Boris Hessen
Encyclopedia
Boris Mikhailovich Hessen , also Gessen
(Elisavetgrad, August 16, 1893 – December 20, 1936 in Moscow
) was a Soviet physicist
, philosopher
and historian of science
. He is most famous for his paper on Newton
's Principia
which became foundational in historiography of science
.
(now Kirovohrad
, Ukraine
). He studied physics
and natural science
s at the University of Edinburgh
(1913—1914) together with his gymnasium school
friend Igor Tamm
. He then went to study at the St. Petersburg University (1914—1917). He joined Red Army
in the Russian Civil War
, and became a communist and a member of the Revolutionary Military Council
(1919—1921). He also continued his physics studies at various places eventually graduating from the Red Professor's Institute in Moscow
in 1928. After working in the institute for two more years, he became a physics professor and the chair of the physics department at the Moscow State University
in 1931. In 1933 he was elected a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences
.
In 1931, Hessen delivered his famous paper "The Socio-Economic Roots of Newton's Principia" at the Second International Congress of the History of Science
in London
. This work became foundational in the history of science
and led to modern studies of scientific revolution
s and sociology of science.
From 1934 to 1936 Hessen was a deputy director of the Physics Institute
in Moscow headed by S.I. Vavilov
. On August 22, 1936 Hessen was arrested by the NKVD
. He was secretly tried for terrorism
by a military tribunal together with his gymnasium school
teacher A. O. Apirin. They were found guilty on December 20, 1936 and were executed by shooting on the same day. On April 21, 1956 both Apirin and Hessen were rehabilitated
(posthumously exonerated).
(Elisavetgrad, August 16, 1893 – December 20, 1936 in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
) was a Soviet physicist
Physicist
A 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...
, philosopher
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and historian of science
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
. He is most famous for his paper on Newton
Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived."...
's Principia
Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica
Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica, Latin for "Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy", often referred to as simply the Principia, is a work in three books by Sir Isaac Newton, first published 5 July 1687. Newton also published two further editions, in 1713 and 1726...
which became foundational in historiography of science
Historiography of science
Historiography is the study of the history and methodology of the discipline of history. The historiography of science is thus the study of the history and methodology of the sub-discipline of history, known as the history of science, including its disciplinary aspects and practices and to the...
.
Biography
Boris Hessen was born to a Jewish family in Elisavetgrad, RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(now Kirovohrad
Kirovohrad
Kirovohrad , formerly Yelisavetgrad, is a city in central Ukraine. It is located on the Inhul River. It is a motorway junction. Pop. 239,400 ....
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
). He studied physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
and natural science
Natural science
The natural sciences are branches of science that seek to elucidate the rules that govern the natural world by using empirical and scientific methods...
s at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
(1913—1914) together with his gymnasium school
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
friend Igor Tamm
Igor Tamm
Igor Yevgenyevich Tamm was a Soviet physicist and Nobel laureate who received most prestigious Nobel Prize in Physics, jointly with Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov and Ilya Frank, for the discovery of Cherenkov radiation, made in 1934.-Biography:Tamm was born in Vladivostok, Russian Empire , in a...
. He then went to study at the St. Petersburg University (1914—1917). He joined Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
, and became a communist and a member of the Revolutionary Military Council
Revolutionary Military Council
Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic or Revvoyensoviet Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic or Revvoyensoviet Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic or Revvoyensoviet (Революционный Военный Совет, Revolyutsionny Voyenny Sovyet; Реввоенсовет, Revvoyensovyet; also...
(1919—1921). He also continued his physics studies at various places eventually graduating from the Red Professor's Institute in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
in 1928. After working in the institute for two more years, he became a physics professor and the chair of the physics department at the Moscow State University
Moscow State University
Lomonosov Moscow State University , previously known as Lomonosov University or MSU , is the largest university in Russia. Founded in 1755, it also claims to be one of the oldest university in Russia and to have the tallest educational building in the world. Its current rector is Viktor Sadovnichiy...
in 1931. In 1933 he was elected a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Academy of Sciences
The Russian Academy of Sciences consists of the national academy of Russia and a network of scientific research institutes from across the Russian Federation as well as auxiliary scientific and social units like libraries, publishers and hospitals....
.
In 1931, Hessen delivered his famous paper "The Socio-Economic Roots of Newton's Principia" at the Second International Congress of the History of Science
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
in London
London
London 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...
. This work became foundational in the history of science
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
and led to modern studies of scientific revolution
Scientific revolution
The Scientific Revolution is an era associated primarily with the 16th and 17th centuries during which new ideas and knowledge in physics, astronomy, biology, medicine and chemistry transformed medieval and ancient views of nature and laid the foundations for modern science...
s and sociology of science.
From 1934 to 1936 Hessen was a deputy director of the Physics Institute
Lebedev Physical Institute
The Lebedev Physics Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences , situated in Moscow, is one of the leading Russian research institutes specializing in physics. It is also one of the oldest research institutions in Russia: its history dates back to a collection of physics equipment established by...
in Moscow headed by S.I. Vavilov
Sergey Ivanovich Vavilov
Sergey Ivanovich Vavilov -Biography:Vavilov founded the Soviet school of physical optics, known by his works in luminescence. In 1934 he co-discovered the Vavilov-Cherenkov effect, a discovery for which Pavel Cherenkov was awarded a Nobel Prize in Physics in 1958...
. On August 22, 1936 Hessen was arrested by the NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
. He was secretly tried for terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
by a military tribunal together with his gymnasium school
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
teacher A. O. Apirin. They were found guilty on December 20, 1936 and were executed by shooting on the same day. On April 21, 1956 both Apirin and Hessen were rehabilitated
Rehabilitation (Soviet)
Rehabilitation in the context of the former Soviet Union, and the Post-Soviet states, was the restoration of a person who was criminally prosecuted without due basis, to the state of acquittal...
(posthumously exonerated).
Writings
- Boris Hessen, The Social and Economic Roots of Newton's Principia in: Nicolai I. BukharinNikolai BukharinNikolai Ivanovich Bukharin , was a Russian Marxist, Bolshevik revolutionary, and Soviet politician. He was a member of the Politburo and Central Committee , chairman of the Communist International , and the editor in chief of Pravda , the journal Bolshevik , Izvestia , and the Great Soviet...
, Science at the Crossroads, London 1931 (Reprint New York 1971), pp. 151-212 (Russian original: http://www.ihst.ru/projects/sohist/books/hessen.pdf). - New English translation in: Gideon Freudenthal and Peter McLaughlin, The Social and Economic Roots of the Scientific Revolution, Springer, 2009, pp. 41-101.
External links
- Hessen's short biography (in Russian)
- Memorial Society record of Hessen's arrest and execution (in Russian)
- Physics in Moscow in 1937 – an article by G.E. Gorelik (in Russian)
- HISMAT | HESSEN at www.ucm.es -biography by Pablo Huerga Melcón (in Spanish)