1949 in science

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The year 1949 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.

Contents 1 Astronomy and space exploration 2 Chemistry 3 Computer science 4 Earth sciences 5 History of science 6 Medicine 7 Meteorology 8 Physics 9 Zoology 10 Awards 11 Births 12 Deaths 13 Reference

Astronomy and space exploration

• June 14 - Albert II, a Rhesus Monkey, becomes the first mammal in space, in a U.S.-launched V2 rocket, reaching an altitude of 83 miles (134 km) but dying on impact after a parachute failure.

Chemistry

• Radiocarbon dating technique discovered by Willard Libby and his colleagues at the University of Chicago — work for which Libby will receive the Nobel prize in 1960.

Computer science

• April - Manchester Mark 1 computer operable at the University of Manchester.
• May 6 - EDSAC, the first practicable stored-program computer, runs its first program at Cambridge University, to calculate a table of squares.^[1]

Earth sciences

• August 5 - Ambato earthquake in Ecuador, measuring 6.8 on the Richter magnitude scale.^[2]

History of science

• Herbert Butterfield publishes The Origins of Modern Science, 1300-1800.

Medicine

• The use of lithium salts to control mania is rediscovered by Australian psychiatrist John Cade, the first mood stabilizer.^[3]

Meteorology

• January 11 - Los Angeles, California receives its first recorded snowfall.

Physics

• Freeman Dyson demonstrates the equivalence of the formulations of quantum electrodynamics existing at this time,^[4] incidentally inventing the Dyson series.^[5]

Zoology

• Konrad Lorenz publishes King Solomon's Ring (Er redete mit dem Vieh, den Vögeln und den Fischen).

Awards

• Nobel Prizes
  • Physics - Yukawa Hideki
  • Chemistry - William Francis Giauque
  • Medicine - Walter Rudolf Hess, Antonio Caetano De Abreu Freire Egas Moniz

Births

• January 25 - Paul Nurse, winner of Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
• February 19 - Danielle Bunten Berry (d. 1998), also known as Dan Bunten, software developer.
• April 5 - Judith Resnik (d. 1986), astronaut.
• May 24 - Tomaž Pisanski, mathematician.
• May 26 - Ward Cunningham, computer programmer.

Deaths

• August 5 - Ernest Fourneau (b. 1872), medicinal chemist.

Reference