SciHi Blog

engineering
Adolphe Sax and the Invention of the Saxophone

Adolphe Sax and the Invention of the Saxophone

Harald Sack
On November 6, 1814, Belgian musical instrument designer and musician Antoine-Joseph “Adolphe” Sax was born. Besides playing flute and clarinet, he is well known for having invented the saxophone.Sax became something of a footnote in history after his creation was almost forgotten after his death, until it was revived by jazz musicians who barely remembered his name.[2] Back in the time when I was a student, I remember one fellow student who ‘polluted’ the air of the…
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art
Edvard Munch and the Munch Affair

Edvard Munch and the Munch Affair

Tabea Tietz
On November 5, 1892, Norwegian painter and printmaker Edvard Munch evoked bitter controversy with his exhibition on behalf of the Union of Berlin Artists. Even though the exhibition was closed after only one week, the scandal made Munch highly famous. The event became later known as the ‘Munch Affair‘. “I was walking along a path with two friends — the sun was setting — suddenly the sky turned blood red — I…
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archeology
Spyridon Marinatos and the Discovery of Akrotiri

Spyridon Marinatos and the Discovery of Akrotiri

Tabea Tietz
On November 4, 1901, Greek archeologist Spyridon Nikolaou Marinatos was born. His most notable discovery was Akrotiri, the site of an ancient port city on the island of Thera, in the southern Aegean Sea. Spyridon Marinatos – First Excavations Spyridon Marinatos became along with Georgia Andrea the director of the Herakelion Museum in 1929. He was acquainted with Sir Arthur Evans,[4] who became among other things famous for unearthing the palace of Knossos on the Greek island of Crete. Marinatos began gaining first…
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music
Vincenzo Bellini – the Swan of Catania

Vincenzo Bellini – the Swan of Catania

Harald Sack
Probably on November 3, 1801, Italian Opera composer Vincenzo Bellini was born. Bellini was the quintessential composer of the Italian bel canto era of the early 19th century especially known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named “the Swan of Catania”. Vincenzo Bellini – Youth and Education Vincenzo Bellini was the oldest son of Rosario Bellini (1776-1840) and Agata Ferlito. He was born as son and grandson of church…
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aviation
Alexander Lippisch and the Delta Wing Design

Alexander Lippisch and the Delta Wing Design

Tabea Tietz
On November 2, 1894, German pioneer of aerodynamics and aviation Alexander M. Lippisch was born. He made important contributions to the understanding of flying wings, delta wings and the ground effect. His designs of tailless and delta-winged aircraft in the 1920s and 1930s were important in the development of high-speed jet and rocket airplanes. His most famous design is the Messerschmitt Me 163 rocket-powered interceptor. Alexander Lippisch – First Aircraft Designs Alexander…
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photography
Oskar Barnack – the Father of 35mm Photography

Oskar Barnack – the Father of 35mm Photography

Harald Sack
On November 1, 1879, German optical engineer, precision mechanic, and industrial designer Oskar Barnack was born. He is often referred to as the father of 35 mm photography for his invention of the first miniature commercially successful camera, the Leica. In the age of digital photography, something like 35 mm film might seem like some forgotten relict. But, it really was a revolution that brought photography too the masses – in the…
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chemistry
Adolf von Baeyer and the Synthesis of Indigo

Adolf von Baeyer and the Synthesis of Indigo

Tabea Tietz
On October 31, 1835, German chemist and Nobel Laureate Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Adolf von Baeyer was born. He was the first who succeeded with the synthesis of indigo (1880) and formulated its structure (1883), for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1905. Adolf von Baeyer – Academic Career Adolf Baeyer was a son of the officer and geodesist Johann Jacob Baeyer and Eugenie Hitzig, daughter of the publisher and…
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history
Orson Welles and the 1938 Radio Show Panic

Orson Welles and the 1938 Radio Show Panic

Harald Sack
On October 30, 1938, a Saturday night at 8 pm, H.G. Wells‘ ‘The War of the Worlds‘ was broadcasted at CBS radio in an adaption presented and narrated by future famous film director and actor Orson Welles. The first two thirds of the 60-minute broadcast were presented as a series of simulated news bulletins, which suggested to many listeners that an actual alien invasion by Martians was currently in progress and created outrage and…
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paleontology
Othniel Charles Marsh and the Great Bone Wars

Othniel Charles Marsh and the Great Bone Wars

Harald Sack
On October 29, 1831, American paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh was born. Being one of the preeminent scientists in the field, he discovered over 1000 fossils and contributed greatly to knowledge of extinct North American vertebrates. From the 1870s to 1890s he competed with rival paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope in a period of frenzied Western American expeditions known as the Bone Wars.[5] Othniel Charles Marsh Background The term “paleontology” was coined just nine…
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war/crime
Constantine and the Battle at the Milvian Bridge

Constantine and the Battle at the Milvian Bridge

Harald Sack
On October 28, 312 AD, the Battle of the Milvian Bridge between the Roman Emperors Constantine I and Maxentius took place. Constantine won the battle and started on the path that led him to end the Tetrarchy and become the sole ruler of the Roman Empire. According to historians, the battle marked the beginning of Constantine’s conversion to Christianity and thus fostered the rise of Christianity. Not only Just Another One of those Roman…
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