Specola Guestbook: July 11, 1910 – Emily Dobbin
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
Today's guestbook entry is from July 11, 1910, when Emily Dobbin made a visit.
Next to her name, Emily Elisabeth Dobbin (1875-1949) wrote, "Inst. Math & Surveying, M.A.H.S., St. Paul, Minn." (Instructor of Mathematics and Surveying, Mechanic Arts High School, St. Paul MN)
Dobbin was trained as an astronomer, receiving a masters' degree from the University of Chicago in 1903. She worked at Yerkes Observatory, resulting in two single-authored publications (one on the orbit of the Jovian satellite Amalthea and another on Orion-type stars). However, her astronomical career never really progressed past that point. She taught mathematics, first at the University of Missouri, and then at a high school in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Dobbin is particularly notable for her work in an entirely different field: that of the women's suffrage movement. She was a member of the St. Paul Suffrage Club at least as early as 1909, and participated in the national movement as well. She served as president of the St. Paul Political Equality Club in 1911. In 1914, a fellow suffragette Clara Hardenbrook was arrested while trying to vote, and Dobbin paid her legal fees.
Specola Guestbook: July 11, 1910 – Anne Sewell Young
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
Today's guestbook entry is from July 11, 1910, when Anne Sewell Young made a visit.
Anne Sewell Young (1871-1961) Source: Library of Congress
Next to her name, Anne Sewell Young (1871-1961) wrote, "John Payson Williston Observatory, South Hadley, Mass."
After finishing an M.S. at Carleton College, Young came to Mount Holyoke College in 1898 where she became director of the John Payson Williston Observatory. Meanwhile, she completed her Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1906.
Her astronomical research involved many fields: her Ph.D. was a survey of stars in the constellation Perseus. She also supervised research on sunspots and a student expedition to observe a solar eclipse in 1925. Her primary interest was variable stars. She was a founding member of the American Association of Variable Star Observers and became its president in 1923.
Religious Scientists: Fr. Francesco Grimaldi S.J. (1618-1663), Optics of Diffraction
Francesco Maria Grimaldi (1618-1663)
Today I present yet another Jesuit physicist/astronomer: Francesco Maria Grimaldi. He made a number of contributions in physics and astronomy, many of which in collaboration with another Jesuit: Fr. Giovanni Battista Riccioli S.J. (1598-1671). I will deal with Riccioli in a future post. However, Grimaldi can take full credit for pioneering the study of diffraction of light, and in coining the term, “diffraction.”
Biographical Sketch: Grimaldi was born in Bologna in 1618. His father, a wealthy silk merchant, died when Francesco was still very young. In 1632 (at age 14) he entered the Jesuit order with his brother Vincenzo. After two years as a novice, he studied rhetoric for a year in Novellara. In 1635 he traveled to Parma for philosophy studies at the college of S. Rocco, but after only one year transferred to Ferrara to begin studying physics. He returned to Bologna to finish his philosophy studies. In 1638 he he was missioned to be professor at the Jesuit college of Bologna, where he would spend the next 25 years. He also undertook his theological studies during this period. He was ordained a priest in 1645. He finished his doctorate in 1647, and took final vows as a Jesuit in 1651. He died of a sudden illness in Bologna in 1663, at the age of 45.
He originally met Riccioli in Parma at S. Rocco, where the elder Jesuit taught him theology. When Grimaldi returned to Bologna in 1638, he found Riccioli there, and their scientific collaboration began. Between ca. 1640-50, he served as the assistant to Riccioli in his studies on geodesy, on the physics of falling bodies, and on lunar mapping.
It was after this period that Grimaldi did his work on diffraction.
Scientific Contributions:
Diffraction: Grimaldi was arguably the first to carefully observe the diffraction of light around solid objects. He conducted several experiments on the subject. For instance, a thin rod placed in a narrow beam of light would cast a shadow that was wider than predicted by purely geometric considerations. The wings of the shadow were bordered by colored bands. Also, sunlight passing through two narrow slits would interfere with itself, creating a dimmer result than sunlight passing through just one slit. He coined the term, “diffraction” for these phenomena. From these and other experiments, Grimaldi concluded that light moves analogously to a liquid (i.e. wave) rather than like the movement of solid particles.
