Background
Crowe, Michael John was born on March 18, 1936 in Minneapolis. Son of Michael Patrick and Claire (Huesman) Crowe.
( "There isn't an uninteresting page in it. It is a maste...)
"There isn't an uninteresting page in it. It is a masterly review of an intriguing subject, erudite and entertaining, clear and all-encompassing reading for anyone interested in 'one of the most wondrous and noble questions in nature' ― does extraterrestrial life exist?" ― New Scientist. Are we alone in the universe? Are there other beings on other worlds who gaze into the night sky and try to imagine us, as we try to imagine them? Those questions have been debated since antiquity, but it was during the Enlightenment that they particularly began to engage the interest of prominent scientists and thinkers. In this fascinating volume, Professor Michael Crowe offers the first in-depth study in English of the international debate that developed between 1750 and 1900 concerning the existence of extraterrestrial life, a problem that engaged an extraordinary variety of Western thinkers across the spectrum of intellectual endeavor. Astronomers such as Herschel, Bode, Lalande, and Flammarion all weighed in, along with French philosophers Rousseau and Voltaire, American patriot Thomas Paine, Scots churchman Thomas Chalmers, and a host of others. Professor Crowe gives them all their say, as they address the question as a point of science, as a problem of philosophy, as well as a religious issue. The book ends with the "discovery" by Schiaparelli of the canals of Mars, the expansion of the canal theory by the American astronomer Percival Lowell, and the culmination of the canal controversy with the demonstration of its illusory nature. "Crowe's book is lucid and rich in historical detail. His analysis is so fascinating and his comments on the contemporary debate so pertinent that The Extraterrestrial Life Debate can be recommended for the thoughtful reader without reservation. While a model of scholarly analysis, it has the unusual virtue of reading with the excitement of high adventure." ― Sky & Telescope.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/048640675X/?tag=2022091-20
( This book provides an introduction to the fundamentals ...)
This book provides an introduction to the fundamentals of stellar astronomy, a history of astronomy, and an account of how the science of astronomy challenged traditional philosophical and theological beliefs. Throughout the text are readings from the writings of scientists who contributed most significantly to the development of astronomy.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486278808/?tag=2022091-20
( This newly revised edition of Professor Crowe's accessi...)
This newly revised edition of Professor Crowe's accessible and enlightening book recreates one of the most dramatic developments in the history of thought: the change from an earth-centered to a sun-centered conception of the solar system. Written in a clear and straightforward manner, the work is organized around a hypothetical debate: Given the evidence available in 1615, which planetary system (Ptolemaic, Copernican, Tychonic, etc.) was most deserving of support? Beginning with an introductory chapter on celestial motions, Dr. Crowe proceeds to a discussion of Greek astronomy before Ptolemy, mathematical techniques used by ancient astronomers, the Ptolemaic system, the Copernican and Tychonic systems, and the contributions of Kepler and Galileo. In an epilogue, quotes from writers, philosophers, and scientists reveal the impact of Copernican thought on their work. Easily within the reach of anyone with a background in high school mathematics, this absorbing study offers a sound introduction to our solar system and an opportunity to relive one of the most momentous periods in intellectual history.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486414442/?tag=2022091-20
( On October 16, 1843, Sir William Rowan Hamilton discove...)
On October 16, 1843, Sir William Rowan Hamilton discovered quaternions and, on the very same day, presented his breakthrough to the Royal Irish Academy. Meanwhile, in a less dramatic style, a German high school teacher, Hermann Grassmann, was developing another vectorial system involving hypercomplex numbers comparable to quaternions. The creations of these two mathematicians led to other vectorial systems, most notably the system of vector analysis formulated by Josiah Willard Gibbs and Oliver Heaviside and now almost universally employed in mathematics, physics and engineering. Yet the Gibbs-Heaviside system won acceptance only after decades of debate and controversy in the latter half of the nineteenth century concerning which of the competing systems offered the greatest advantages for mathematical pedagogy and practice. This volume, the first large-scale study of the development of vectorial systems, traces he rise of the vector concept from the discovery of complex numbers through the systems of hypercomplex numbers created by Hamilton and Grassmann to the final acceptance around 1910 of the modern system of vector analysis. Professor Michael J. Crowe (University of Notre Dame) discusses each major vectorial system as well as the motivations that led to their creation, development, and acceptance or rejection. The vectorial approach revolutionized mathematical methods and teaching in algebra, geometry, and physical science. As Professor Crowe explains, in these areas traditional Cartesian methods were replaced by vectorial approaches. He also presents the history of ideas of vector addition, subtraction, multiplication, division (in those systems where it occurs) and differentiation. His book also contains refreshing portraits of the personalities involved in the competition among the various systems. Teachers, students, and practitioners of mathematics, physics, and engineering as well as anyone interested in the history of scientific ideas will find this volume to be well written, solidly argued, and excellently documented. Reviewers have described it a s "a fascinating volume," "an engaging and penetrating historical study" and "an outstanding book (that) will doubtless long remain the standard work on the subject." In 1992 it won an award for excellence from the Jean Scott Foundation of France.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486679101/?tag=2022091-20
Crowe, Michael John was born on March 18, 1936 in Minneapolis. Son of Michael Patrick and Claire (Huesman) Crowe.
Bachelor, Bachelor of Science, University Notre Dame, 1958. Doctor of Philosophy, University Wisconsin, 1965.
Instructor program of liberal studies, U. Notre Dame, 1961-1965; assistant professor, U. Notre Dame, 1965-1967; associate professor, U. Notre Dame, 1967-1973; professor, U. Notre Dame, since 1973. Visiting scholar Cambridge (England) University, 1986-1987.
( This newly revised edition of Professor Crowe's accessi...)
( This book provides an introduction to the fundamentals ...)
( On October 16, 1843, Sir William Rowan Hamilton discove...)
( "There isn't an uninteresting page in it. It is a maste...)
Member Beginning Experience, South Bend, Indiana, 1990. Member History of Science Society, Midwest History of Science Society (president 1980), Phi Beta Kappa.
Married Mary Ellen Boppart, June 7, 1958 (divorced March 1990). Children: Patricia, Michael Thomas, Timothy, Catherine. Married Marian Taylor, January 2, 1994.