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MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:19.

URL:

http://www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/

Author:

John O'Connor and Edmund Robertson, School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences, University of St. Andrews

Excerpt:

One of the commonest questions which the readers of this archive ask is: Who discovered zero? Why then have we not written an article on zero as one of the first in the archive? The reason is basically because of the difficulty of answering the question in a satisfactory form. If someone had come up with the concept of zero which everyone then saw as a brilliant innovation to enter mathematics from that time on, the question would have a satisfactory answer even if we did not know which genius invented it. The historical record, however, shows quite a different path towards the concept. Zero makes shadowy appearances only to vanish again almost as if mathematicians were searching for it yet did not recognise its fundamental significance even when they saw it.

Annotation:

The MacTutor Archive hosts thousands of biographical sketches of important mathematicians. Many of the biographies include links to documents and other materials related to mathematicans. Searches can be performed alphabetically or chronologically. In addition to the biographies, the site also includes a number of essays that are grouped by culture and topic. Thus the chronology of Pi or the history of zero can be found under "Arab Mathematics" and "Number Theory" among other categories. This is one of the most-linked to history of science sites on the web because it contains so much information.

Contributions of 20th Century Women to Physics

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:19.

URL:

http://cwp.library.ucla.edu/

Author:

Committee on the Status of Women in Physics and Forum on the History of Physics, American Physical Society

Excerpt:

AN ARCHIVE PRESENTING AND DOCUMENTING SOME IMPORTANT AND ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS MADE BEFORE 1976 BY 20th CENTURY WOMEN

Annotation:

Includes information on eighty-three physicists in resume-like form relating important contributions, honors, positions held, trivia, and a reference listing of books and articles of related interest. The reference listing may also be accessed as a whole, in list form. There are also reproductions of scientific papers written by the women themselves, historical accounts from eyewitnesses, and essays written for the site on a variety of topics. Documents are browsable by author, title, and subject and may also be searched. An annotated photo gallery and several essays of a historical nature are also provided.

Charles Babbage Institute: Center for the History of Computing

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:19.

URL:

http://www.cbi.umn.edu/index.html

Author:

University of Minnesota

Excerpt:

The Charles Babbage Institute is an historical archives and research center of the University of Minnesota. CBI is dedicated to promoting study of the history of information technology and information processing and their impact on society. CBI preserves relevant historical documentation in all media, conducts and fosters research in history and archival methods, offers graduate fellowships, and sponsors symposia, conferences, and publications.

Annotation:

Excellent resource for serious research in computer technology fields. The archival collections, including large photographic files, are indexed with strong abstracts, and are both browsable and searchable. However, PDF files of their "research-grade" oral history collection are available online. These recount the experiences of over three hundred individuals whose work developed computers, software, and networking. The site also contains essays on Charles Babbage and the computing industry in Minnesota, as well as PDF files of the CBI Newsletter. The Cray Research Virtual Museum displays many of the large scale computers built by Seymour Cray in the 1950s and 1960s. Links are made to other websites, bibliographies, and research collections and tools.

Whole Cloth: Discovering Science and Technology Through American Textile History

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:18.

URL:

http://www.si.edu/lemelson/centerpieces/whole_cloth

Author:

Society for the History of Technology

Excerpt:

The Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center was founded in 1995 at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, through a generous gift from the Lemelson Foundation. The Center's mission is to document, interpret, and disseminate information about invention and innovation, to encourage inventive creativity in young people, and to foster an appreciation for the central role invention and innovation play in the history of the United States.

Annotation:

This site, developed by the Society for the History of Technology, teaches the history of the production and consumption of textiles. Three completed "modular units," Early Industrialization, True Colors, and Synthetic Fibers, link the history of textile technology to issues of race and gender in American history. Five more units will be available soon. Web teaching materials include teacher and student essays, lesson plans, slide shows, videos, and documents. Other collaborators on the project include the National Science Foundation; the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution; and the Center for Children and Technology. The site is designed for middle and high school students and social studies teachers.

4000 Years of Women in Science

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:18.

URL:

http://crux.astr.ua.edu/4000WS/4000WS.html

Author:

Deborah Crocker and Sethanne Howard

Excerpt:

Actually, how long have people been active in science? The answer is the same for both women and men -- as long as we have been human. One of the defining marks of humanity is our ability to affect and predict our environment. Science - the creation of structure for our world - technology - the use of structure in our world - and mathematics - the common language of structure - all have been part of our human progress, through every step of our path to the present. Women and men together have researched and solved each emerging need.

Annotation:

This site compiles over 130 biographies of women scientists throughout the ages organized alphabetically, chronologically, and by discipline. A handful of images are also available, as is an extensive bibliography. Unfortunately most of the site has not been updated since 1999 and many of the off-site links are no longer valid.

Welcome to the Schooner Ernestina

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:18.

