And Uncle Senator K. Thorvaldson – who else has a great-uncle named Senator? How do you explain to people that he was named that because his mother liked the sound of it?
Garrison Keillor, Lake Wobegon Days (1985)
That was definitely a truth-stranger-than-fiction genealogy.
It was a letter to Born in which Einstein made his famous statement about quantum mechanics being the equivalent to God playing at dice.
Which reminds me of Major Major Major, from Catch-22, who was given that name because his father thought it was funny.
He was promoted to Major in the Air Force so that he became Major Major Major Major. Played by Bob Newhart in the movie. True story!
Awesome proof positive of learning at least one new thing a day!
Trimegistus Says:
May 4th, 2017 at 4:29 pm
I guess it was inevitable that a guy named Physicist Max Born would go into the sciences.
* *
One of my ancestors is named John Lord Brown – of course he was a dirt-poor Texas farmer, but I always wondered why the family picked that nom.
And then there’s Gouverneur Morris of Revolutionary fame, who was never governor of anywhere. (Wiki says it’s a Huguenot surname).
Among other distinctions, “Gouverneur Morris was one of the few delegates at the Philadelphia Convention who spoke openly against domestic slavery. According to James Madison, who took notes at the Convention, Morris spoke openly against slavery on August 8, 1787, saying that it was incongruous to say that a slave was both a man and property at the same time:”
David Drake Says:
May 4th, 2017 at 7:33 pm
Awesome proof positive of learning at least one new thing a day!
* *
I usually learn two or three things from every neo post, a couple more from the comments, and others if I go looking for items to add to the stewpot of discussion.
The scientific talent in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century was just astounding and the Nazis came in and destroyed it. What a shame for Germany and perversely a boon for the rest of the free world that benefited from all the refugees.
The wiki biography mentioned that Born once collaborated with Fritz Haber. Haber was a great man in his own right. The Haber-Bosch process was invented to create fertilizer. In the late 1800s agriculture was in crisis since the population was growing but the only major source of fertilizer was bird guano from some Pacific islands and it was running out. The process is still in use today and apparently consumes 1% of the world’s energy. There’s a nice little book called “The Alchemy of Air” about them.
That explains Let’s Get Physical.
Paul in Boston — thank God the Germans did kick them out. The atomic bomb was built for the most part by the Jewish scientists who had managed to get out of Europe. One can hardly imagine what the world would be like had the Nazis had the A-bomb.
I happened to see an interview with the great phony Neil DeGrasse Tyson about Bret Stevens’ op-ed in the NYT just before I read this post and linked to Wikipedia to read up on Born. Tyson, as usual, attacked Stevens for daring to question the “science” (which Stevens actually did not do — just the panic).
The Wiki article includes a quote from Born’s Nobel lecture:
“I believe that ideas such as absolute certitude, absolute exactness, final truth, etc. are figments of the imagination which should not be admissible in any field of science. On the other hand, any assertion of probability is either right or wrong from the standpoint of the theory on which it is based. This loosening of thinking (Lockerung des Denkens) seems to me to be the greatest blessing which modern science has given to us. For the belief in a single truth and in being the possessor thereof is the root cause of all evil in the world.”
Somebody should send Tyson a copy.
Born’s work on quantum mechanics is now absorbed into its use so that his name doesn’t come up much. But his book “Optics”, aka Born and Wolfe, is still in use today. I used to have a consulting job where I’d consult it regularly for solving difficult problems. It’s a very big book that is not for for the faint of heart or for those with weak upper body strength.
In 2010, I corresponded with Nancy Greenspan, the author of a biography of Max Born, because of her description of Brinley Newton-John’s wartime activities. Born’s son-in-law had on occasions masqueraded as a German soldier during WWII to get information from the inmates on POW camps in Britain. My late father was involved in the same line of work when he was a British officer, although he could not recall meeting Brinley.
Here are some clips from the 1927 Solvay Physics Conference with a few appearances by Born. Other giants on display are Einstein, Dirac, Schré¶dinger, Heisenberg, de Broglie and Pauli.
John B. Watson, the founder of behaviorism, was Mariette Hartley’s grandfather, if you like this sort of thing.
Heddy Lamarr co-designed a radio guidance system for torpedoes during WWII. It wasn’t accepted by the Navy, but the principles involve help developed modern communication technology. Yes, that Heddy Lamarr
There is actually a huge overlap between those with musical abilities and math abilities. It seems that both areas involve using the same part of the brain.
JLS That explains Let’s Get Physical.
Wins Best Comment of the Thread.
Regarding learning something new every day: I learned that Mariette Hartley was the granddaughter of John Watson, the behavioral psychologist. I also learned who Mariette Hartley was.
“I also learned who Mariette Hartley was.”
Watch Ride the High Country, then you’ll really know.
“Let’s get Physics-al! Physics-al! , , , ,”
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And I see that her father worked at Bletchley Park and took Rudolf Hess into custody.
I guess it was inevitable that a guy named Physicist Max Born would go into the sciences.
