Marie Boas Hall (October 18, 1919 – February 23, 2009) was a historian of science and is considered one of the postwar period pioneers of the study of the
Scientific Revolution
The Scientific Revolution was a series of events that marked the emergence of modern science during the early modern period, when developments in mathematics, physics, astronomy, biology (including human anatomy) and chemistry transfo ...
during the 16th and 17th centuries.
Biography and career
Marie Boas was born in
Springfield, Massachusetts.
[.] She graduated from
Radcliffe College in 1940. During World War II, she worked in the
MIT Radiation Laboratory
The Radiation Laboratory, commonly called the Rad Lab, was a microwave and radar research laboratory located at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was first created in October 1940 and operated until 31 ...
with
Henry Guerlac in writing the history of the laboratory and of the operational use of
radar
Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...
during the war.
She continued her work with Guerlac at
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...
and received her PhD in 1949. Her thesis covered the mechanical philosophy of
Robert Boyle
Robert Boyle (; 25 January 1627 – 31 December 1691) was an Anglo-Irish natural philosopher, chemist, physicist, alchemist and inventor. Boyle is largely regarded today as the first modern chemist, and therefore one of the founders of ...
and was published in the history of science journal ''
Osiris
Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wsjr'', cop, ⲟⲩⲥⲓⲣⲉ , ; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎𐤓, romanized: ʾsr) is the god of fertility, agriculture, the afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He wa ...
'' in 1952.
She then took a teaching position at the
University of Massachusetts
The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medical ...
before subsequently moving to
Brandeis University
, mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts"
, established =
, type = Private research university
, accreditation = NECHE
, president = Ronald D. Liebowitz
, ...
.
Marie Boas went to England from the US, "to work on Robert Boyle
Robert Boyle (; 25 January 1627 – 31 December 1691) was an Anglo-Irish natural philosopher, chemist, physicist, alchemist and inventor. Boyle is largely regarded today as the first modern chemist, and therefore one of the founders of ...
's papers, and met Hall, who was working on Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a " natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the grea ...
's. In 1957 she returned to the University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California S ...
; and in 1959 Hall, whose first marriage had ended in divorce, joined her there and they were married. Two years later they went to Indiana University
Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana.
Campuses
Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI.
*Indiana Universi ...
. In 1963 they were invited back to London, to Imperial College, where Hall became the first professor of the history of science and she senior lecturer. There they trained many graduate students."
She was elected a Fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...
in 1955.
She won the
George Sarton Medal
The George Sarton Medal is the most prestigious award given by the History of Science Society. It has been awarded annually since 1955. It is awarded to an historian of science from the international community who became distinguished for "a lifet ...
, the most prestigious award of the
History of Science Society
The History of Science Society (HSS) is the primary professional society for the academic study of the history of science. It was founded in 1924 by George Sarton, David Eugene Smith, and Lawrence Joseph Henderson, primarily to support the publi ...
, together with her husband
Alfred Rupert Hall in 1981.
Her older brother was mathematician
Ralph P. Boas, Jr.[Marie Boas Hall (1919-2009)](_blank)
, ''The Times'', 20 March 2009
Works
* ''Robert Boyle and Seventeenth-Century Chemistry.'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1958.
* ''The Scientific Renaissance, 1450-1630.'' New York: Harper, 1962.
* ''Robert Boyle on Natural Philosophy: An Essay, with Selections from His Writings.'' Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1965.
* ''Nature and Nature's Laws. Documents of the Scientific Revolution.'' London: Macmillan, 1970.
* ''The Mechanical Philosophy.'' New York: Arno Press, 1981.
* ''All Scientists Now: The Royal Society in the Nineteenth Century.'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
''Promoting Experimental Learning: Experiment and the Royal Society, 1660-1727.'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
* ''Henry Oldenburg: Shaping the Royal Society.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.
See also
*
History of science in the Renaissance
During the Renaissance, great advances occurred in geography, astronomy, chemistry, physics, mathematics, manufacturing, anatomy and engineering. The collection of ancient scientific texts began in earnest at the start of the 15th century and co ...
References
Sources
*
External links
Marie Boas Hall Microsoft Academic Search
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hall, Marie Boas
1919 births
2009 deaths
20th-century American historians
Brandeis University faculty
Cornell University alumni
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Indiana University faculty
Writers from Springfield, Massachusetts
Radcliffe College alumni
University of California, Los Angeles faculty
American women historians
20th-century American women writers
American historians of science
Fellows of the British Academy
Historians from Massachusetts
Historians from California