URL:

http://www.ernestina.org/history/index.html

Excerpt:

In early May the New Bedford Whaling Museum and the New Bedford Oceanarium announced the creation of a joint local initiative to provide education, training and ocean learning experiences to SouthCoast students and teachers through the “Sharing Cultures/Connecting Oceans: a New Bedford Collaboration.” Funding from the Education through Cultural and Historical Organizations (ECHO) program of the U.S. Department of Education will link cultural organizations in Alaska, Hawaii, and Massachusetts in developing cultural and educational initiatives. Thanks to this initiative Ernestina will be underway for the season in July! See our events page for more details!

Annotation:

The Schooner Ernestina is a National Historic Landmark. Built in 1894, the ship is one of six surviving Essex-built schooners. The history is presented as an interactive timeline with text and images organized by year. There a number of essays available, audio files of Cape Verde immigrants who sailed to the United States on the Ernestina, and a links to related sites.

Archaeology: W3/VL

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:18.

URL:

http://archnet.asu.edu/

Author:

Archnet

Excerpt:

Welcome to ArchNet, the World Wide Web Virtual Library for Archaeology! This site provides access to archaeological resources available on the Internet. Information is categorized by by geographic region and subject. Catalan, Dutch, French, German, Italian, and Spanish language versions of the home page are also available

Annotation:

ArchNet, maintained by the Archaeological Research Institute at Arizona State University, is an exhaustive repository for links to archeology-related sites. Links are organized and browsable by region, topic, education and research, and institutions and organizations. It also features a search function which includes a guided form.

Thomas A. Edison Papers

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:18.

URL:

http://edison.rutgers.edu/

Author:

Rutgers, State University of New Jersey, National Park Service, New Jersey Historical Commission, Smithsonian Institution

Excerpt:

The extensive collection of papers preserved in the archive at the Edison National Historic Site—approximately 5 million pages in all—is the product of Thomas Alva Edison's sixty-year career as inventor, manufacturer, and businessman. Until now, the sheer size and organizational complexity of the archive have deterred researchers from delving extensively into its wealth of documentary resources. With the publication of the selective microfilm and book editions, these historically significant papers are for the first time readily available to scholars and other researchers. Because the arrangement of the documents on the microfilm parallels the organizational structure of the archive itself, it is helpful to understand how the records of Edison's laboratories and companies were generated during his own lifetime and how the archivists entrusted with their guardianship have subsequently treated them.

Annotation:

This site is a vast database of Thomas Edison's papers including 71,000 pages of correspondence and 12,000 pages of technical drawings. Processes for searching the site are complicated and visitors are recommended to read a 3,000-word guide to searching it. The site may be searched by name, date, or document type, by Folder/Volume, or by Series notes. Series collect documents in groups, such as scrapbooks and legal papers. The site includes over 2,000 facsimiles of Edison patents from 1868 to 1931 for products such as the electric lamp and the phonograph. More than 7,000 clippings from 103 journals and newspapers discuss Edison's achievements. Journals range from the American Engineer to the Westminster Gazette. "Document Sampler" contains over 20 documents including Edison's wife's design for a light bulb and a list of 19 different possible names for the phonograph. A collection of photographs, maps, and prints depict Edison, his environs, and his inventions. There are two chronologies of Edison's life on the site, the longer one running 13,0000-word. The site offers an 8,000-word essay on Edison's companies and over 20 pages about Edison and the development of the motion picture industry. A 70-item bibliography and a shorter 10-item version direct visitors to books and articles about Edison. The site links to 20 Edison-related websites. Because it is somewhat difficult to search, this site will be most useful to experienced researchers.

Emma Spaulding Bryant Letters

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 11/08/2007 - 20:18.

URL:

http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/bryant/

Author:

The Digital Scriptorium, Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University

Excerpt:

Emma Spaulding Bryant wrote these ten letters to her husband, John Emory Bryant, in the summer of 1873. They recount Emma's activities during that summer when she and her daughter, Alice, were visiting relatives in Illinois and Ohio while her husband tended to his political affairs in Georgia.

In particular, the letters describe Emma's visits to a doctor in Cleveland for "uterine difficulties" that had been ailing her for some time. Although we do not have her husband's letters to her from this period, it appears that he accused her of adultery with the doctor and berated her for not being obedient to him. Many of Emma's letters from this period have markings in red pencil, presumably made by John to highlight the sections of her letters that he found suspicious. Emma's responses to John's accusations are indignant, and she rebuts each of his points eloquently and emphatically.

Because these letters are unusually frank for this time period, they reveal much about the relationships between husbands and wives in this era, and shed light on medical practices that were often kept private.

Annotation:

Features ten letters written in the summer 1873 from Emma Spaulding Bryant to John Bryant, her husband and a politician in the Georgia Republican Party after the Civil War. The letters, taken from the John Bryant Papers at Duke University, are accompanied by images and background notes. These documents are "unusually frank for this time period," according to the author of the site, and they "reveal much about the relationships between husbands and wives in this era, and shed light on medical practices that were often kept private." Presented by Duke's Digital Scriptorium, which provides "access to historical documentation through the use of innovative technology and collaborative development projects with Duke University faculty, students, and staff."