A date in history of medicine, science, environmental study, space exploration of benefit to our knowledge of earth and life sciences of interest.
On October 21, 1999, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison was designated a National Park in western Colorado. The long narrow canyon is a carving of about two million years of relentless river erosion through the soft as well as granite bedrock created by…
On March 11, 1888, a great “Nor’easter” began to form on the NE coast of the U.S.A. Because of their unstable atmospheric pressures, regions of Earth in the mid-latitudes experience the widest range of weather formations. March can be a wild weather month there.…
On February 20, 1902, American photographer and environmentalist Ansel Adams was born. As a youngster, he loved the outdoors and hiking through his home state, California. Adams joined the Sierra Club, spending summers in the glacial Yosemite Valley in Yosemite National Park in the…
On February 15, 1884, inventor and educator Alfred Carlton Gilbert was born. He paid for some of his university expenses by performing as a magician and launched a company to manufacture and sell magic kits. Upon graduating from Yale medical school, Gilbert chose to…
On February 13, 1743, [O.S.] British naturalist and science patron Sir Joseph Banks was born. Well-educated and heir to a fortune by 20, Banks employed his talents and resources in the cause of Natural Science, and Botany in particular. He collected rocks, plant and…
On February 6, 1913, Mary Douglas Leakey was born. Interested in art and archaeology from an early age, she was deeply impressed by the prehistoric cave paintings she visited at several sites in France. Leakey distinguished herself as a scientific illustrator of ancient and…
On January 5, 1874, American neurophysiologist Joseph Erlanger was born. Studies in chemistry, research, and medicine at Johns Hopkins gained him an internship with William Osler in internal medicine. Within the year, Erlanger became more interested in research and teaching than in practicing medicine.…
On December 29, 1863, cardiologist Wilhelm His Jr. was born in Basel, Switzerland. He was the son of a Swiss embryologist who constructed the first microtome, a tool that cuts extremely thin slices or sections of material for microscopic examination. Why the heart beats…
On December 28, 1895, the Lumière brothers, Auguste and Louis, unveiled their Cinématographe for the first time to the public. Paris was filled with the buzz and excitement about the event because up until now it had only been shown at private screenings. Almost…
On December 27, 1822, French chemist and microbiologist Louis Pasteur was born. His skill grew as he followed each successful investigative step to reach greater insight and result. Pasteur based his work in observation and the understanding of that observation. He first solved a…