Diagrams from Grimaldi's experiments in diffraction: (A) Experimental setup for illumination from a slit in a window AB with an opaque rod EF casting a shadow. The edges of the shadow are wider than geometric considerations would allow. (B) Pattern of light and dark colored lines at the edge of the shadow observed by Grimaldi. (C) A second experiment with sunlight passing through two consecutive slits. The image of the light extended into the zones IN and OK on the screen, which would have been excluded by geometrical considerations. Source: Grimaldi Physicomathesis de lumine, coloribus, et iride, aliisque annexis, 1665.
His work on optics was published posthumously in 1665, in Physicomathesis de lumine, coloribus, et iride, aliisque annexis (A physicomathematical thesis on light, colors, the rainbow and other related topics). Isaac Newton was aware of Grimaldi’s work in this field, and referenced it in his own work, “Optiks” (1704).
Collaboration with Riccioli: Grimaldi assisted Riccioli in several studies. Most of these will be described in greater detail in a future post.
They did experiments of the physics of falling bodies, dropping objects of different weights off Bologna’s Asinelli tower. They timed the fall with a pendulum. (Because some of the balls were light enough to be affected by air resistance, their results did not agree with Galileo’s conclusions.)
In astronomy, they attempted to measure the diameters of stars through a telescope. (In fact, they were measuring the star’s relative brightness.)
They surveyed a meridian line for Bologna.
They developed maps of lunar surface features. It was Riccioli who named the lunar seas (such as Mare Tranquilitatis), but it was largely Grimaldi who named craters after prominent scientists. Several of the craters are also named after Jesuit scientists. Most of these names are preserved in the official IAU nomenclature for lunar features.
Map of the Moon by Riccioli and Grimaldi (from Almagestum Novum, 1651)
There is a crater on the moon named after Grimaldi.
Specola Guestbook: June 20, 1910 – Arthur L. Day
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
Today's guestbook entry is from June 20, 1910, when Arthur Day made a visit.
Arthur L. Day (1869-1960)
Source: Library of Congress
Next to his name, Arthur Louis Day (1869-1960) wrote, "Geophysical Laboratory, Washington D.C."
In 1907, Arthur Day became the first director of the Geophysical Laboratory of the Carnegie Institution in Washington D.C. The founding of the laboratory was a direct result of his research on rock-forming minerals while he was with the U.S. Geological Survey. He is most noted for research on the isomorphism and thermal properties of feldspars.
He also contributed research in vulcanology, seismology and geothermal energy.
He was vice president of the National Academy of Science from 1933-1941, and became president of the Geological Society of America in 1938.
In 1941, the Geological Society of London awarded Day the Wollaston Medal, its highest honor.
In 1948, Day endowed an award (the Arthur L. Day award) presented annually by the Geological Society of America for distinction in the application of physics or chemistry to solving geologic problems.
The U.S. National Academy of Sciences presents triennially the Arthur L. Day Prize and Lectureship named in his honor.
[Edit: Thanks to a helpful comment from a reader, there is a small correction. In the original version, I stated that Day received the Wollaston Medal from the Geological Society of America. It was in fact awarded by the Geological Society of London.]
Specola Guestbook: May 18, 1910 – Oskar Backlund
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
Today's guestbook entry is from May 18, 1910, when Oskar Backlund made a visit.
Oskar Backlund (1846-1918)
Portrait by Bogdanov-Belskiy, 1900.
Next to his name, Johan Oskar Backlund FRS (1846-1918) -- known in Russia as Oskar Andreevich Backlund -- wrote simply, "Pulkova."
Originally Swedish, Backlund moved to Russia in 1876. He worked at the Polkovo Observatory, becoming its director in 1895.
His primary astronomical work was developing a very precise orbit for the comet Encke, including the effect of perturbations from planets and other significant objects. From this, he also attempted to estimate the masses of those objects; particularly Mercury.
Other work included geodetic measurements of Spitzbergen at the end of the 19th century.
The asteroid 856 Backlunda, the lunar crater Backlund, and the terrestrial mountain Backlundtoppen (near Spitzbergen) all are named for him.
Specola Guestbook: May 12, 1910 – Benjamin Baillaud
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
Today's guestbook entry is from May 12, 1910, when Benjamin Baillaud made a visit.
