Draw the Lightning Down
Benjamin Franklin and Electrical Technology in the Age of Enlightenment
Seiten
2006
University of California Press (Verlag)
978-0-520-24829-8 (ISBN)
University of California Press (Verlag)
978-0-520-24829-8 (ISBN)
- Lieferbar (Termin unbekannt)
- Versandkostenfrei
- Auch auf Rechnung
- Artikel merken
Most of us know - at least we've heard - that Benjamin Franklin conducted some kind of electrical experiment with a kite. This book makes clear that Franklin played a major role in laying the foundations of modern electrical science and technology.
Most of us know - at least we've heard - that Benjamin Franklin conducted some kind of electrical experiment with a kite. What few of us realize - and what this book makes powerfully clear - is that Franklin played a major role in laying the foundations of modern electrical science and technology. This fast-paced book, rich with historical details and anecdotes, brings to life Franklin, the large international network of scientists and inventors in which he played a key role, and their amazing inventions. We learn what these early electrical devices - from lights and motors to musical and medical instruments - looked like, how they worked, and what their utilitarian and symbolic meanings were for those who invented and used them. Against the fascinating panorama of life in the eighteenth century, Michael Brian Schiffer tells the story of the very beginnings of our modern electrical world. The earliest electrical technologies were conceived in the laboratory apparatus of physicists; because of their surprising and diverse effects, however, these technologies rapidly made their way into many other communities and activities.
Schiffer conducts us from community to community, showing how these technologies worked as they were put to use in public lectures, revolutionary experiments in chemistry and biology, and medical therapy. This story brings to light the arcane and long-forgotten inventions that made way for many modern technologies - including lightning rods (Franklin's invention), cardiac stimulation, xerography, and the internal combustion engine - and richly conveys the complex relationships among science, technology, and culture.
Most of us know - at least we've heard - that Benjamin Franklin conducted some kind of electrical experiment with a kite. What few of us realize - and what this book makes powerfully clear - is that Franklin played a major role in laying the foundations of modern electrical science and technology. This fast-paced book, rich with historical details and anecdotes, brings to life Franklin, the large international network of scientists and inventors in which he played a key role, and their amazing inventions. We learn what these early electrical devices - from lights and motors to musical and medical instruments - looked like, how they worked, and what their utilitarian and symbolic meanings were for those who invented and used them. Against the fascinating panorama of life in the eighteenth century, Michael Brian Schiffer tells the story of the very beginnings of our modern electrical world. The earliest electrical technologies were conceived in the laboratory apparatus of physicists; because of their surprising and diverse effects, however, these technologies rapidly made their way into many other communities and activities.
Schiffer conducts us from community to community, showing how these technologies worked as they were put to use in public lectures, revolutionary experiments in chemistry and biology, and medical therapy. This story brings to light the arcane and long-forgotten inventions that made way for many modern technologies - including lightning rods (Franklin's invention), cardiac stimulation, xerography, and the internal combustion engine - and richly conveys the complex relationships among science, technology, and culture.
Michael Brian Schiffer is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Arizona. His many books include The Material Life of Human Beings (1999), Taking Charge: The Electric Automobile in America (1994), Technological Perspectives on Behavioral Change (1992), and The Portable Radio in American Life (1991).
Preface List of Figures 1. The Franklin Phenomenon 2. In the Beginning 3. A Coming of Age 4. Going Public 5. Power to the People 6. Life and Death 7. First, Do No Harm 8. An Electrical World 9. Property Protectors 10. A New Alchemy 11. Visionary Inventors 12. Technology Transfer: A Behavioral Framework Notes References Cited Index
| Erscheint lt. Verlag | 2.3.2006 |
|---|---|
| Zusatzinfo | 38 line illustrations |
| Verlagsort | Berkerley |
| Sprache | englisch |
| Maße | 152 x 229 mm |
| Gewicht | 544 g |
| Themenwelt | Naturwissenschaften ► Physik / Astronomie ► Elektrodynamik |
| ISBN-10 | 0-520-24829-5 / 0520248295 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0-520-24829-8 / 9780520248298 |
| Zustand | Neuware |
| Haben Sie eine Frage zum Produkt? |
Mehr entdecken
aus dem Bereich
aus dem Bereich
eine Einführung in die Gleich- und Wechselstromtechnik
Buch | Hardcover (2024)
Hanser (Verlag)
CHF 48,95
Grundlagen und praktische Anwendungen
Buch | Hardcover (2022)
Hanser (Verlag)
CHF 48,95
