The Helmholtz Legacy in Physiological Acoustics

276 Pages·2014·2.48 MB·English

by  Erwin Hiebert

Archimedes 39 New Studies in the History and Philosophy
of Science and Technology
Erwin Hiebert
The Helmholtz
Legacy in
Physiological
Acoustics
The Helmholtz Legacy in Physiological Acoustics
Archimedes
NEW STUDIES IN THE HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
VOLUME39
EDITOR
JEDZ.BUCHWALD,DreyfussProfessorofHistory,CaliforniaInstitute
ofTechnology,Pasadena,CA,USA.
ASSOCIATEEDITORSFORMATHEMATICSANDPHYSICALSCIENCES
JEREMYGRAY,TheFacultyofMathematicsandComputing,
TheOpenUniversity,Buckinghamshire,UK.
TILMANSAUER,CaliforniaInstituteofTechnology
ASSOCIATEEDITORSFORBIOLOGICALSCIENCES
SHARONKINGSLAND,DepartmentofHistoryofScienceandTechnology,
JohnsHopkinsUniversity,Baltimore,MD,USA.
MANFREDLAUBICHLER,ArizonaStateUniversity
ADVISORYBOARDFORMATHEMATICS,PHYSICALSCIENCESANDTECHNOLOGY
HENKBOS,UniversityofUtrecht
MORDECHAIFEINGOLD,CaliforniaInstituteofTechnology
ALLAND.FRANKLIN,UniversityofColoradoatBoulder
KOSTASGAVROGLU,NationalTechnicalUniversityofAthens
PAULHOYNINGEN-HUENE,LeibnizUniversityinHannover
TREVORLEVERE,UniversityofToronto
JESPERLU¨TZEN,CopenhagenUniversity
WILLIAMNEWMAN,IndianaUniversity,Bloomington
LAWRENCEPRINCIPE,TheJohnsHopkinsUniversity
JU¨RGENRENN,Max-Planck-Institutfu¨rWissenschaftsgeschichte
ALEXROLAND,DukeUniversity
ALANSHAPIRO,UniversityofMinnesota
NOELSWERDLOW,CaliforniaInstituteofTechnology,USA
ADVISORYBOARDFORBIOLOGY
MICHAELDIETRICH,DartmouthCollege,USA
MICHELMORANGE,CentreCavaille`s,EcoleNormaleSupe´rieure,Paris
HANS-JO¨RGRHEINBERGER,MaxPlanckInstitutefortheHistoryofScience,Berlin
NANCYSIRAISI,HunterCollegeoftheCityUniversityofNewYork
Archimedeshasthreefundamentalgoals;tofurthertheintegrationofthehistoriesofscienceandtechnology
withoneanother:toinvestigatethetechnical,socialandpracticalhistoriesofspecificdevelopmentsinscience
andtechnology;andfinally,wherepossibleanddesirable,tobringthehistoriesofscienceandtechnologyinto
closercontactwiththephilosophyofscience.Totheseends,eachvolumewillhaveitsownthemeandtitle
andwillbeplannedbyoneormoremembersoftheAdvisoryBoardinconsultationwiththeeditor.Although
thevolumeshavespecificthemes,theseriesitselfwillnotbelimitedtooneoreventoafewparticularareas.
Its subjects include any of the sciences, ranging from biology through physics, all aspects of technology,
broadlyconstrued,aswellashistorically-engagedphilosophyofscienceortechnology.Takenasawhole,
Archimedeswillbeofinteresttohistorians,philosophers,andscientists,aswellastothoseinbusinessand
industrywhoseektounderstandhowscienceandindustryhavecometobesostronglylinked.
For furthervolumes:
http://www.springer.com/series/5644
Erwin Hiebert (Deceased)
1919–2012
The Helmholtz Legacy
in Physiological Acoustics
ErwinHiebert(Deceased)
ISSN1385-0180 ISSN2215-0064(electronic)
ISBN978-3-319-06601-1 ISBN978-3-319-06602-8(eBook)
DOI10.1007/978-3-319-06602-8
SpringerChamHeidelbergNewYorkDordrechtLondon
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2014941950
©SpringerInternationalPublishingSwitzerland2014
Thisworkissubjecttocopyright.AllrightsarereservedbythePublisher,whetherthewholeorpart
of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,
recitation,broadcasting,reproductiononmicrofilmsorinanyotherphysicalway,andtransmissionor
informationstorageandretrieval,electronicadaptation,computersoftware,orbysimilarordissimilar
methodologynowknownorhereafterdeveloped.Exemptedfromthislegalreservationarebriefexcerpts
inconnectionwithreviewsorscholarlyanalysisormaterialsuppliedspecificallyforthepurposeofbeing
enteredandexecutedonacomputersystem,forexclusiveusebythepurchaserofthework.Duplication
ofthispublicationorpartsthereofispermittedonlyundertheprovisionsoftheCopyrightLawofthe
Publisher’s location, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from
Springer.PermissionsforusemaybeobtainedthroughRightsLinkattheCopyrightClearanceCenter.