Édouard Benjamin Baillaud (1848-1934)
Next to his name, Édouard Benjamin Baillaud (1848-1934) wrote simply, "Paris." This was his first of several visits to the Vatican Observatory over many years.
From 1878 to 1907, he served as director of the Tolouse Observatory, and from 1907-1926 he was director of the Paris Observatory. When he became director of the Paris Observatory, he undertook the revitalization of the Carte du Ciel project, which had been flagging.
Baillaud was the founding president of the International Astronomical Union in 1919.
He was also the founding president of the International Time Bureau. He was responsible for the time signal broadcast from the Eiffel Tower.
There is a crater bearing his name on the Moon, as well as the asteroids 1280 Baillauda and 11764 Benbaillaud.
Specola Guestbook: May 4, 1910 – van de Sande Bakhuyzen
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
Today's guestbook entry is from May 4, 1910, when H. G. van de Sande Bakhuyzen made a visit.
H. G. van de Sande Bakhuyzen in 1908
Next to his name, Hendricus Gerardus van de Sande Bakhuyzen (1838-1923) wrote simply, "Leiden."
He was the director of the Leiden Observatory in the Netherlands from 1872-1923. Most of his research dealt with asteroid observations. He also made the connection between the comet 3D/Biela and a meteor shower.
There is a crater on Mars named Bakhuysen in his honor, due to his publication of drawings of Mars made by Johann Schroter.
Religious Scientists: Fr. Domenico Troili S.J. (1722-1792), Meteoriticist
Today, I get to indulge in a couple topics that are important to me: meteorites and Jesuits. There are a few modern points of intersection of the two topics, including Br. Guy Consolmagno, Fr. Cyril Opeil, and myself. For this entry, however, we go back in time a couple of centuries to Fr. Domenico Troili, who lent his name to one of the most common minerals found in meteorites.
Troili was a former pupil of the Fr. Roger Boscovich S.J. at the Roman College. (Boscovich is another religious scientist who will be discussed in a future blog post for his contribution to atomic theory.) He later became the curator of the Este family library in Modena, Italy.
He witnessed the fall of a meteorite over Albareto, Italy in 1766. He took pains to document eyewitness accounts and collect specimens of the Albareto meteorite. This makes him the first person to formally document a meteorite fall, in Ragionamento della Caduta di un Sasso dall’Aria. (Published 1766.)
He recovered approximately 2 kilograms of material. In studying it, he found the presence of an iron sulfide mineral that is virtually unknown in terrestrial rock. (There are certain rocks where it may be found, but they are extremely uncommon.) He originally called it “marchesite.” Early researchers assumed that this mineral was a form of pyrite (FeS2), but later in 1862 Gustav Rose determined that it was FeS. He named it “troilite” in honor of its discoverer.
Though Troili was the first to properly document the fall of a meteorite, at the time it had not been established that meteorites were extraterrestrial in origin. He himself thought the rock originated from a distant volcanic eruption. It would not be until at least the fall of L’Aigle (1803) that the extraterrestrial origin of meteorites was established.
The mineral troilite, though rare on earth, is extremely common in meteorites, and is a popular topic of study in meteorite research. A search for the keyword “troilite” on the NASA ADS server reveals no less than 210 papers, and a search for papers that contain the term reveals almost 9500 titles.
Troili’s other work included orology (timekeeping), attempting to understand the origin of petrified wood, and experiments with electricity.
Specola Guestbook: April 8, 1910 – Three Scots
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
Today's guestbook entry is from April 8, 1910, when three notable Dunediners--George Chrystal, P. Hume Brown, and John Sutherland Black--made a visit.
George Chrystal (1851-1911)
Next to his name, George Chrystal FRSE, FRS (1851-1911) wrote "Prof. Math. Univ. Edinb." (Professor of Mathematics, University of Edinburgh). He was one of the founders of the Edinburgh Mathematical Society. His work on seiches (standing waves in ponds and other enclosed bodies of water) earned him a posthumous Gold Medal from the Royal Society of London. He was a member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh as well as the Royal Society of London. He is also known for having written several books on algebra.
