1838 in science
Encyclopedia
The year 1838 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.
Astronomy
- Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel makes the first accurate measurement of distance to a star, 61 Cygni61 Cygni61 Cygni,Not to be confused with 16 Cygni, a more distant system containing two G-type stars harboring the gas giant planet 16 Cygni Bb. sometimes called Bessel's Star or Piazzi's Flying Star, is a binary star system in the constellation Cygnus...
, using parallaxParallaxParallax is a displacement or difference in the apparent position of an object viewed along two different lines of sight, and is measured by the angle or semi-angle of inclination between those two lines. The term is derived from the Greek παράλλαξις , meaning "alteration"...
. Thomas HendersonThomas James HendersonThomas James Alan Henderson was a Scottish astronomer noted for being the first person to measure the distance to Alpha Centauri, the major component of the nearest stellar system to Earth, and for being the first Astronomer Royal for Scotland.-Early life:Born in Dundee, Scotland, he was educated...
(Alpha CentauriAlpha CentauriAlpha Centauri is the brightest star in the southern constellation of Centaurus...
) and Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve (VegaVegaVega is the brightest star in the constellation Lyra, the fifth brightest star in the night sky and the second brightest star in the northern celestial hemisphere, after Arcturus...
) announce their measurements using parallax shortly afterwards. - Claude Servais Mathias PouilletClaude Servais Mathias PouilletClaude Servais Mathias Pouillet was a French physicist and a professor of physics at the Sorbonne and member of the French Academy of Science.Pouillet was born in Cusance, Doubs, France....
makes the first quantitative measurements of the heatHeatIn physics and thermodynamics, heat is energy transferred from one body, region, or thermodynamic system to another due to thermal contact or thermal radiation when the systems are at different temperatures. It is often described as one of the fundamental processes of energy transfer between...
emitted by the SunSunThe Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
. - Peter Andreas HansenPeter Andreas HansenPeter Andreas Hansen was a Danish astronomer, was born at Tønder, Schleswig.-Biography:The son of a goldsmith, Hansen learned the trade of a watchmaker at Flensburg, and exercised it at Berlin and Tønder, 1818–1820...
publishes a revision of the lunar theoryLunar theoryLunar theory attempts to account for the motions of the Moon. There are many irregularities in the Moon's motion, and many attempts have been made over a long history to account for them. After centuries of being heavily problematic, the lunar motions are nowadays modelled to a very high degree...
, Fundamenta nova investigationis orbitae verae quam luna perlustrat.
Biology
- ProteinProteinProteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
s discovered by Gerardus Johannes MulderGerardus Johannes MulderGerardus Johannes Mulder was a Dutch organic and analytical chemist-Biography:Mulder was born in Utrecht, and earned a medical degree from Utrecht University....
and named by Jöns Jakob BerzeliusJöns Jakob BerzeliusJöns Jacob Berzelius was a Swedish chemist. He worked out the modern technique of chemical formula notation, and is together with John Dalton, Antoine Lavoisier, and Robert Boyle considered a father of modern chemistry...
. - Matthias Schleiden discovers that all living plant tissue is composed of cells.
- Royal Agricultural SocietyRoyal Agricultural SocietyThe Royal Agricultural Society of England was established in the United Kingdom in 1838 with the motto "Practice with Science". The RASE aim is to promote the scientific development of agriculture. The society received its Royal Charter from Queen Victoria in 1840.From its early days the society...
of EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
established.
Exploration
- In AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Charles SturtCharles SturtCaptain Charles Napier Sturt was an English explorer of Australia, and part of the European Exploration of Australia. He led several expeditions into the interior of the continent, starting from both Sydney and later from Adelaide. His expeditions traced several of the westward-flowing rivers,...
proves that the Hume and MurrayMurray RiverThe Murray River is Australia's longest river. At in length, the Murray rises in the Australian Alps, draining the western side of Australia's highest mountains and, for most of its length, meanders across Australia's inland plains, forming the border between New South Wales and Victoria as it...
are the same river.
Mathematics
- Augustus De MorganAugustus De MorganAugustus De Morgan was a British mathematician and logician. He formulated De Morgan's laws and introduced the term mathematical induction, making its idea rigorous. The crater De Morgan on the Moon is named after him....
introduces the term 'mathematical inductionMathematical inductionMathematical induction is a method of mathematical proof typically used to establish that a given statement is true of all natural numbers...
