1995 in science
Encyclopedia
The year 1995 in science
and technology
involved many 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 many significant events, listed below.
Archaeology
- January 18 - In southern France near Vallon-Pont-d'ArcVallon-Pont-d'ArcVallon-Pont-d'Arc is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France.Vallon-Pont-d'Arc is a capital of prehistoric and cultural tourism. This small village, peaceful in wintertime, sees its population expand ten-fold in summer...
a network of caves are discovered that contain paintings and engravings that are 17,000 to 20,000 years old. - Wes Linster discovers the first intact skeleton of Bambiraptor feinbergi.
Astronomy
- Asteroid 63496349 Acapulco6349 Acapulco is a main belt asteroid discovered on February 8, 1995 by M. Koishikawa at the Ayashi Station of the Sendai Astronomical Observatory.-References:...
is discovered by Masahiro KoishikawaMasahiro Koishikawais a Japanese astronomer He has studied both major and minor planets, and has discovered asteroids and comets.- Employment :Koishikawa has been a staff member of the Sendai Astronomical Observatory since 1972. His research is based out of the Sendai's Ayashi station.- Asteroid 6097 :Asteroid 6097...
. - February: Project PhoenixProject PhoenixProject Phoenix may refer to:* Project Phoenix , a search for extraterrestrial intelligence by listening for radio signals* Project Phoenix , South African National Defence Force programme to revive its Reserve Force element...
begins looking for extraterrestrial transmissions using the Parkes radio telescope in New South Wales, Australia, the largest telescope in the southern hemisphere. - October 6: 51 Pegasi b51 Pegasi b51 Pegasi b , sometimes though unofficially named Bellerophon, is an extrasolar planet approximately 50 light-years away in the constellation of Pegasus...
: Michel MayorMichel MayorDr. Michel G. E. Mayor is a Swiss astrophysicist and professor emeritus at the University of Geneva's Department of Astronomy. He formally retired in 2007, but remains active as a researcher at the Observatory of Geneva...
and Didier QuelozDidier QuelozDidier Queloz is a Geneva-based astronomer with a prolific record in finding extrasolar planets. He is understudy to Michel Mayor.Didier Queloz was a Ph.D...
of the University of GenevaUniversity of GenevaThe University of Geneva is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland.It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin, as a theological seminary and law school. It remained focused on theology until the 17th century, when it became a center for Enlightenment scholarship. In 1873, it...
at the Observatoire de Haute-Provence announce in NatureNature (journal)Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
the first definitive detection of an extrasolar planetExtrasolar planetAn extrasolar planet, or exoplanet, is a planet outside the Solar System. A total of such planets have been identified as of . It is now known that a substantial fraction of stars have planets, including perhaps half of all Sun-like stars...
orbiting an ordinary main-sequenceMain sequenceThe main sequence is a continuous and distinctive band of stars that appears on plots of stellar color versus brightness. These color-magnitude plots are known as Hertzsprung–Russell diagrams after their co-developers, Ejnar Hertzsprung and Henry Norris Russell...
star (51 Pegasi51 Pegasi51 Pegasi is a Sun-like star located 15.6 parsecs from Earth in the constellation Pegasus...
). - The "Big Ear" at the Ohio State University Radio Observatory ends its full time SETI radio survey, having run continuously for 22 years, beginning in 19731973 in scienceThe year 1973 in science and technology involved one significant event, listed below.-Astronomy and space exploration:* March 7 - Comet Kohoutek is discovered* April 6 - Launch of Pioneer 11 spacecraft...
.
Biology
- The genome of Haemophilus influenzaeHaemophilus influenzaeHaemophilus influenzae, formerly called Pfeiffer's bacillus or Bacillus influenzae, Gram-negative, rod-shaped bacterium first described in 1892 by Richard Pfeiffer during an influenza pandemic. A member of the Pasteurellaceae family, it is generally aerobic, but can grow as a facultative anaerobe. H...
is the first genome of a free living organism to be sequenced.
Computer science
- May 23 - The Java programming languageJava (programming language)Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
is announced to the world.
Medicine
- January 30 - Workers from the National Institutes of HealthNational Institutes of HealthThe National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
announce the success of clinical trials testing the first preventative treatment for sickle cell anaemiaSickle-cell diseaseSickle-cell disease , or sickle-cell anaemia or drepanocytosis, is an autosomal recessive genetic blood disorder with overdominance, characterized by red blood cells that assume an abnormal, rigid, sickle shape. Sickling decreases the cells' flexibility and results in a risk of various...
.
Neuroscience
- The RELN gene and ReelinReelinReelin is a large secreted extracellular matrix protein that helps regulate processes of neuronal migration and positioning in the developing brain by controlling cell–cell interactions. Besides this important role in early development, reelin continues to work in the adult brain. It modulates the...
protein are discovered by Gabriella D'Arcangelo and colleagues, solving the mystery behind the formation of "inverted cortical layers" in the brain of reelerReelerA reeler is a mouse mutant, so named because of its characteristic "reeling" gait. This is caused by profound hypoplasia of the mouse's cerebellum, in which the normal cerebellar folia are missing. The mutation is autosomal and recessive....
mutant mice, and sparking an avalanche of research into the Reelin's role in neurodevelopmentNeural developmentNeural development comprises the processes that generate, shape, and reshape the nervous system, from the earliest stages of embryogenesis to the final years of life. The study of neural development aims to describe the cellular basis of brain development and to address the underlying mechanisms...
.