Peter Hume Brown (1849-1918)
Next to his name, Peter Hume Brown FBA (1849-1918) wrote "Historiographer-Royal, Edinburgh." He published a definitive three-volume history of Scotland in 1898, and in 1901 became the first professor of Scottish history at the University of Edinburgh. He established Scottish history as a significant academic discipline, and worked to distinguish it from English history.
Next to his name, John Sutherland Black FRSE LLD (1846-1923) wrote simply, "Edinburgh." He was a biblical scholar and an amateur astronomer. He co-edited the Encyclopaedia Biblica (1899). He also contributed entries for the the Dictionary of National Biography (1901) and the Encyclopaedia Britannica (1911), serving as assistant editor for that publication as well. He was Curator of Records at the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
Specola Guestbook: September 7, 1967 – Geoffrey and Margaret Burbidge
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
For today's guestbook entry, we jump out of sequence once again to September 7, 1967, when Geoffrey and Margaret Burbidge made a visit.
Geoffrey and Margaret Burbidge
Source: Caltech Archives
They came with their daughter Sarah. Next to their names is written, "La Jolla, California." Later, they signed the guestbook again in 1970 during a meeting on galactic nuclei at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.
There is a timely reason to highlight these guests of the Specola this week. On Monday, August 12, 2019, Margaret Burbidge celebrates her 100th birthday.
Geoffrey and Margaret Burbidge, along with collaborators William Fowler and Fred Hoyle, are most known for developing the theory of the nucleosynthetic origin of elements in stars. This ground-breaking theory was published in a 100-page journal article in 1957. This paper is referred to as "Burbidge, Burbidge, Fowler and Hoyle" or more often simply B2FH (pronounced "B-squared-F-H). This work received the Warner prize in 1959.
(I once made their names into a parody of the "Double, double, toil and trouble" chant of the weird sisters in Shakespeare's "Scottish play." I would repeat it here, but I have forgotten the words.)
Eleanor Margaret Burbidge, FRS (1919- ) is an astrophysicist. In addition to her work on the B2FH theory, she was a pioneer in the study of quasars and in galactic rotation curves. She helped develop the spectrograph for the Hubble Space Telescope.
She has served as director of the Greenwich observatory and the Center for Astronomy and Space Science at UC San Diego. She was the first woman president of the American Astronomical Society, and also served as president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Throughout her career, she fought to destroy gender barriers in the sciences. She opposed any kind of gender discrimination, even refusing the Annie Jump Cannon award because it was reserved for women.
She nevertheless received a number of other awards in her lifetime, including the AAS Henry Norris Russell Lectureship, the National Medal of Science, and the Albert Einstein World Award of Science. The asteroid 5490 Burbidge is named in her honor.
Geoffrey Burbidge (1925-2010) served as director of the Kitt Peak National Observatory from 1978-1984. The asteroid 11753 Geoffburbidge is named for him.
Geoffrey and Margaret Burbidge (left) with William Fowler and Fred Hoyle in 1971.
Source: Univ. Cambridge; Photo: Donald Clayton
Specola Guestbook: April 1, 1910 – Henry Drinker
Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory. A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints.
Today's guestbook entry is from April 1, 1910 (no foolin!), when Henry Drinker made a visit.
Henry Sturgis Drinker (1850-1937).
Source: Lehigh University
Next to his name, Henry Sturgis Drinker (1850-1937) wrote "President of Lehigh University, South Bethlehem Pa."
Drinker was an engineer and a lawyer. He got a bachelor's degree in engineering from Lehigh University in 1871. As an engineer, he is most noted for the construction in 1875 of the Musconetcong Tunnel, a railway tunnel in the mountains of New Jersey. After completing the project, he studied law at Lafayette College and became the solicitor general of the Lehigh Valley Railroad from 1885 until 1905, when he became president of Lehigh University.
He was the fifth president of Lehigh University, and the only alumnus to hold that position. During his tenure, he was responsible for several improvements to the campus and its programs. These include a ROTC program, the construction of a mining engineering laboratory, a civil engineering laboratory, several dormitories, and a stadium. He was president of the American Forestry Association from 1817 to 1923, and so also established the university's forestry department. He stepped down as president of the university in 1920.
