John Trowbridge (physicist)
John Trowbridge | |
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File:PSM V26 D740 John Trowbridge.jpg
John Trowbridge (between 1884 and 1885)
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Born | [1] Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
August 5, 1843
Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Nationality | American |
Fields | Physics |
Institutions | Harvard University Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Alma mater | Harvard University (S.B., S.D.) |
Academic advisors | Joseph Lovering |
Notable students | Benjamin Osgood Peirce Wallace Clement Sabine William Duane |
John Trowbridge (5 August 1843 – 18 February 1923) was an American physicist, noted for his research into electricity and magnetism, and for his innovations in scientific education.
Early life
Born into a long-established New England family, John Trowbridge could trace his roots in Massachusetts and Connecticut back to the early seventeenth century. His father, John Howe Trowbridge, was a graduate of Harvard Medical School, but did not pursue a professional career, having inherited a sufficient fortune to finance a life of ease. Evidently this state of affairs did not last, however, and the younger Trowbridge would later recount that he was obliged to support himself in youth by monetising his talents as a painter. Also an accomplished pianist and writer, a career in arts and letters seemingly beckoned, but pragmatic considerations led him ultimately to pursuit of the sciences.[2]
Academic career
Trowbridge studied physics at the Lawrence Scientific School of Harvard University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1865. Thereafter, he taught maths at Harvard (1866-69) and physics at MIT (1870), before his appointment as Assistant Professor in Physics at Harvard in 1870.[3] He was awarded a Doctorate in 1873, under the supervision of Joseph Lovering.[4]
An innovator in scientific education, Trowbridge stressed the importance of a close link between teaching and experimental research.[5] He is widely credited with bringing about a sea change in attitudes towards the teaching of physics at Harvard, and played a major role in establishing the Jefferson Physical Laboratory (1884) albeit Joseph Lovering was to be its first Director.[6] In 1888, however, Trowbridge not only succeeded Lovering in this Directorship, but also was appointed Rumford Professor of Physics (in succession to Oliver Wolcott Gibbs).[7] He was a member of the National Academy of Sciences from 1878,[8] and was President of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1908-1916).[2]
Despite heavy teaching and administrative responsibilities, Trowbridge nevertheless published prolifically on his main research topics of electricity and magnetism, including works on the analysis of solar spectra and on the generation of Röntgen radiation (X-rays).[6]
Personal and later life
Trowbridge married Mary Louise Grey (née Thayer) in 1875, and although the couple had no children together he was much loved by his step-daughter Alice. After his wife's death in 1907, and his own retirement in 1910, he devoted himself to the care of his rose garden and to the study of the scientific works of Benjamin Franklin. He died on 18 February 1923, at his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[2][3]
References
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- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ John Trowbridge at the Mathematics Genealogy Project
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- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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External links
Media related to Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. at Wikimedia Commons
- Birkhoff, G. (1989) in A Century of Mathematics in America, Part II, ed. Peter Duren (American Mathematical Society, Providence)