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MAN BEHIND THE TECHNOLOGY

ARISTOTLE

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Born: 384 B.C.

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Birthplace: Stagira, Macedonia (nowGreece)

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Died: 322 B.C.

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Best Known As: The author of

Ethics

Aristotle is one of the "big three" inancient Greek philosophy, along withPlato and Socrates. (Socrates taught Plato, whoin turn instructed Aristotle.) Aristotlespent nearly 20 years at Plato's Academy,first as a student and then as a teacher. After Plato's death he traveled widely and educated a famous pupil, Alexander theGreat, the Macedonian who nearly conquered the world. Later Aristotle began his ownschool in Athens, known as the Lyceum. Aristotle is known for his carefullydetailed observations about nature and the physical world, which laid the groundworkfor the modern study of biology. Among hisworks are the texts

Physics

,

Metaphysics

,

Rhetoric

and

Ethics

. He was succeeded atthe Lyceum by his studentTheophrastus.Ideas and Contributions Aristotle is often regarded as the fatherof psychology, and his book,

De Anima

(Onthe Soul), the first book on psychology. Hewas concerned with the connection betweenthe psychological processes and theunderlying physiological phenomenon. Many believe he contributed more to prescience psychology than any other person, bothqualitatively and quantitatively. Although Aristotle attended Plato's Academy, he became convinced of the need for empiricalobservations and criticized many of Plato's philosophies. Plato and Aristotle"represent a basic divergence in the way man and the world may be viewed, a modern parallel being the difference between theclinical and the experimental psychologist.(Zusne, p. 8)" Aristotle postulates that the body and the mind exist as facets of the same being,with the mind being simply one of the body's functions. He suggests thatintellect consists of two parts: somethingsimilar to matter (passive intellect) and something similar to form (activeintellect). Aristotle says that intellect"'is separable, impassible, unmixed, sinceit is in its essential nature activity. . .. When intellect is set free from its present conditions, it appears as just whatit is and nothing more: it alone isimmortal and eternal . . . and without itnothing thinks (

Britannica Online

,"Physiological Psychology")." Aristotle described the psyche as asubstance able to receive knowledge.Knowledge is obtained through the psyche'scapability of intelligence, although thefive senses are also necessary to obtainknowledge. "As Aristotle describes the process, the sense receives 'the form ofsensible objects without the matter, justas the wax receives the impression of thesignet-ring without the iron or the gold.'(

Britannica Online

, "PhysiologicalPsychology")." Sensitivity is stimulated by phenomenon in the environment, and memoryis the persistence of sense impressions. He maintained that mental activities were primarily biological, and that the psychewas the "form" part of intellect. Aristotleinsisted that the body and the psyche form a unity. This idea is known ashylomorphic. Aristotle believed that thinking requiresthe use of images. While some animals canimagine, only man thinks. Knowing (nous)differs from thinking in that it is anactive, creative process leading to therecognition of universals; it is akin tointuition, it does not cause movement, and it is independent of the other functions ofthe psyche. (Zusne, pp. 8-9)Thomas Aquinas based many of his ideas onthose of Aristotle, metaphysicallyinterpreting them to make them fit hisChristian theological framework. Thomistic psychology is still taught in Catholicschools today.

CHARLES DARWIN

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Born: 12 February 1809

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Birthplace: Shrewsbury, England

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Died: 19 April 1882 (heart attack)

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Best Known As: The naturalist whocame up with the theory of evolutionCharles Darwin's book

The Origin of Species

was a scientific bombshell in its day and remains a much-discussed work 150 yearslater. Darwin was the official naturalistaboard the British ship H.M.S.

