Simon Newcom (obsolete spelling: Newcomb , English. Simon Newcomb ; March 12, 1835 , Wallace, Nova Scotia - July 11, 1909 , Washington ) - American astronomer , mathematician and economist of Canadian origin. The author of more than 400 scientific papers, one of the leading astronomers of the late XIX century. Honorary member of many scientific societies and academies, including an honorary member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences .
| Simon Newcom | |
|---|---|
| English Simon newcomb | |
 Simon Newcom | |
| Date of Birth | March 12, 1835 |
| Place of Birth | Wallace, Nova Scotia , Canada |
| Date of death | July 11, 1909 ( 74) |
| Place of death | Washington , USA |
| A country | |
| Scientific field | astronomy , mathematics , economics |
| Place of work | |
| Alma mater | |
| supervisor | |
| Awards and prizes |  Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society (1874) Copley Medal (1890) Katherine Bruce Medal (1898) |
Biography
Born in Canada in the family of a rural teacher, at the age of 18 he moved to the United States. Studied at Harvard . At the age of 26, he became a professor of mathematics at the Naval Academy in Washington and an observer astronomer at the Naval Observatory . In this position, he spent 16 years. Then he led the American Nautical Astronomical Yearbook (Nautical Almanae) for 20 years. In 1897, resigned. He died in the rank of admiral.
Scientific activity
Works on the study of the motion of large planets, the determination of astronomical constants and the compilation of catalogs of exact positions of stars. He was also engaged in the theory of the motion of the moon, planetary satellites, the theory of solar eclipses, and the problem of the origin of asteroids. He performed the measurement of astronomical constants (precession of planets, nutation, aberration), the values obtained by him at the Paris International Conference in 1866 were adopted as international standards, with some clarifications they are still in use today.
In 1881, he discovered a pattern that later became known as Benford's Law . In 1891, he made measurements of the speed of light with record accuracy for that time [2] .
Newcom put much effort into popularizing astronomy. His books “Popular Astronomy”, “Astronomy for Everyone”, “Astronomy in a Comprehensible Layout” were repeatedly reprinted, translated into many languages, including Russian.
Often one can hear that Newcom tried to scientifically prove that an aircraft could not fly heavier than air just shortly before the flight of the Wright brothers. Strictly speaking, this is not true. Indeed, in the 1870s, Newcom was very critical of the work of Samuel Langley, in which he stated that he could build an aircraft powered by a steam engine. And in 1903 he wrote not so categorically:
The twentieth century is destined to see the forces of nature that will allow us to fly from continent to continent at a speed far exceeding the flight speed of birds. But if we ask ourselves whether air flight is possible with our current knowledge, whether, taking into account the materials that we now have, this set of steel, fabric and wire, driven by steam, will be a successful aircraft, the conclusion may well be completely different [3] .
Memory
Cavalier of the Legion of Honor (1893), awarded the Copley Medal and the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society . Included in the list of "one hundred great economists before Keynes" according to M. Blaug .
A crater on the Moon and a crater on Mars are named after Newcom ; the asteroid (855) Newcombia , discovered in 1916 by the Russian astronomer S. I. Belyavsky, is named after him [4] .
Major works
- "The method and subject of political economy" (The Method and Province of Political Economy, 1875)
- "Study of the motion of the moon" (Researches of the motion of the Moon, 1878, 1912)
- "Astronomy for all" (Astronomy for schools and colleges, 1879)
- "Organization of labor" (The Organization of Labor, 1880)
- "Principles of taxation" (Principles of Taxation, 1880)
- Soap bubbles of socialism (Soap-bubbles of Socialism, 1890)
- "The elements of the four inner planets and the fundamental constants of astronomy, 1895)
- "A compendium of spherical astronomy, 1906)
See also
- Newcom McGee, Anita
Notes
- ↑ Mathematical Genealogy - 1997.
- ↑ Landsberg G.S. Optics. - M .: FIZMATLIT, 2003 .-- S. 387. - ISBN 5-9221-0314-8 .
- ↑ http://www.garfield.library.upenn.edu/essays/v3p167y1977-78.pdf Simon Nwecomb, The Outlook for the Flying Machine, p. 169; Reprinted by The Independent: A Weekly Magazine , October 22, 1903, pp. 2508-12
- ↑ Schmadel LD (855) Newcombia // Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. - Berlin Heidelberg New York: Springer-Verlag, 2003 .-- P. 79. - ISBN 3-540-00238-3 .
Literature
- Blaug M. Newcomb, Simon // 100 Great Economists before Keynes = Great Economists before Keynes: An introduction to the lives & works of one hundred great economists of the past. - SPb. : Economicus, 2008 .-- S. 228-229. - 352 p. - (Library of the Economic School, vol. 42). - 1,500 copies. - ISBN 978-5-903816-01-9 .
- Vitkovsky V.V. Newcomb, Simon // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
- Kolchinsky I.G., Korsun A.A., Rodriguez M.G. Astronomers: A Biographical Reference. - 2nd ed., Revised. and additional .. - Kiev: Naukova Dumka, 1986. - 512 p.
- Newcom Simon // Nikko - Otoliths. - M .: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1974. - (The Great Soviet Encyclopedia : [30 vol.] / Ch. Ed. A. M. Prokhorov ; 1969-1978, vol. 18).
- Chistyakov V.D. Simon Newcom // Tales of Astronomers. - Minsk: Higher School, 1969. - 264 p.
Links
- Simon Newcom profile on RAS official website
- Eremeeva A.I. Simon Newcom (1835–1909), on the occasion of the 175th birthday
- S. Newcom Biography and Bibliography
- Newcom, Simon in the encyclopedia Round the world.