Author Archives

Harald Sack

Valentin Glushko and the Space Race

Valentin Glushko and the Space Race

On January 10, 1989, Soviet engineer Valentin Petrovich Glushko passed away. Glushko was the principal Soviet designer of rocket engines during the Soviet/American Space Race. He worked with renowned rocket designer Sergey Korolyov. In Aug 1957, they successfully launched the first intercontinental ballistic missile and in October of the same year, sent the first artificial satellite, Sputnik I, into orbit. Valentin Glushko – Youth and Education Glushko was born in the Russian…
Read more
Simone de Beauvoir and the Second Sex

Simone de Beauvoir and the Second Sex

On January 9, 1908, French novelist, philosopher and feminist Simone de Beauvoir was born. The politically active author of numerous novels, short stories, essays and memoirs is considered a representative of existentialism. Her worldwide success The Second Sex (1949) is considered a milestone in feminist literature and made her the most famous intellectual in France. ” On ne naît pas femme, on le devient “. “One is not born a woman, one becomes one”. –…
Read more
Wilkie Collins and the Birth of the Modern Detective Novel

Wilkie Collins and the Birth of the Modern Detective Novel

On January 8, 1824, British novelist Wilkie Collins was born. Wilkie Collins is best known for his novels The Woman in White (1859) and The Moonstone (1868). The last has been called the first modern English detective novel. “Ask yourself if there is any explanation of the mystery of your own life and death.” – Wilkie Collins, The Haunted Hotel: A Mystery of Modern Venice (1878) Wilkie Collins – Youth and Education William Wilkie Collins…
Read more
The Universal Lexicon of Johann Heinrich Zedler

The Universal Lexicon of Johann Heinrich Zedler

On January 7, 1706, German bookseller and publisher Johann Heinrich Zedler was born. His most important achievement was the creation of a German encyclopedia, the Grosses Universal-Lexicon (Great Universal Lexicon), the largest and most comprehensive German-language encyclopedia developed in the 18th century. Johann Heinrich Zedler – Background and Early Years Johann Heinrich Zedler was born as the son of Johann Zedler, a shoemaker and citizen of Wroclaw, Silesia, today in Poland. Presumably…
Read more
Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s ‘The Physicists’

Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s ‘The Physicists’

On January 5, 1921, Swiss author and dramatist Friedrich Dürrenmatt was born. Dürrenmatt was a proponent of epic theatre whose plays reflected the recent experiences of World War II. The politically active author‘s work included avant-garde dramas, philosophical crime novels, and macabre satire. Especially his play “The Physicists” (1961) deals with questions of scientific ethics and humanity‘s ability to handle its intellectual responsibilities. “A story is not finished, until it has taken…
Read more
August Macke and the Group of the Blue Rider

August Macke and the Group of the Blue Rider

On January 3, 1887, German expressionist painter August Macke was born. He was one of the leading members of the German Expressionist group Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider). In about ten years Macke created a body of work that initially underwent rapid stylistic changes under the influence of the diverse art movements of the time. Like a true artist of his time, Macke knew how to integrate into his painting the elements of the…
Read more
The Controversial Flights of Gustave Whitehead

The Controversial Flights of Gustave Whitehead

On January 1, 1874, German-born aviation pioneer Gustav Albin Weißkopf was born. He emigrated from Germany to the United States and called himself Gustave Whitehead. He designed and built gliders, flying machines, and engines between 1897 and 1915. Controversy surrounds published accounts and Whitehead’s own claims that he flew a powered machine successfully several times in 1901 and 1902, predating the first flights by the Wright Brothers in 1903.[1] Gustav Weißkopf –…
Read more
John Wycliffe and the Dawn of the Reformation

John Wycliffe and the Dawn of the Reformation

On December 31, 1384, English scholastic philosopher, theologian, biblical translator, reformer, priest, and Oxford seminary professor John Wycliffe passed away. Wycliffe became an influential dissident within the Roman Catholic priesthood during the 14th century and is considered an important predecessor to Protestantism. Wycliffe advocated translation of the Bible into the common vernacular. In 1382 he completed a translation directly from the Vulgate into Middle English – a version now known as Wycliffe’s…
Read more
John von Neumann – Game Theory and the Digital Computer

John von Neumann – Game Theory and the Digital Computer

On December 28, 1903, Hungarian and American pure and applied mathematician, physicist, inventor and polymath John von Neumann was born. He made major contributions to a number of fields including mathematics, physics, economics, computing, and statistics. He was a key figure in the development of game theory, the concepts of cellular automata, and the digital computer. He is definitely one of the candidates to write several biographical articles of, each with a…
Read more
Masters and Johnson – The Masters of Sex

Masters and Johnson – The Masters of Sex

On December 27, 1915, American gynecologist William Howell Masters was born. He is best known as the senior member of the Masters and Johnson sexuality research team. Along with Virginia E. Johnson, he pioneered research into the nature of human sexual response and the diagnosis and treatment of sexual dysfunctions and disorders from 1957 until the 1990s. Probably you might have heard of  them because of the popular tv series ‘Masters of Sex‘ that…
Read more
Relation Browser
Timeline
0 Recommended Articles:
0 Recommended Articles: