1775 in science
Encyclopedia
The year 1775 in science
and technology
involved some significant events.
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
involved some significant events.
Events
- February 21 - La SpecolaLa SpecolaMuseum of Zoology and Natural History, best known as La Specola, is a museum in Florence, central Italy, located next to the Pitti Palace. The name "Specola" means observatory, a reference to the astronomical observatory founded there in 1790...
, Florence's Museum of Zoology and Natural History, opens to the public.
Chemistry
- May 25 - Joseph PriestleyJoseph PriestleyJoseph Priestley, FRS was an 18th-century English theologian, Dissenting clergyman, natural philosopher, chemist, educator, and political theorist who published over 150 works...
's account of his isolation of oxygenOxygenOxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...
in the form of a gasGasGas is one of the three classical states of matter . Near absolute zero, a substance exists as a solid. As heat is added to this substance it melts into a liquid at its melting point , boils into a gas at its boiling point, and if heated high enough would enter a plasma state in which the electrons...
("dephlogisticated air") is read to the Royal SocietyRoyal SocietyThe Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
of LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Medicine
- Percivall PottPercivall PottSir Percivall Pott London, England) was an English surgeon, one of the founders of orthopedy, and the first scientist to demonstrate that a cancer may be caused by an environmental carcinogen.-Life:...
finds the first occupational link to cancerCancerCancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
, contributing to the science of epidemiologyEpidemiologyEpidemiology is the study of health-event, health-characteristic, or health-determinant patterns in a population. It is the cornerstone method of public health research, and helps inform policy decisions and evidence-based medicine by identifying risk factors for disease and targets for preventive...
.
Natural history
- Johann Christian Fabricius publishes his .
- Peter ForsskålPeter ForsskålPeter Forsskål, sometimes spelled Pehr Forsskål, Peter Forskaol, Petrus Forskål or Pehr Forsskåhl, was a Swedish explorer, orientalist, naturalist and an apostle of Carl Linnaeus.-Early life:...
's Descriptiones Animalium: Avium, amphiborum, insectorum, vermium quæ in itinere orientali (containing early observations on bird migrationBird migrationBird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
) and Flora Ægyptiaco-Arabica sive descriptiones plantarum quas per Ægyptum Inferiorem et Arabiam felicem detexit are published posthumously, edited by Carsten NiebuhrCarsten NiebuhrCarsten Niebuhr or Karsten Niebuhr , a German mathematician, cartographer, and explorer in the service of Denmark, is renowned for his travels on the Arabian peninsula.-Biography:...
.
Technology
- James WattJames WattJames Watt, FRS, FRSE was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the Newcomen steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world.While working as an instrument maker at the...
's 1769 steam engineSteam engineA steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.Steam engines are external combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as solar power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be...
patentPatentA patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
is extended to June 1800 by Act of ParliamentAct of ParliamentAn Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of Great BritainKingdom of Great BritainThe former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
and the first engineWatt steam engineThe Watt steam engine was the first type of steam engine to make use of steam at a pressure just above atmospheric to drive the piston helped by a partial vacuum...
s are built under it. - Jacques-Constantin Périer operates a paddle steamerPaddle steamerA paddle steamer is a steamship or riverboat, powered by a steam engine, using paddle wheels to propel it through the water. In antiquity, Paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were wheelers driven by animals or humans...
on the SeineSeineThe Seine is a -long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France. It rises at Saint-Seine near Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre . It is navigable by ocean-going vessels...
, but it proves to be underpowered. - Alexander CummingsAlexander CummingsAlexander Cummings was a Scottish watchmaker who was the first to patent a design of the flush toilet. His premises were in Bond Street, London.Born in Edinburgh in 1733, Cummings was a mathematician and mechanic as well as a watchmaker...
patents a flush toiletFlush toiletA flush toilet is a toilet that disposes of human waste by using water to flush it through a drainpipe to another location. Flushing mechanisms are found more often on western toilets , but many squat toilets also are made for automated flushing...
in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. - Pierre-Simon Girard, age 10, invents a water turbineWater turbineA water turbine is a rotary engine that takes energy from moving water.Water turbines were developed in the 19th century and were widely used for industrial power prior to electrical grids. Now they are mostly used for electric power generation. They harness a clean and renewable energy...
.
Births
- January 22 - André-Marie AmpèreAndré-Marie AmpèreAndré-Marie Ampère was a French physicist and mathematician who is generally regarded as one of the main discoverers of electromagnetism. The SI unit of measurement of electric current, the ampere, is named after him....
, physicistPhysicistA physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
(died 18361836 in scienceThe year 1836 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy:* May 15 - Francis Baily, during an eclipse of the sun, observes the phenomenon named after him as Baily's beads.-Biology:...
) - May 10 - William PhillipsWilliam Phillips (geologist)William Phillips FRS was an English mineralogist and geologist.Phillips was the son of James Phillips, printer and bookseller in London. He became interested in mineralogy and geology, and was one of the founders of the Geological Society of London...
, geologistGeologistA geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
(died 18281828 in scienceThe year 1828 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy:* Félix Savary computes the first orbit of a visual double star when he calculates the orbit of the double star Xi Ursae Majoris.-Biochemistry:...
) - July 23 - Étienne-Louis MalusÉtienne-Louis Malus- External links :...
, physicistPhysicistA physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and mathematicianMathematicianA mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
(died 18121812 in scienceThe year 1812 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Chemistry:* Humphry Davy publishes in London.-Geophysics:...
) - September 30 - Robert AdrainRobert AdrainRobert Adrain was a scientist and mathematician, considered one of the most brilliant mathematical minds of the time in America....
, mathematicianMathematicianA mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
(died 18431843 in scienceThe year 1843 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Astronomy:* February 5–April 19 - "Great March Comet" observed....
) - November 19 - Johann Karl Wilhelm IlligerJohann Karl Wilhelm IlligerJohann Karl Wilhelm Illiger was a German entomologist and zoologist.Illiger was the son of a merchant in Brunswick. He studied under the entomologist Johann Hellwig, and later worked on the zoological collections of Johann Centurius Hoffmannsegg...
, entomologist and zoologist (died 18131813 in scienceThe year 1813 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.-Biology:* Charles Waterton begins the process of turning his estate at Walton Hall, West Yorkshire, England, into what is, in effect, the world's first nature reserve....
)
Deaths
- March 3 - Richard DunthorneRichard DunthorneRichard Dunthorne was an English astronomer and surveyor, who worked in Cambridge as astronomical and scientific assistant to Roger Long , and also concurrently for many years as surveyor to the Bedford Level Corporation.-Life and work:There are short biographical notes of Dunthorne, one in...
, astronomerAstronomerAn astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
(born 17111711 in scienceThe year 1711 in science and technology involved some significant events.-Biology:* Luigi Ferdinando Marsigli shows that coral is an animal rather than a plant as previously thought.-Mathematics:...
) - October 25 - Johan Maurits MohrJohan Maurits Mohrthumbnail|right|Mohr observatory in [[Jakarta|Batavia]] .Johan Maurits Mohr was a Dutch-German pastor who studied at Groningen University from 1733 and settled in Batavia in 1737...
, astronomer (born 17161716 in scienceThe year 1716 in science and technology involved some significant events.-Births:* January 12 - Antonio de Ulloa, Spanish explorer * March 6 - Pehr Kalm, Swedish botanist and explorer...
)