'. - S. D. PoissonSiméon Denis PoissonSiméon Denis Poisson , was a French mathematician, geometer, and physicist. He however, was the final leading opponent of the wave theory of light as a member of the elite l'Académie française, but was proven wrong by Augustin-Jean Fresnel.-Biography:...
publishes Recherches sur la probabilité des jugements en matière criminelle et en matière civile, containing his work on probability theoryProbability theoryProbability theory is the branch of mathematics concerned with analysis of random phenomena. The central objects of probability theory are random variables, stochastic processes, and events: mathematical abstractions of non-deterministic events or measured quantities that may either be single...
and introducing Poisson distributionPoisson distributionIn probability theory and statistics, the Poisson distribution is a discrete probability distribution that expresses the probability of a given number of events occurring in a fixed interval of time and/or space if these events occur with a known average rate and independently of the time since...
.
Medicine
- Jean Esquirol publishes Des maladies mentales considerées sous le rapport médicale, hygiènique et médico-legal in ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. This includes the first description of what will later become known as Down syndromeDown syndromeDown syndrome, or Down's syndrome, trisomy 21, is a chromosomal condition caused by the presence of all or part of an extra 21st chromosome. It is named after John Langdon Down, the British physician who described the syndrome in 1866. The condition was clinically described earlier in the 19th...
.
Technology
- January 6 - Samuel Morse first publicly demonstrates the electrical telegraphElectrical telegraphAn electrical telegraph is a telegraph that uses electrical signals, usually conveyed via telecommunication lines or radio. The electromagnetic telegraph is a device for human-to-human transmission of coded text messages....
. - April 4–22 - The paddle steamerPaddle steamerA paddle steamer is a steamship or riverboat, powered by a steam engine, using paddle wheels to propel it through the water. In antiquity, Paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were wheelers driven by animals or humans...
SS Sirius (1837)SS Sirius (1837)The Sirius was a side-wheel wooden-hulled steamship built in 1837 for the London-Cork route operated by the St George Steam Packet Company. The next year, she opened transatlantic steam passenger service when she was chartered for two voyages by the British and American Steam Navigation Company...
makes the Transatlantic Crossing to New YorkNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
from CorkCork (city)Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
, IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, in eighteen days, though not using steam continuously. - April 8–23 - Isambard Kingdom BrunelIsambard Kingdom BrunelIsambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
's paddle steamer (1838) makes the Transatlantic Crossing to New York from AvonmouthAvonmouthAvonmouth is a port and suburb of Bristol, England, located on the Severn Estuary, at the mouth of the River Avon.The council ward of Avonmouth also includes Shirehampton and the western end of Lawrence Weston.- Geography :...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, in fifteen days, inaugurating a regular steamship service. - LiverpoolLiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
-built barqueBarqueA barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts.- History of the term :The word barque appears to have come from the Greek word baris, a term for an Egyptian boat. This entered Latin as barca, which gave rise to the Italian barca, Spanish barco, and the French barge and...
Ironsides becomes the first large ocean-going iron ship. - David BruceDavid Bruce (inventor)David Bruce Jr. was a New York industrialist whose inventions revolutionised the printing industry.In 1838, he invented the Pivotal Typecaster, and subsequently patented it in 1845.This machine replaced men who worked as handcasters...
, Jr., invents the Pivotal Typecaster, which replaces hand typecasting in printing. - The first screw-pile lighthouseScrew-pile lighthouseA screw-pile lighthouse is a lighthouse which stands on piles that are screwed into sandy or muddy sea or river bottoms. The first screw-pile lighthouse was built by blind Irish engineer Alexander Mitchell...
is built by Alexander MitchellAlexander Mitchell (engineer)Alexander Mitchell, was an Irish engineer who from 1802 was blind. He is known as the inventor of the screw-pile lighthouse...
on Maplin SandsMaplin SandsThe Maplin Sands are mudflats on the northern bank of the Thames estuary, off Foulness Island, near Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England, though they actually lie within the neighbouring borough of Rochford...
in the Thames EstuaryThames EstuaryThe Thames Mouth is the estuary in which the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea.It is not easy to define the limits of the estuary, although physically the head of Sea Reach, near Canvey Island on the Essex shore is probably the western boundary...
. - David BrewsterDavid BrewsterSir David Brewster KH PRSE FRS FSA FSSA MICE was a Scottish physicist, mathematician, astronomer, inventor, writer and university principal.-Early life:...
orginates the stereoscope.
