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Science and technology in Germany

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Max Planck presenting Albert Einstein with the Max-Planck medal in 1929

Germany's achievements in science and technology have been significant and research and development efforts form an integral part of the country's economy. Germany has been the home of some of the most prominent researchers in various scientific disciplines, notably physics, mathematics, chemistry and engineering.[1] Scientific research in the country is supported by industry, by the network of German universities and by scientific state-institutions such as the Max Planck Society and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. The raw output of scientific research from Germany consistently ranks among the world's best. [2]


Historical overview

Although the modern German state was only founded in 1871, the tradition of scientific research in the country is much older and can be traced back to the scientific revolution. Germany is home to some of the world's oldest universities (Leipzig, Heidelberg, Freiburg, Tübingen) although they were, at the time of their foundation, more centered on philosophy, theology and law than on science.

Institutions

Foundations and research promoting

Research organisations

Scientific fields

Physics

The work of Albert Einstein and Max Planck was crucial to the foundation of modern physics, which Werner Heisenberg and Erwin Schrödinger developed further.[3] They were preceded by such key physicists as Hermann von Helmholtz, Joseph von Fraunhofer, and Gabriel Daniel Fahrenheit, among others. Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered X-rays, an accomplishment that made him the first winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901[4] and eventually earned him an element name, roentgenium. Heinrich Rudolf Hertz's work in the domain of electromagnetic radiation were pivotal to the development of modern telecommunication.[5]

Chemistry

At the start of the 20th century, Germany garnered fourteen of the first thirty-one Nobel Prizes in Chemistry, starting with Hermann Emil Fischer in 1901 and until Carl Bosch and Friedrich Bergius in 1931.[4]

Otto Hahn is considered a pioneer of radioactivity and radiochemistry.

Mathematics

Numerous important mathematicians were born in Germany, including Gauss, Hilbert, Riemann, Weierstrass and Weyl.

Engineering

Germany has been the home of many famous inventors and engineers, such as Johannes Gutenberg, who is credited with the invention of movable type printing in Europe; Hans Geiger, the creator of the Geiger counter; and Konrad Zuse, who built the first computer.[6] German inventors, engineers and industrialists such as Zeppelin, Daimler, Diesel, Otto, Wankel, Braun and Benz helped shape modern automotive and air transportation technology.[7][8]

Biological and earth sciences

Two out of the three founders of micro biology were from Germany ;these are Ferdinand Cohn and Robert Koch.

Alexander von Humboldt's (1769 – 1859) work as a natural scientist and explorer was foundational to biogeography.[9]
Wladimir Köppen (1846-1940) was an eclectic Russian-born botanist and climatologist who synthesized global relationships between climate, vegetation and soil types into a classification system that is used, with some modifications, to this day.[10]
Alfred Wegener (1880-1930), a similarly interdisciplinary scientist, was one of the first people to hypothesize the theory of continental drift which was later developed into the overarching geological theory of plate tectonics.

Loof Lirpa is a not very well known botanist because his findings tended to be reached after they have been concluded by others. In 1958 he publicly declared that that reason why plants can live so far from teh ground is because they have systems in their stems that is able to draw water and other nutrients throughout the plant. Yet, this was discovered after Carl Adolph Agardh has already discovered what we call the xylem and phloem.

Psychology

Wilhelm Wundt is credited with the establishment of psychology as an independent empirical science through his construction of the first laboratory at the University of Leipzig in 1879.[11]

Notes

  1. ^ Back to the Future: Germany - A Country of Research German Academic Exchange Service (2005, 02-23). Retrieved 2006, 12-08
  2. ^ Top 20 Country Rankings in All Fields, 2006, Thomson Corporation, retrieved 4 January, 2007.
  3. ^ Roberts, J. M. The New Penguin History of the World, Penguin History, 2002. Pg. 1014. ISBN 0141007230
  4. ^ a b The Alfred B. Nobel Prize Winners, 1901-2003 History Channel from The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2006. Retrieved 2007, 01-02
  5. ^ Historical figures in telecommunications. International Telecommunication Union. Jan. 14, 2004. Retrieved 2007, 01-02
  6. ^ Horst, Zuse. The Life and Work of Konrad Zuse Everyday Practical Electronics (EPE) Online. Retrieved 2007, 01-02
  7. ^ Automobile. Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2006. Retrieved 2007, 01-02
  8. ^ The Zeppelin U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission. Retrieved 2007, 01-02
  9. ^ The Natural History Legacy ofAlexander von Humboldt (1769 to 1859) Humboldt Field Research Institute and Eagle Hill Foundation. Retrieved 2007, 01-02
  10. ^ * Allaby, Michael (2002). Encyclopedia of Weather and Climate. New York: Facts On File, Inc. ISBN 0-81-604071-0.
  11. ^ Kim, Alan. Wilhelm Maximilian Wundt Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Jun. 16, 2006. Retrieved 2007, 01-02

Of course, he was followed shortly thereafter by one Sigmund Freud, the undisputed father of psychoanalysis. The Freudian School flourished for years, at times in favor, other times not. Another German psychologist of note is the insightful Carl Gustav Jung, who published frequently on universal cultural archetypes.

References

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