Matthew Luckiesh
Encyclopedia
Matthew Luckiesh DSc, DE, (September 14, 1883 Maquoketa, Iowa
–November 2, 1967 Shaker Heights, Ohio
) was a physicist
and, as the Director of General Electric's
Lighting Research Laboratory at its Nela Park National Lamps Works facility in East Cleveland, Ohio
, he pursued research on light and vision. In his day, he was known as the "Father of the Science of Seeing."
Luckiesh developed several theories on color and its physiological effect on people. He was also interested in determining the conditions under which optimal visibility was achieved, and in examining the relationship between light and seeing, in order to design better types of lamps. During World War I
he studied camouflage, and later invented artificial sunlight and germicidal lamps. Luckiesh produced eleven U.S. patents, 28 books and about 860 scientific and technical articles, published between 1911 and 1960.
Asked how to say his name, he told The Literary Digest
"My name is pronounced as if it were spelled loo'kish. The u in the first syllable is the u in rude, and the second syllable rimes with dish."
, Luckiesh returned to Cleveland to start work for the General Electric, Lamp Division in 1910.
Luckiesh was married with two daughters and was a Roman Catholic
.
filaments and transparent blue glass. The lamp approximated average daylight colors and was used in department stores and settings where it was important to determine accurate discrimination of the colors of objects.
Luckiesh wrote numerous books and articles on light and other aspects of physics, including Color and Colors, in 1938.
In 1940, Luckiesh and Frank Moss compared 5th and 6th grade students in well-lit classrooms to students in regular (poorly-lit) classrooms, and found significant increases in the scores on the New Stanford Achievement Test were demonstrated by the students in the well-lit classrooms.http://www.coe.uga.edu/sdpl/researchabstracts/visual.html However, it is entirely likely that the students in the poorly-lit classrooms were of lower socioeconomic status
and the schools were poorly funded. This may account for the discrepancy, rather than the difference in lighting conditions.
"Suppose that crippled eyes could be transformed into crippled legs. What heart rending parade we would witness on the busy street. Nearly every other person would go limping by. Many would be on crutches and some on wheel chair."http://www.heart-drops.net/eyes/html/information.html
HEllo :*
Maquoketa, Iowa
Maquoketa is a city in Clinton and Jackson counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. Located on the Maquoketa River, it is the county seat of Jackson County....
–November 2, 1967 Shaker Heights, Ohio
Shaker Heights, Ohio
Shaker Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population was 28,448. It is an inner-ring streetcar suburb of Cleveland that abuts the city on its eastern side.-Topography:Shaker Heights is located at...
) was a 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...
and, as the Director of General Electric's
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
Lighting Research Laboratory at its Nela Park National Lamps Works facility in East Cleveland, Ohio
East Cleveland, Ohio
East Cleveland is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, and is the first suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. The population was 17,843 at the 2010 census....
, he pursued research on light and vision. In his day, he was known as the "Father of the Science of Seeing."
Luckiesh developed several theories on color and its physiological effect on people. He was also interested in determining the conditions under which optimal visibility was achieved, and in examining the relationship between light and seeing, in order to design better types of lamps. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
he studied camouflage, and later invented artificial sunlight and germicidal lamps. Luckiesh produced eleven U.S. patents, 28 books and about 860 scientific and technical articles, published between 1911 and 1960.
Asked how to say his name, he told The Literary Digest
Literary Digest
The Literary Digest was an influential general interest weekly magazine published by Funk & Wagnalls. Founded by Isaac Kaufmann Funk in 1890, it eventually merged with two similar weekly magazines, Public Opinion and Current Opinion.-History:...
"My name is pronounced as if it were spelled loo'kish. The u in the first syllable is the u in rude, and the second syllable rimes with dish."
Early life and family
After growing up in Cleveland and attending universities in IowaIowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
, Luckiesh returned to Cleveland to start work for the General Electric, Lamp Division in 1910.
Luckiesh was married with two daughters and was a Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
.
Lighting pioneer
Among the lamps attributed to Luckiesh was the MAZDA Flametint Lamp, which was designed to create mood and to resemble the color of licking flames, rather than to produce adequate light for serious seeing. In 1927 about 25-35% of all lamps sold were of that design, and in 1929 sales totaled about 13 million. Another of his lamps, referred to as the MAZDA Daylight Lamp, had coiled tungstenTungsten
Tungsten , also known as wolfram , is a chemical element with the chemical symbol W and atomic number 74.A hard, rare metal under standard conditions when uncombined, tungsten is found naturally on Earth only in chemical compounds. It was identified as a new element in 1781, and first isolated as...
filaments and transparent blue glass. The lamp approximated average daylight colors and was used in department stores and settings where it was important to determine accurate discrimination of the colors of objects.
Luckiesh wrote numerous books and articles on light and other aspects of physics, including Color and Colors, in 1938.
In 1940, Luckiesh and Frank Moss compared 5th and 6th grade students in well-lit classrooms to students in regular (poorly-lit) classrooms, and found significant increases in the scores on the New Stanford Achievement Test were demonstrated by the students in the well-lit classrooms.http://www.coe.uga.edu/sdpl/researchabstracts/visual.html However, it is entirely likely that the students in the poorly-lit classrooms were of lower socioeconomic status
Socioeconomic status
Socioeconomic status is an economic and sociological combined total measure of a person's work experience and of an individual's or family’s economic and social position in relation to others, based on income, education, and occupation...
and the schools were poorly funded. This may account for the discrepancy, rather than the difference in lighting conditions.
Visibility meter
While "defining visibility using brightness-contrast as the primary variable" in his 1944 book, Light vision and Seeing, Luckiesh presents the 'Visibility Meter', developed in collaboration with Frank Moss. The device, used over a wide range of lighting applications, consists of a pair of similar photographic gradient filters, which increase in density when rotated together before the eyes.http://www.webref.org/geology/l/luckieshmoss_visibility_meter.htm The filters thus reduce the apparent brightness of the observed field while lowering the contrast between the object of view and its background.Quotes
"All things that are visible are not equally visible.""Suppose that crippled eyes could be transformed into crippled legs. What heart rending parade we would witness on the busy street. Nearly every other person would go limping by. Many would be on crutches and some on wheel chair."http://www.heart-drops.net/eyes/html/information.html
Papers
- 1940 "Effects of classroom lighting upon the educational progress and visual welfare of school children" Illuminating Engineering, vol 35, pp 915-938. (with Frank K. Moss)
Books
- 1915 Color and its applications, D. Van Nostrand Co., New York
- 1916 "Light And Shade And Their Applications", D. Van Nostrand Co., New York
- 1917 "The Lighting Art", D. Van Nostrand Co., New York
- 1918 "The Language Of Color", DODD, Mead and Co., New York
- 1922 Visual Illusions Dover Publications, Inc.
- 1937 The Science of Seeing D. Van Nostrand Co. (with Frank K. Moss)
- 1938 Color and Colors
- 1940 "Torch of Civilization: The Story of Man's Conquest of Darkness"
- 1944 Light, vision and seeing: a simplified presentation of their relationships and their importance in human efficiency and welfare D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc.
- 1945 The Meaning and Majic of Windows Libby, Owens, Ford Glass Co., Toledo, Ohio
External links
- FrogNet.net - 'Matthew Luckiesh'
- LampTech.co.uk - 'S-2 Sunlight Mercury Discharge'
HEllo :*