Detail of Alchemist with Monkey, oil on canvas in the manner of David Teniers, 1600–1800. 📷 Science History Institute
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Our National Arts and Humanities Month celebration focuses on the intersection of science and art. Discover the fascinating world of alchemists in our fine art collection, which includes oil paintings (like the one pictured above) that are also featured in our Age of Alchemy digital exhibition. Learn about Haas Short-Term Fellow and Artist-in-Residence Anna Mlasowsky, a glassmaker who is researching the use of rare earth elements in her work. Read about the collaboration between scientific illustrator Hashime Murayama and cell biologist George Papanicolaou. And browse the pages of one of our favorite rare books, Atalanta Fugiens, where you’ll find 50 alchemical engravings set to music and prose. Prefer to see the 1618 emblem book in person? The Othmer Library is now open for research appointments Monday–Friday, 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
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Alan C. Mendelson. 📷 citybiz.co
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The Science History Institute is saddened by the passing of pioneering biotechnology attorney Alan Mendelson, a longtime member of our Board of Overseers and cohost of our annual Bay Area Life Sciences Pioneers Dinner. Mendelson, who died suddenly on October 8 at the age of 73, will be remembered at the 2021 dinner being held this Thursday, October 21, where he was scheduled to serve as moderator of the evening’s program.
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The Science History Institute’s 2013 oral history interview with Nobel Prize-winning scientist Mario Molina was featured in HISTORY This Week: The Sky Is Falling, a podcast produced by HISTORY (formerly the History Channel). The Mexican chemist was the first to notice that chlorofluorocarbons—better known as CFCs—had the potential of destroying the Earth’s protective ozone layer.
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Second-Year Allington Postdoctoral Fellow Megan Piorko and Herdegen Short-Term Fellow Sarah Lang are featured in an article in The Conversation, which talks about their contributions to the decryption of a 400-year-old cipher written by alchemists John Dee and his son, Arthur Dee. The ciphertext contains an alchemical recipe for the fabled philosophers’ stone.
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Thursday, October 21, 2021
7:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m. EDT
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In this joint virtual program with the Rosenbach, historian John Tresch will join us from England to discuss The Reason for the Darkness of the Night: Edgar Allan Poe and the Forging of American Science, his new book about Poe’s obsession with scientific practice and discovery in 19th-century science.
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Saturday, October 23, 2021
11:00 a.m. EDT
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Our Science and Activism “drop-in” tour explores the vital impacts made by engaged communities on scientific discovery, environmental justice, and public health. Guided Tours take place twice a month on Saturdays (excluding December) through February 2022. Admission is free and no reservations are necessary.
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Tuesday, October 26, 2021
7:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m. EDT
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From scurvy on the seven seas to dynamite and cannons meant to control the rains, water plays a pivotal role in some of our strangest and most compelling true stories. Join Distillations podcast cohosts Lisa Berry Drago and Alexis Pedrick as they spin a few spooky yarns and talk about why this shared resource is such a big part of our folklore.
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Thursday, October 28, 2021
4:00 p.m.–4:45 p.m. EDT
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Nyomi Gonzalez, the Institute’s education and interpretation specialist, will lead this virtual class hosted by Varsity Tutors, where students will learn how a chemical company created London city water for the king and queen of England’s White House visit.
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Thursday, November 11, 2021
1:00 p.m.–2:00 p.m. EST
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Join us for a virtual “fireside chat”-style discussion about flexible food packaging led by the Joseph Priestley Society’s Bob Kenworthy.
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Detail of illustrations by Hashime Murayama for Diagnosis of Uterine Cancer by the Vaginal Smear by George Papanicolaou and Herbert Traut, 1943. 📷 Wellcome Collection
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A wildlife painter who ran afoul of xenophobic authorities during World War II found refuge and renewed purpose in the lab.
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Depicting the everyman of the scientific enterprise.
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How the often-maligned genre was used to train soldiers, explain the weather, and teach us about the modern world.
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Albert Edelfelt broke the rules when he painted his friend Louis Pasteur in the scientist’s natural element.
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The life of chimney sweeps was nasty, poor, brutish, filthy dirty, and usually short, thanks to a rare cancer of the genitals.
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Our digital collections include some interesting examples of how science and art have always been intertwined:
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Vaccination [Caricature], plate from a French caricature included in The History of Inoculation and Vaccination for the Prevention and Treatment of Disease, circa 1913
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One of the many whimsical illustrations of Louis and Mary Fieser’s cats included in their chemistry textbooks. 📷 Organic Chemistry, 1st ed. (Boston: D. C. Heath, 1944)
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Although Louis Fieser (1899–1977) and Mary Peters Fieser (1909–1997) undertook important chemical research, their real fame came from the books they wrote, including an innovative college textbook titled Organic Chemistry. Published in 1944, the book described real applications of chemistry for medicine and industry. It was also the first of their books to carry a charming illustration of their cats in its preface (their household harbored as many as seven cats at a time).
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Now more than ever it’s important to tell the stories of science. Help us continue this work by supporting the Science History Institute.
You can also support the Institute while shopping on Amazon at smile.amazon.com or by asking Alexa to donate to the Science History Institute.
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