Beagle

during its world voyage of 1831-36. Hisobservations during the journey led him todevelop a theory of evolution: the notionthat species evolve as the fittest memberssurvive and pass their traits on to futuregenerations. Darwin announced his initialideas of natural selection in 1858, and in1859 he formally published

The Origin of Species

. The book was both popular and controversial: although Darwin was areligious man himself and once considered acareer in the church, his theory ofevolution was attacked by those who felt itwas contrary to the teachings of the Bible.Today Darwin's theories are embraced bynearly all scientists and his theories are

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the starting point for the modern study ofevolutionary biology, even as the religiousarguments continue. Darwin published manyother books and pamphlets on the topic inlater years, most notably

The Descent of Man

(1871).The full title and subtitle of Darwin'sfamous book was,

On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or, ThePreservation of Favoured Races in theStruggle for Life

... Darwin was born on thesame day as U.S. president Abraham Lincoln... Darwin was buried in Westminster Abbey, near the grave ofSir Isaac Newton. Major Contributions

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The Theory of Natural Selection

Michael Faraday

Faraday was a British chemist and physicistwho contributed significantly to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry.

Michael Faraday was born on 22 September1791 in south London. His family was notwell off and Faraday received only a basicformal education. When he was 14, he wasapprenticed to a local bookbinder and during the next seven years, educated himself by reading books on a wide range ofscientific subjects. In 1812, Faradayattended four lectures given by the chemistHumphry Davy at the Royal Institution.Faraday subsequently wrote to Davy askingfor a job as his assistant. Davy turned him down but in 1813 appointed him to the jobof chemical assistant at the RoyalInstitution. A year later, Faraday was invited toaccompany Davy and his wife on an 18 monthEuropean tour, taking in France,Switzerland, Italy and Belgium and meeting many influential scientists. On theirreturn in 1815, Faraday continued to workat the Royal Institution, helping withexperiments for Davy and other scientists.In 1821 he published his work onelectromagnetic rotation (the principle behind the electric motor). He was able tocarry out little further research in the1820s, busy as he was with other projects.In 1826, he founded the Royal Institution'sFriday Evening Discourses and in the sameyear the Christmas Lectures, both of whichcontinue to this day. He himself gave manylectures, establishing his reputation asthe outstanding scientific lecturer of histime.However, in the early 1840s, Faraday'shealth began to deteriorate and he did lessresearch. He died on 25 August 1867 atHampton Court, where he had been givenofficial lodgings in recognition of hiscontribution to science. He gave his nameto the 'farad', originally describing aunit of electrical charge but later a unitof electrical capacitance.In 1831, Faraday discovered electromagneticinduction, the principle behind theelectric transformer and generator. Thisdiscovery was crucial in allowingelectricity to be transformed from acuriosity into a powerful new technology.During the remainder of the decade heworked on developing his ideas aboutelectricity. He was partly responsible forcoining many familiar words including'electrode', 'cathode' and 'ion'. Faraday'sscientific knowledge was harnessed for practical use through various officialappointments, including scientific adviserto Trinity House (1836-1865) and Professorof Chemistry at the Royal Military Academyin Woolwich (1830-1851).

Levi Strauss

Levi Strauss, born Löb Strauss (February26,1829–September 26,1902) was a German-Jewishimmigrant to theUnited Stateswho founded the first company to manufacture blue jeans. His firm,Levi Strauss & Co., began in 1853 inSanFrancisco, CaliforniaLevi Strauss was born Loeb Strauss inButtenheim , in the Franconian region ofBavaria,Germany, to Hirsch Strauss and his wife Rebecca (Haas) Strauss. At the age of18, Strauss, his mother and two sisterssailed for theUnited Statesto join his brothers Jonas and Louis, who had begun awholesale dry goods business in New YorkCitycalled J. Strauss Brother & Co. By1850, Strauss was calling himself Levi.The family decided to open a west coast branch of the family dry goods business inSan Francisco, which was the commercial hubof the California Gold Rush. Levi waschosen to represent the family, and after becoming an American citizen in January of1853, he got on a California-bound steamerwhich left New York for the isthmus ofPanama around February 5, 1853. He crossed the isthmus and then caught anothersteamship for San Francisco, arriving inearly March, 1853.