ViolationsareliabletoprosecutionundertherespectiveCopyrightLaw.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publicationdoesnotimply,evenintheabsenceofaspecificstatement,thatsuchnamesareexempt
fromtherelevantprotectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse.
While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of
publication,neithertheauthorsnortheeditorsnorthepublishercanacceptanylegalresponsibilityfor
anyerrorsoromissionsthatmaybemade.Thepublishermakesnowarranty,expressorimplied,with
respecttothematerialcontainedherein.
Printedonacid-freepaper
SpringerispartofSpringerScience+BusinessMedia(www.springer.com)
Envoi
InJuly2012,IspentashorttimewithErwinathishomeinBelmont.Hisson,Tom,
wastheretohelp,sinceErwin’sbelovedwife,Elfrieda,wasinhospitalandpassed
away2monthslater.Wehadfirstmetinthefallof1971whenIenteredHarvardas
a graduate student in the history of science. Throughout the nearly half century
since then Erwinand Elfrieda remained,andwill remain inthe memoriesoftheir
studentsandfriends,paragonsoffriendship,warmth,intellectualengagement,and,
mostofall,decency,truemorality,andconcern.
Erwinworriedaboutthislastproductofhisscholarship,forheknewthattheend
of life was fast approaching. Having seen the work as it evolved over the years,
Iknewittobethefruitsofdecadesofthoughtandresearch,stimulatedandassisted
by the insights of Elfrieda, and so we told him that it would be published in the
series“Archimedes.”
ErwinandElfriedaweretheverybestofpeopleandtheverybestofacademics.
Thereare,andcertainlywillalwaysbe,fewlikethem.Theywillbesorelymissed
bytheirchildren,family,friends,colleagues,andstudents.
CaliforniaInstituteofTechnology JedBuchwald
Pasadena,CA,USA
v

Eloge
Erwin Hiebert died on November 28, 2012, less than 3 months after his wife
Elfrieda died, on September 2. For the dozens of graduate students, colleagues,
andfriendswhotastedtheintellectual excitementofdiscussionsinthewarmthof
theirhome,thesedeathsmarkthepassingofanage.Formorethanthreedecades,
as a Professor of the History of Science first at the University of Wisconsin,
Madison,thenatHarvard,Erwinpassionatelyengagedhisstudentsandcolleagues
in explorations that ranged from nuclear physics to experimental physiology,
thermodynamicstoCantoriansettheory,quantummechanicstocomets.Acoustics
wasalwaysafavoritesubject,andthebesteveningswerethosethatElfriedaclosed
byplayingonherbelovedpiano.
Erwin was the third of seven children of a Mennonite Bretheren minister, who
raised his children in an urban Russian Mennonite community in Winnipeg,
Manitoba. In later years, he loved to point to his early education, first in Faraday
Grade School and then in Sir Isaac Newton High School, as indicators of his
subsequent career as a Historian of Science. However, that career was far in the
future for a young man who spent his summers following the wheat harvest from
OklahomatotheDakotastopayforhispostsecondaryeducationatTaborCollege
inHillsboro,Kansas.After2years,hetransferredtoBethelCollege,wherein1941
heearnedabachelor’sdegreeinMathematicsandChemistry.In1943hereceiveda
master’s degree in Chemistry and Physics from the University of Kansas in
Lawrence.
Alsoin1943,ErwinmarriedElfrieda,ne´eFranz.Elfriedawasalreadyahighly
accomplishedpianist,whoin1938hadreceivedthehighestawardintheNational
Music Competition in Colorado Springs, Colorado; when the two met, she was
studying music at Tabor College. Immediately after their marriage, the young
couplemovedtoChicago, wherein1945Elfriedaearned abachelor’s degree and
in 1946 a master’s degree in Music from the University of Chicago. Erwin was
enlistedasaResearchChemistatStandardOilCompanyofIndianainthoseyears,
andElfriedawasAssistantMusicLibrarianfortheUniversityofChicago.
Erwin’s work with Standard Oil was under the jurisdiction of the Chicago
Metallurgical Labs of the Manhattan Project; “within months of the Japanese
vii
viii Eloge
surrenderinAugust1945”heandotherscientistswerecomingtogether“todiscuss
the political and social responsibility of the scientist, civilian control of atomic
energy, the economics of atomic power, the freedom of scientific information,
relations with the Soviet Union, etc.”1 From 1947 to 1948, Erwin carried these
concernstoWashington,whereheservedasAssistanttotheChiefoftheScientific
Branch,WarDepartmentGeneralStaffinWashington,DC,andElfriedaworkedas
CopyrightCataloguerattheLibraryofCongress.Theirfirstchild,CatherineAnne,
wasborntherein1948.
