the Netherlands...
Press. ISBN 9-05356-057-2.
Editor
- 1993-1996: Einstein Papers ProjectEinstein Papers ProjectThe Einstein Papers Project was established in 1986 to assemble, preserve, translate, and publish papers selected from the literary estate of Albert Einstein and from other collections .Sponsored by the Princeton University Press and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem since its inception, the...
. Lead editor, Volumes 3, 4, 5; editor, Volume 6, The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein. Princeton University PressPrinceton University Press-Further reading:* "". Artforum International, 2005.-External links:* * * * *...
:
Subject
- 1995: A. J. Kox and Daniel M. Siegel, No Truth Except in the Details: Essays in Honor of Martin J. Klein. Kluwer Academic Publishers. ISBN 0-792-33195-8.
Other sources
- Academic biography in Pais Prize announcement, AIP Center for History of Physics Newsletter, Volume XXXVII, No. 2, Fall 2005.
- Einstein Papers ProjectEinstein Papers ProjectThe Einstein Papers Project was established in 1986 to assemble, preserve, translate, and publish papers selected from the literary estate of Albert Einstein and from other collections .Sponsored by the Princeton University Press and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem since its inception, the...
staff, past editors.