Trimegistus:
LOL.
Haste=waste.
Thanks, fixed it!
I guess it was inevitable that a guy named Physicist Max Born would go into the sciences.
Which reminds of a a character on the Prairie Home Companion- Senator K. Thorvaldson.
That was definitely a truth-stranger-than-fiction genealogy.
It was a letter to Born in which Einstein made his famous statement about quantum mechanics being the equivalent to God playing at dice.
Which reminds me of Major Major Major, from Catch-22, who was given that name because his father thought it was funny.
He was promoted to Major in the Air Force so that he became Major Major Major Major. Played by Bob Newhart in the movie. True story!
Awesome proof positive of learning at least one new thing a day!
Trimegistus Says:
May 4th, 2017 at 4:29 pm
I guess it was inevitable that a guy named Physicist Max Born would go into the sciences.
* *
One of my ancestors is named John Lord Brown – of course he was a dirt-poor Texas farmer, but I always wondered why the family picked that nom.
And then there’s Gouverneur Morris of Revolutionary fame, who was never governor of anywhere. (Wiki says it’s a Huguenot surname).
Among other distinctions, “Gouverneur Morris was one of the few delegates at the Philadelphia Convention who spoke openly against domestic slavery. According to James Madison, who took notes at the Convention, Morris spoke openly against slavery on August 8, 1787, saying that it was incongruous to say that a slave was both a man and property at the same time:”
David Drake Says:
May 4th, 2017 at 7:33 pm
Awesome proof positive of learning at least one new thing a day!
* *
I usually learn two or three things from every neo post, a couple more from the comments, and others if I go looking for items to add to the stewpot of discussion.
The scientific talent in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century was just astounding and the Nazis came in and destroyed it. What a shame for Germany and perversely a boon for the rest of the free world that benefited from all the refugees.
The wiki biography mentioned that Born once collaborated with Fritz Haber. Haber was a great man in his own right. The Haber-Bosch process was invented to create fertilizer. In the late 1800s agriculture was in crisis since the population was growing but the only major source of fertilizer was bird guano from some Pacific islands and it was running out. The process is still in use today and apparently consumes 1% of the world’s energy. There’s a nice little book called “The Alchemy of Air” about them.
That explains Let’s Get Physical.
Paul in Boston — thank God the Germans did kick them out. The atomic bomb was built for the most part by the Jewish scientists who had managed to get out of Europe. One can hardly imagine what the world would be like had the Nazis had the A-bomb.
I happened to see an interview with the great phony Neil DeGrasse Tyson about Bret Stevens’ op-ed in the NYT just before I read this post and linked to Wikipedia to read up on Born. Tyson, as usual, attacked Stevens for daring to question the “science” (which Stevens actually did not do — just the panic).
The Wiki article includes a quote from Born’s Nobel lecture:
“I believe that ideas such as absolute certitude, absolute exactness, final truth, etc. are figments of the imagination which should not be admissible in any field of science. On the other hand, any assertion of probability is either right or wrong from the standpoint of the theory on which it is based. This loosening of thinking (Lockerung des Denkens) seems to me to be the greatest blessing which modern science has given to us. For the belief in a single truth and in being the possessor thereof is the root cause of all evil in the world.”
Somebody should send Tyson a copy.
Born’s work on quantum mechanics is now absorbed into its use so that his name doesn’t come up much. But his book “Optics”, aka Born and Wolfe, is still in use today. I used to have a consulting job where I’d consult it regularly for solving difficult problems. It’s a very big book that is not for for the faint of heart or for those with weak upper body strength.
In 2010, I corresponded with Nancy Greenspan, the author of a biography of Max Born, because of her description of Brinley Newton-John’s wartime activities. Born’s son-in-law had on occasions masqueraded as a German soldier during WWII to get information from the inmates on POW camps in Britain. My late father was involved in the same line of work when he was a British officer, although he could not recall meeting Brinley.
Here are some clips from the 1927 Solvay Physics Conference with a few appearances by Born. Other giants on display are Einstein, Dirac, Schré¶dinger, Heisenberg, de Broglie and Pauli.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GZdZUouzBY
John B. Watson, the founder of behaviorism, was Mariette Hartley’s grandfather, if you like this sort of thing.
Heddy Lamarr co-designed a radio guidance system for torpedoes during WWII. It wasn’t accepted by the Navy, but the principles involve help developed modern communication technology. Yes, that Heddy Lamarr
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedy_Lamarr#Inventor
There is actually a huge overlap between those with musical abilities and math abilities. It seems that both areas involve using the same part of the brain.
JLS
That explains Let’s Get Physical.
Wins Best Comment of the Thread.
Regarding learning something new every day: I learned that Mariette Hartley was the granddaughter of John Watson, the behavioral psychologist. I also learned who Mariette Hartley was.
“I also learned who Mariette Hartley was.”
Watch Ride the High Country, then you’ll really know.
“Let’s get Physics-al! Physics-al! , , , ,”