From: Black, Heidi (BlackH@esuhsd.org)
Date: Tue Feb 08 2005 - 10:35:26 PST
Subject: RE: scientists who have affected the course of history? Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2005 10:35:26 -0800 Message-ID: <0F900389C3BCBF4D98226694DBE963F2095A9D51@ECMAIL1.esuhsd.org> From: "Black, Heidi" <BlackH@esuhsd.org>
Charlotte, not a different time in history, but the story of penicillin
that I saw was fascinating. I'm not sure how much was Hollywood and how
much fact-but the sneaking of the spores of the mold out of England
smeared in the lining of coat pockets as bombs were falling got my
attention!
James Burke of "Connections" is putting together a website called
Knowledge Web which will include some of this-as well as the
serendipitous. http://k-web.org/about/news.html
A new program called "Reconnections" is in the works to coincide with
the launch of the website.
Certainly Galileo's, Darwin's, and Mendel's works and actions will not
be overlooked.
I remember something about Rev. MJ Berkeley's motivation to study the
potato blight was to keep people from "blaming" God.
"Doctor Joseph Ignace Guillotin (1738 - 1814) belonged to a small reform
movement that sought to banish the death penalty completely. At that
time, executions in France were public events held in town squares. The
entire town would gather to watch a quartering, where the prisoner's
limbs were tied to four oxen and the animals were driven in four
different directions. Upper-class criminals bought their way into a less
painful death. Guillotin argued for a painless and private capital
punishment method equal for all the classes, as an interim step towards
completely banning the death penalty."
http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa103197.htm Edison got into
a squabble over AC vs DC that included the electric chair.
Heidi Strahm Black
Science Fair Coordinator
East Side Union HSD
408-347-6563
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