Psychology
- Elizabeth LoftusElizabeth LoftusElizabeth F. Loftus is an American psychologist and expert on human memory. She has conducted extensive research on the misinformation effect and the nature of false memories. Loftus has been recognized throughout the world for her work, receiving numerous awards and honorary degrees...
describes the "Lost in the mall techniqueLost in the mall techniqueThe "Lost in the Mall" technique is an experimental procedure that was used to demonstrate that confabulations can be created through suggestions made to experimental subjects...
" as a demonstration that confabulationConfabulationConfabulation is the process in which a memory is remembered falsely. Confabulations are indicative of a complicated and intricate process that can be led astray at any given point during encoding, storage, or recall of a memory. Two distinct types of confabulation are often distinguished...
s can be created through suggestions to experimental subjects.
Space exploration
- March 22 - Cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov returns after setting a record for 438 days in spaceOuter spaceOuter space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....
.
Awards
- Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
s- PhysicsNobel Prize in PhysicsThe Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded once a year by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895 and awarded since 1901; the others are the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Peace Prize, and...
- Martin L. Perl, Frederick ReinesFrederick ReinesFrederick Reines was an American physicist. He was awarded the 1995 Nobel Prize in Physics for his co-detection of the neutrino with Clyde Cowan in the neutrino experiment, and may be the only scientist in history "so intimately associated with the discovery of an elementary particle and the... - ChemistryNobel Prize in ChemistryThe Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
- Paul J. CrutzenPaul J. CrutzenPaul Jozef Crutzen is a Dutch Nobel prize winning atmospheric chemist.Crutzen is best known for his research on ozone depletion. He lists his main research interests as “Stratospheric and tropospheric chemistry, and their role in the biogeochemical cycles and climate”...
, Mario J. MolinaMario J. MolinaMario José Molina-Pasquel Henríquez is a Mexican chemist and one of the most prominent precursors to the discovering of the Antarctic ozone hole. He was a co-recipient Mario José Molina-Pasquel Henríquez (born March 19, 1943 in Mexico City) is a Mexican chemist and one of the most prominent...
, F. Sherwood Rowland - MedicineNobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineThe Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
- Edward B. LewisEdward B. Lewis- External links :* *...
, Christiane Nüsslein-VolhardChristiane Nüsslein-VolhardChristiane Nüsslein-Volhard is a German biologist who won the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1991 and the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1995, together with Eric Wieschaus and Edward B...
, Eric WieschausEric F. Wieschaus-External links:***, excellent profile**...
- Physics
- Turing AwardTuring AwardThe Turing Award, in full The ACM A.M. Turing Award, is an annual award given by the Association for Computing Machinery to "an individual selected for contributions of a technical nature made to the computing community. The contributions should be of lasting and major technical importance to the...
- Manuel BlumManuel BlumManuel Blum is a computer scientist who received the Turing Award in 1995 "In recognition of his contributions to the foundations of computational complexity theory and its application to cryptography and program checking".-Biography:Blum attended MIT, where he received his bachelor's degree and... - Wollaston Medal for GeologyWollaston 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...
- George Patrick Leonard WalkerGeorge Patrick Leonard WalkerGeorge Patrick Leonard Walker FRS was a British geologist who specialized in mineralogy and volcanology.- Life :He worked on the volcanic rocks of Iceland, and on Mount Etna.He taught at Imperial College....
Deaths
- January 30 - Gerald DurrellGerald DurrellGerald "Gerry" Malcolm Durrell, OBE was a naturalist, zookeeper, conservationist, author and television presenter...
(b. 19251925 in scienceThe year 1925 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Biology:* July 21 - Scopes Trial: In Dayton, Tennessee, high school biology teacher John T...
), wildlife conservationWildlife conservationWildlife conservation is the preservation, protection, or restoration of wildlife and their environment, especially in relation to endangered and vulnerable species. All living non-domesticated animals, even if bred, hatched or born in captivity, are considered wild animals. Wildlife represents all...
ist. - March 24 - Joseph NeedhamJoseph NeedhamNoel Joseph Terence Montgomery Needham, CH, FRS, FBA , also known as Li Yuese , was a British scientist, historian and sinologist known for his scientific research and writing on the history of Chinese science. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1941, and as a fellow of the British...
(b. 19001900 in scienceThe year 1900 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Aeronautics:* July 2 - The first airship flight is made by the LZ1 designed by Ferdinand von Zeppelin.-Chemistry:...
), biochemistBiochemistBiochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. Typical biochemists study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. The prefix of "bio" in "biochemist" can be understood as a fusion of "biological chemist."-Role:...
& writer on the history of science and technology in ChinaHistory of science and technology in ChinaThe history of science and technology in China is both long and rich with many contributions to science and technology. In antiquity, independently of other civilizations, ancient Chinese philosophers made significant advances in science, technology, mathematics, and astronomy...
. - April 2 - Hannes AlfvénHannes AlfvénHannes Olof Gösta Alfvén was a Swedish electrical engineer, plasma physicist and winner of the 1970 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work on magnetohydrodynamics . He described the class of MHD waves now known as Alfvén waves...
(b. 19081908 in scienceThe year 1908 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Archaeology:* A 40,000-year-old Neanderthal boy skeleton is found at Le Moustier in southwest France....
), astrophysicist. - June 23 - Jonas SalkJonas SalkJonas Edward Salk was an American medical researcher and virologist, best known for his discovery and development of the first safe and effective polio vaccine. He was born in New York City to parents from Ashkenazi Jewish Russian immigrant families...
(b. 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....
), medical researcher.