Soon thereafter, the Hieberts returned to Chicago, where Erwin worked as a
ResearchChemistattheInstitutefortheStudyofMetalswhilepursuinghisM.Sc.
in Physical Chemistry at the University of Chicago. There the Hieberts reveled
in the company of “an international constellation of scientists, mathematicians,
composers,philosophers,Allewissers,humanistically-mindedforeignvisitingpro-
fessors,andloquaciouspoliticalemigres,”whohadfound“haven”intheuniversity
there.2MostmemorableamongthesewasAlexandreKoyre´,whocaptivatedErwin
“with his French charm, the boundless depths of his learning, and the scientific,
historiographic, and philosophical expertise with which he approached and
executedthehistoryofscience.”3
Fortified by this “exposure to large doses of cultural history sandwiched in
between expansive schemes for world government and global internationalism,”4
in1950theHiebertsmovedtoMadison,whereErwinbeganworkingtowardajoint
Ph.D.degreeintheHistoryofScienceandPhysicalChemistry.Erwin’sdecisionto
studytheHistoryofScience“hadagreatdealtodowithreflectionsaboutthewar,
the events leading up to it, its outcome, and prospects for the future,”5 and his
interestslayinthedevelopment ofmodern science,butthe strongestinfluence on
himattheUniversityofWisconsinwasthemedievalist,MarshallClagett.AsErwin
workedwithClagett,hebegantosee“thatbasictechniquesandmethodsforstudy
of the medieval period were not as far removed from the study of more recent
periodsasonemighthaveassumed.”Clagettmovedhimbeyonda“myopicvision”
of science, to “an appreciation for the immense differences that have served to
identify so-called ‘science’ and views on ‘nature’ in disparate times and places:
alternative time-bound customs for formulating and resolving seminal questions;
theestablishmentofacceptablecriteriafor presentinglogicallyunassailable argu-
ments;andthedegree ofimportancegivenatdifferenttimesinhistorytotherole
ofexperimentalverificationandtheoreticalreasoning.”6
1Erwin N Hiebert, (1993) “On Demarcations between science in context and the context of
science”inKostasGavroglu,JeanChristianidis,EfthymiosNicolaidiseds.TrendsintheHisto-
riographyofScience,(BostonStudiesinthePhilosophyofScience,v.151)pp.87–106on87–88.
2Ibid.99.
3Ibid.102.
4Ibid.100.
5Ibid.87.
6Ibid.96–97.
Eloge ix
The year 1954 was a banner year for the Hieberts: Erwin got his Ph.D.; their
second daughter, Margaret Helen, was born; and the whole family moved to
Go¨ttingen.InGo¨ttingen,ErwinwasFulbrightLecturerattheMaxPlanckInstitute
forPhysicsandElfriedatookupaFulbrightScholarshiptostudymusicologyatthe
UniversityofGo¨ttingen.Theirthirdchild,ThomasNels,arrivedin1955.
Erwin’s career as an academic Historian of Science began immediately after
thisGermanyear,whenheservedasanInstructorintheHarvardHistoryofScience
Departmentfrom1955to1957.In1957,hejoinedtheHistoryofScienceDepart-
ment at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1957 as Assistant
Professor,in1960asAssociateProfessor,andin1963asProfessor.Hejoinedthe
HarvardHistoryofScienceDepartmentin1970.
Erwin brought all of himself – his Mennonite convictions, his scientific
expertise, and his wartime ruminations – to the study of the History of Science.
For him, science constituted “one of the few common languages of all mankind.
Itisalanguagewhichcanprovideamostimportantbasisforthecommunicationof
ideas between people of different political and ideological convictions. In their
work,scientiststheworldoverplacethehighestpremiumonintellectualhonesty,
personal integrity, hard work, tenacity, concentration, imagination, insight and
curiosity.” These values were always paramount for both Erwin and Elfrieda.
If people “everywhere would throw themselves wholeheartedly into the building
of a world community without regard to national interests, their actions would
go a long way toward the creation of a world free from war,”7 Erwin declared.
Fordecades,heandElfriedathrewthemselveswholeheartedlyintotheworkofthe
SocialConcernsCommitteeoftheMennoniteCongregationofBoston.
Within the History of Science, Erwin pursued his internationalist vision as a
memberofanumberoforganizationsincludingtheBritishSocietyfortheHistory
of Science and the Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Science.
HewasanelectedFellowoftheAcade´mieInternationald’HistoiredesSciences,an
OverseasFellow of ChurchillCollege, Cambridge,an Honorability Sodalis of the
CzechoslovakSocietyfortheHistoryofScienceandTechnology,andAuswa¨rtiges
MitgliedfortheSa¨chsicheAdademiederWissenschaftzuLeipzig.Inaddition,he
servedfor8yearsasVicePresident,5yearsasPresident,andanadditional3years
asexofficiomemberoftheCounciloftheDivisionoftheHistoryofScienceofthe
International Union of the History and Philosophy of Science of the International
CouncilofScientificUnions(ICSU).
Erwin developed warm relations with a large constellation of international
scholars through the performance of these duties, as well as the many visiting
appointmentsheacceptedovertheyears.Oneoftheresiduesofgrowingupinan
e´migre´communitywasajoyfuleasewithCentralandEastEuropeanlanguagesthat
supportedErwin’swarmrelationswithpeoplefromthoseregions.Alwayssensitive
7Erwin N. Hiebert, (1961) The Impact of Atomic Energy (Faith and Life Press: Newton,
Kansas,)p.291.