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Strauss opened his dry goodswholesale business asLevi Strauss & Co.and imported fine dry goods - clothing, bedding, combs, purses, handkerchiefs - from his brothersin New York. He sold the goods to the smallgeneral stores and men's mercantiles ofCalifornia and the West. Around 1856 Levi'ssister Fanny, her husband David Stern and their infant son Jacob moved from New Yorkto San Francisco to join the business.In late 1870 Jacob Davis, a Reno, Nevadatailor, started making men's work pantswith metal rivets at points of strain forgreater strength. He wanted to patent the process but needed a business partner, sohe turned to Levi Strauss, from whom he purchased some of his fabric. On May 20,1873, Strauss and Davis received United States patent #139121for usingcopper rivets to strengthen the pockets of denim work pants. Levi Strauss & Co. began manufacturing the famousLevi'sbrand ofjeans, using fabric from the Amoskeag Manufacturing Companyin Manchester, NewHampshire.In his later years Levi expanded thetradition of philanthropy which he had begun soon after his arrival in SanFrancisco. For example, he was a VicePresident of the Society for the Preventionof Cruelty to Children and gave money to anumber of disaster relief efforts, such asthe great Chicago Fire. In 1897 heestablished scholarships for poor studentsat the University of California, Berkeley.Levi Strauss died in 1902 at the age of 73.He never married, so he left the businessto his four nephews, Jacob, Sigmund, Louisand Abraham Stern, the sons of his sisterFanny and her husband David Stern. He alsoleft bequests to a number of charities suchas the Pacific Hebrew Orphan Asylum and theRoman Catholic Orphan Asylum. Levi'sfortune was estimated to be around 6 million dollars. He was buried inColma,California.

Benjamin Franklin

Franklin was a statesman, diplomat, writer,scientist and inventor, one of the mostversatile and talented men in colonial America and a leading figure in the American struggle for independence.

Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston on 17January 1706. He attended school only briefly, and then helped his father, whowas a candle and soap maker. He wasapprenticed to his brother, a printer, and began writing anonymously for his brother'snewspaper. However, Franklin and his brother quarrelled and in 1723 Franklin ranaway to Philadelphia. After 18 months inLondon, Franklin settled in Philadelphia,establishing himself as a printer. He bought the 'Pennsylvania Gazette', which heedited and which became one of the Americancolonies' major newspapers. He also wroteand published 'Poor Richard's Almanack', anastronomy journal.By 1748, Franklin had made enough money toretire from business and concentrate onscience and inventing. His inventionsincluded the Franklin stove and thelightning rod. He demonstrated thatlightning and electricity are identicalwith his famous kite experiment. Franklinalso became more active in politics. He wasclerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly (1736-51), a member of the Assembly (1750-64),and deputy postmaster for the Colonies(1753-1774), reorganising the postalservice to make it efficient and profitable.Franklin was also involved in many public projects, including founding the AmericanPhilosophical Society, a subscriptionlibrary and, in 1751, an academy whichlater became the University ofPennsylvania.From 1757 to 1774 Franklin lived mainly inLondon where he was the colonialrepresentative for Pennsylvania, Georgia, New Jersey and Massachusetts. His attemptsto reconcile the British government withthe colonies proved fruitless. On hisreturn to America, the war of independencehad already broken out and he threw himselfinto the struggle. In 1776 he helped todraft, and was then a signatory to, theDeclaration of Independence. Hisillegitimate son William, royal governor of New Jersey between 1762 and 1776, remained loyal to Britain, causing a rift thatlasted for the rest of Franklin's life.Later that year, Franklin and two otherswere appointed to represent America inFrance. Franklin negotiated the Franco- American Alliance which provided for military cooperation between the twocountries against Britain and ensured significant French subsidies to America. In1783, as American ambassador to France,Franklin signed the Treaty of Paris, endingthe American War of Independence. He wasextremely popular and well known in France, but in 1785 returned to America. Hecontinued to be deeply involved in politics, helping to draft theConstitution.Benjamin Franklin, (1706-1790),U.S.— the pointed lightning rod conductor, bifocalglasses, theFranklin stove, theglass harmonica

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