Of Science And Scientists; DISTANCE TO THE SUN, The

05/25/1957

Black and white kinescope negative and optical negative track; Dr. Philippe LeCorbeiller and Cecelia Payne-Gaposchkin.

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Series

Of Science And Scientists

Program

DISTANCE TO THE SUN, The

Program Number

Series Description

Series of 23 programs. We tend to think of the sciences as potentially useful (air-conditioning) or possibly troublesome (Strontium-90). We accept or marvel at the revolutionary ? of science while giving little thought to the basic ideas, concepts, techniques that have gone into exploring, understanding and explaining our universe or in...our technical civilization. Such an understanding of science does not come ... Limited by time or opportunity, scientists do not often explain themselves to nonscientists. Also, the quality of science most difficult to the layman to understand is the indirect approach to the discovery of truths. Robert Frost summed up the problem...to his mind all science rested on the question, "How she differs from she's like." In attempting to teach physics or chemistry or geology, these programs suggest the ? and outlook of science. By analogy and demonstration, they reveal the ideas...scientific research and the truths that research uncovers. They give an indication of what the scientist can and cannot do. As one speaker says, "The important thing about science is not merely that it gives rise to technological miracles, but that it provides us with one of many guidebooks we need to find our way in this universe." As nonscientists are called upon to make decisions or concur in decisions that affect the future of scientific research and even the future of life, a knowledge of "how she differs from what she's like," may not only be useful, but necessary. By ...and demonstrating the guiding principles of science and scientists, these programs attempt to convey that increasingly necessary knowledge.

Featured personality: Dr. Philippe LeCorbeiller is Professor of Applied Physics and of General Education, Harvard University. He is host and program editor for Harvard in the television series, "Of Science and Scientists." A leader in Harvard's general education program since its beginning in 1946, when he started the course, "Principles of Physical Science," Professor LeCorbeiller was the first to be appointed professor of General Education in 1949, in addition to being professor of Applied Physics. A native of France, Dr. LeCorbeiller received his doctorate in science from the University of Paris (Sorbonne) in 1926. A...in electromechanical systems and circuit theory, Professor LeCorbeiller has written on a variety of scientific subjects. In addition to numerous articles in French and American periodicals on electrical communication, he is the author of "and Civilization in Part" in 1949, an article in the Atlantic Monthly, "Stars, ? and Nations -- Man in Transit," and the first of the Harvard monographs in applied science, "Matrix Analysis of Electrical Networks." Series release date: 1957

Program Description

Program features: Cecelia Helena Payne-Gaposchkin, Professor of Astronomy, and Phillips Astronomer, Harvard University.

Series Description: Series of 23 programs. We tend to think of the sciences as potentially useful (air-conditioning) or possibly troublesome (Strontium-90). We accept or marvel at the revolutionary ? of science while giving little thought to the basic ideas, concepts, techniques that have gone into exploring, understanding and explaining our universe or in...our technical civilization. Such an understanding of science does not come ... Limited by time or opportunity, scientists do not often explain themselves to nonscientists. Also, the quality of science most difficult to the layman to understand is the indirect approach to the discovery of truths. Robert Frost summed up the problem...to his mind all science rested on the question, "How she differs from she's like." In attempting to teach physics or chemistry or geology, these programs suggest the ? and outlook of science. By analogy and demonstration, they reveal the ideas...scientific research and the truths that research uncovers. They give an indication of what the scientist can and cannot do. As one speaker says, "The important thing about science is not merely that it gives rise to technological miracles, but that it provides us with one of many guidebooks we need to find our way in this universe." As nonscientists are called upon to make decisions or concur in decisions that affect the future of scientific research and even the future of life, a knowledge of "how she differs from what she's like," may not only be useful, but necessary. By ...and demonstrating the guiding principles of science and scientists, these programs attempt to convey that increasingly necessary knowledge.

Duration

00:30:00

Asset Type

Broadcast program

Media Type

Video

Genres

Educational

Topics

Science

Creators

Creshkoff, Lawrence (Series Producer)

Citation

Chicago: “Of Science And Scientists; DISTANCE TO THE SUN, The,” 05/25/1957, GBH Archives, accessed October 25, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_289D16A844C44B83A418BCA773A48479.

MLA: “Of Science And Scientists; DISTANCE TO THE SUN, The.” 05/25/1957. GBH Archives. Web. October 25, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_289D16A844C44B83A418BCA773A48479>.

APA: Of Science And Scientists; DISTANCE TO THE SUN, The. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_289D16A844C44B83A418BCA773A48479

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Of Science And Scientists; DISTANCE TO THE SUN, The