Births
- January 5 - Camille JordanCamille JordanMarie Ennemond Camille Jordan was a French mathematician, known both for his foundational work in group theory and for his influential Cours d'analyse. He was born in Lyon and educated at the École polytechnique...
(d. 19221922 in scienceThe year 1922 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Archaeology:* November 4 - British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to King Tutankhamen's tomb in the Valley of the Kings of Egypt.-Biology:...
), mathematicianMathematicianA mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
. - January 29 - Edward MorleyEdward MorleyEdward Williams Morley was an American scientist famous for the Michelson–Morley experiment.-Biography:...
(d. 19231923 in scienceThe year 1923 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Aeronautics:* Juan de la Cierva invents the autogyro, a rotary-winged aircraft with an unpowered rotor.-Astronomy:...
), 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...
. - February 18 - Ernst MachErnst MachErnst Mach was an Austrian physicist and philosopher, noted for his contributions to physics such as the Mach number and the study of shock waves...
(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....
), 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...
. - March 3 - George William HillGeorge William HillGeorge William Hill , was an American astronomer and mathematician.Hill was born in New York City, New York to painter and engraver John William Hill. and Catherine Smith Hill. He moved to West Nyack with his family when he was eight years old. After attending high school, Hill graduated from...
(d. 19141914 in scienceThe year 1914 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy and space exploration:* Sinope, the outermost known moon of Jupiter, is discovered by Seth Barnes Nicholson at Lick Observatory....
), 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...
. - March 12 - William Perkin (d. 19071907 in scienceThe year 1907 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Chemistry:* Emil Fischer artificially synthesizes peptide amino acid chains and thereby shows that amino acids in proteins are connected by amino group-acid group bonds....
), chemist. - April 8 - Ferdinand von ZeppelinFerdinand von ZeppelinFerdinand Adolf Heinrich August Graf von Zeppelin was a German general and later aircraft manufacturer. He founded the Zeppelin Airship company...
(d. 19171917 in scienceThe year 1917 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Awards:* Nobel Prize** Physics - Charles Glover Barkla** Chemistry - not awarded** Medicine - not awarded-Births:...
), founder of the ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
airshipAirshipAn airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
company. - April 16 - Ernest SolvayErnest SolvayErnest Gaston Joseph Solvay was a Belgian chemist, industrialist and philanthropist.Born at Rebecq, he was prevented by acute pleurisy from going to university...
, (d. 19221922 in scienceThe year 1922 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Archaeology:* November 4 - British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to King Tutankhamen's tomb in the Valley of the Kings of Egypt.-Biology:...
) chemist. - April 21 - John MuirJohn MuirJohn Muir was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, and early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States. His letters, essays, and books telling of his adventures in nature, especially in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, have been read by millions...
(d. 19141914 in scienceThe year 1914 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy and space exploration:* Sinope, the outermost known moon of Jupiter, is discovered by Seth Barnes Nicholson at Lick Observatory....
), naturalistNatural historyNatural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
. - June 4 - John GriggJohn Grigg (astronomer)John Grigg was a New Zealand astronomer.He was born in London and married Emma Mitchell in 1858. In 1863 they emigrated to New Zealand and settled in Auckland, however Emma died in 1867. Grigg then moved to the town of Thames.He married his second wife Sarah Allaway in 1871 but she died in 1874...
(d. 19201920 in scienceThe year 1920 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-History of science and technology:* Newcomen Society founded in the United Kingdom for the study of the history of engineering and technology.-Medicine:...
), astronomer.
Deaths
- August 21 - Adelbert von ChamissoAdelbert von ChamissoAdelbert von Chamisso was a German poet and botanist.- Life :He was born Louis Charles Adélaïde de Chamissot at the château of Boncourt at Ante, in Champagne, France, the ancestral seat of his family...
(b. 17811781 in scienceThe year 1781 in science and technology involved some significant events.-Astronomy:* William Herschel discovers Uranus.* Charles Messier publishes final catalogue of Messier objects.* March 20 - Pierre Méchain discovers dwarf galaxy NGC 5195.-Biology:...
), botanist. - September 27 - Bernard CourtoisBernard CourtoisBernard Courtois, also spelled Barnard Courtois, was a French chemist born in Dijon, France.- Early life :...
(b. 17771777 in scienceThe year 1777 in science and technology involved some significant events.-Mathematics:* Leonhard Euler introduces the symbol i to represent the square root of -1.-Births:* February 12 - Bernard Courtois, chemist...
), 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...
.