Drinker had several children, many of whom made their own significant mark on the world. Among these are Henry Sandwith Drinker, a noted lawyer and musician, and Catherine Drinker Bowen, a celebrated author and biographer.
Man with the Cat (Henry Sturgis Drinker)
Cecilia Beaux, 1898, oil on canvas.
Source: Smithsonian American Art Museum
Religious Scientists: Abbess St. Hildegard of Bingen OSB (1098-1179), Doctor of the Church
For this entry in the series, we go back in time almost a thousand years, to a period where modern science as we know it had not yet been established. How can we talk about a “religious scientist” before the age of modern science? In this case, by holding up an exemplar who, though not formally a scientist, made significant contributions to our knowledge based on the systematic experimental study of the natural world.
The exemplar I have in mind is Hildegard of Bingen, a Benedictine abbess who recorded, preserved, and disseminated much knowledge about medicine, pharmacology, and plants and animals that served as sources for medicines and remedies.
Hildegard of Bingen receiving a vision. (Artist unknown)
Biographical Sketch
Hildegard was born in 1098, the 10th child in a large wealthy family. At an early age (somewhere between ages 8-12, depending on sources) she was tithed to the Benedictine monastery at Disibodenberg. There, Hildegard received her education.
It is possible that she served as either infirmarian or pigmentarius (pharmacist) at Disibodenberg, because she developed extensive knowledge of medicines and their uses. Most of her scientific writings are medicinal in nature.
In addition to scientific contributions, Hildegard wrote musical compositions such as the Symphonia armonie celestial revelationum. She was a mystic who experienced many visions. Her special insights regarding the Gospel of John are explicated in the Liber Divinorum Operum. She was known as a persuasive and insightful preacher. In total, about four hundred of her written works are still extant.
She founded two monasteries, one in 1150 and another in 1165, and served as abbess of both.
She died in 1179 at the age of 81 “in an odor of sanctity.” Though she had been traditionally referred to as a saint since early after her death, she was not formally canonized until 2012. In that year, Pope Benedict XVI declared her a Doctor of the Church.
Scientific Contributions:
Hildegard was someone who made careful observation and experiment, and recorded the results. This is the heart of what it means to be a scientist. Regardless of her many mystical visions and experiences, her work with medicine and the natural world was based on direct observation.
She was part of the 12th century “mini Renaissance” that would lay the basis for developments in the 16th century. She lived just before Albertus Magnus (1193-1280), another exemplar of a knowledgeable scholar and protoscientist of the era.
She wrote two treatises on medicine: Cause et Cure and Liber Subtilitatum Diversarum Naturarum Creaturarum, and one on natural sciences: Physica. They demonstrate extensive practical knowledge, though some of it comes from outside sources that are a bit fantastical. (For example, there is a reference to unicorns.) The treatments and cures themselves are not fictional or invented, but are grounded in practical experience.
They contain an extensive taxonomy of plants and animals. She started to think about evolution of species, though not in the more developed way that would come with Charles Darwin eight centuries later.
She tested several different potential pesticides for efficacy. In her writings, she also talks knowingly about the process of brewing beer, or about the different sources of water and whether they are safe to drink. (E.g. well water is better than spring water, and water from swamps or rivers should be boiled before drinking.)
Doctor of the Church
On May 10, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI declared Hildegard a Doctor of the Church, the fourth woman to receive that distinction after Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila, and Therese of Lisieux.
In the apostolic letter declaring her a Doctor of the Church, Pope Benedict wrote that “the profound spirituality of her writings had a significant influence both on the faithful and on important figures of her time and brought about an incisive renewal of theology, liturgy, natural sciences and music.” He holds her up as an example for women, not least as a scientist; “For these reasons the attribution of the title of Doctor of the Universal Church to Hildegard of Bingen has great significance for today’s world and an extraordinary importance for women. In Hildegard are expressed the most noble values of womanhood: hence the presence of women in the Church and in society is also illumined by her presence, both from the perspective of scientific research and that of pastoral activity. Her ability to speak to those who were far from the faith and from the Church make Hildegard a credible witness of the new evangelization.”
The asteroid (898) Hildegard is named for her, and there is a crater on the far side of the Moon that bears her name.
Many thanks to Michelle Francl-Donnay for providing material that helped in the writing of this piece.