Dějiny věd a techniky, No. 3, Vol. XLV (2012)

PAPERS


DVT 123, 141
German-speaking migration of mathematicians to and from Czechoslovakia, caused by National Socialism in Germany
Reinhard siegmund-schultze

Migrace německy mluvících matematiků do Československa a z něj kvůli nacistickému režimu v Německu.
For the investigation of German-speaking and non-German-speaking academic emigration during the rule of the Nazi regime in Germany (1933–1945), the files of the Society for the Protection of Science and Learning (SPSL), now located at the Bodleian Library in Oxford, U.K., are a particularly valuable source for historical analysis. The present article looks at the situation of the German-speaking mathematical refugees who immigrated to or emigrated from Czechoslovakia for political reasons in the period under question. The SPSL files are used for the first for this purpose.

Pro studium emigrace, ať už německy mluvící či ne, během nacistického režimu v Německu (1933–1945) představuje velice cenný pramen z hlediska historické analýzy fond Society for the Protection of Science and Learning (SPSL, Společnost pro ochranu vědy a výzkumu), nyní uložený v Bodleian Library v Oxfordu ve Velké Británii. Předkládaný článek sleduje situaci těchto německy mluvících matematiků, uprchlíků, kteří imigrovali do Československa nebo odtud emigrovali ve sledovaném období z politických důvodů. Fond SPSL byl použit pro takové bádání poprvé.

Keywords: Academic anti-Semitism · political persecution under the Nazi regime · migration of German speaking mathematicians · Society for the Protection of Science and Learning

Summary: The SPSL files provide biographical and political background information for most of the eighteen mathematicians who fall into the categories of the investigation. Almost all of them were persecuted on anti-Semitic grounds. However, the opportunities and conditions of emigration were very different, depending on age, qualification and research subject of the refugees. Three of the fifteen lost their lives due to Nazi persecution, one mathematician (H. Löwig) was even persecuted after the war due to bureaucratic reasons and lack of political sensitivity.

Resumé: Fond SPSL poskytuje informace biografického a politického charakteru pro většinu z 18 matematiků, jejichž osudy zkoumal tento článek. Téměř všichni byli pronásledováni jako Židé, z pozic antisemitismu. Nicméně příležitosti a podmínky emigrace se velice lišily v závislosti na věku, kvalifikaci a na vědeckém zaměření uprchlíků. Tři z pěti zemřeli kvůli nacistické perzekuci, jeden matematik (H. Löwig) byl dokonce pronásledován i po válce, kdy se stal obětí „úřadování“ a politické necitlivosti.


DVT 123, 167
Československá věda a výzkum a centrální model plánování v letech 1946–1960
doubRavka olšáková

Science and research in Czechoslovakia and the model of central planning of science in 1946–1960.
The model of central planning of science came up for discussion in the aftermath of the de-Stalinisation process in the Soviet Union. It soon became one of the most important issues of science management in countries of the Communist bloc. Soon after the discussions took place, the model of central planning was agreed and implemented as part of the political agenda of not only the domestic Communist parties in different countries but following the wish of Moscow leaders also on the level of international cooperation within the COMECON.

Keywords: Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences · research landscape · science management · central planning · Czechoslovakia · communism · COMECON

Summary: Soon after taking the first steps towards a new structure of research in post-war Czechoslovakia – which resulted in the establishment of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences (1952–1953) – Czechoslovak researchers started to follow the Soviet discussion about introduction of central planning in scientific research. The de-Stalinisation process, which took place in the Soviet Union after 1956, among other things introduced the notion of a whole new set-up of scientific research and practice. Discussions on this issue started in the Soviet Union in the second half of the 1950s, and within a few years influenced the scientific communities of other countries of the Soviet bloc. In Prague, the first international conference on the central planning of science and research was held in 1959. It was attended by some of the most prominent scientists and philosophers of science, including George Bernal or P. L. Kapica. The concept of central planning was gradually adopted by a number of Communist parties and implemented as part of the political agenda on a domestic level. Moscow leaders, however, very quickly recognized the model’s political potential and incorporated it into the agenda of the COMECON.


DVT 123, 182
Dobyvatelé ultrafialového světa
Pavel Pecháček

Conquerors of the ultraviolet world.
Many animals are sensitive to UV light. Furthermore, a lot of animals and plants can use UV light as a special communication signal. UV light, however, cannot be perceived by humans and its importance for communication among living organisms needed yet to be discovered. The subjects of the presented study are the two most significant pioneers in research into the function of UV light: Sir John Lubbock (1834–1913), an English polymath who was the first one to demonstrate the sensitivity of certain invertebrates to UV light; and Frank Eugene Lutz (1879–1943), an American entomologist whose research into UV light, UV-reflective patterns and their function in communication among animals or plants and their pollinators opened the way for further studies. The following development is briefly summarized in the conclusion of the article.

Keywords: UV-sensitivity · UV-reflectance · history of biology · John Lubbock · Frank E. Lutz · Robert E. Silberglied

Summary: The importance of ultraviolet light in biology is currently being rediscovered; many animals are sensitive to UV radiation and use it as a communication tool, and petals of many flowers have patterns which are visible only under UV light. The following article describes the history of the research into UV radiation and deals mainly with the first two pioneers of the field; Sir John Lubbock, known also as Lord Avebury (1834–1913), an English banker, politician, friend of Charles Darwin and biologist who was the first one to have verified the sensitivity of ants and several other species of insect to UV rays; and Frank Eugene Lutz (1879–1943), an American entomologist who studied UV-reflectant patterns on the petals of flowers and sensitivity of their pollinators to UV light. The last section of the text lists the most important discoveries concerning UV radiation and introduces Robert L. Silberglied (1946–1982), another distinguished American entomologist.



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