If you missed the ESA-IEJ Joint Symposium at Stanford this June, you missed a lot. The warmth of the attendees and the friendliness of the information exchanges at ESA meetings are well known. The international community was well represented, and it was especially heartwarming to have the Institute of Electrostatics Japan (IEJ) as the joint host of the Stanford meeting. All the presentations and demonstrations helped advance the many diverse areas of electrostatics.
The ESA owes a special thanks to the IEJ. The IEJ was the impetus for the creation of the ESA's Annual Meeting Proceedings. Prior to four years ago the ESA had been an organization that existed without any written documentation on its meetings. Although this allowed the ESA members who attended an annual meeting access to the information of that meeting, it did little to transfer the information to ESA members who could not attend. Four years ago we held the first ESA-IEJ Joint Conference on Electrostatics. For IEJ members to attend any meeting they are required to have a written record. As a result, the ESA had to come up with the proceedings of that first ESA-IEJ meeting. Thanks to Joe and Barb Crowley and Laplacian Press, the ESA was able to supply that first written record. Since those times the ESA Proceedings have been part of our ESA Annual Meeting. With the ESA Proceedings we have the best of all worlds. A talk can be given as a full written paper, as an abstract-only presentation or as a title-only presentation. In the Proceedings the full papers and the abstracts are published, and this allows the rest of the ESA Membership access to the content of the meeting. I would suggest that anyone who missed the Stanford meeting contact The Electrostatic Source (see information inside this Newsletter) and order a copy of the Proceedings. In fact, anyone who works in electrostatics would be wise to request that their company subscribe to these Proceedings on an annual basis.
As ESA President I want to express my sincere thanks to all who attended the ESA-IEJ Symposium and to extend a special thanks to Joe and Barb Crowley for all their efforts in making this symposium so successful. I also want to thank Humphrey Wong and the members of his Awards Committee as well as all those who nominated the many exceptional people for awards. Special congratulations go to those who were honored (see details inside Newsletter): Bernard Vonnegut, Ed Law, Emery Miller and Jeremy Ahern. Their contributions to electrostatics are an inspiration to all of us.
For the Friendly Society,
Al Seaver
Four people were recognized this year with ESA Awards at the ESA/IEJ Joint Symposium Banquet, held on June 25, 1998.
The Teacher of the Year Award was presented to Jeremy C. Ahern of Edge Grove, Aldenham Village, U.K. At Edge Grove, Jeremy teaches the full range of sciences up to 13-14 year olds, and has often used Electrostatics in his demonstrations to generate enthusiasm in his students. From building van de Graaf generators to performing experiments with "water boules," Jeremy is well-known for his ability to bring electrostatics alive for his audiences. Earlier in the day, the symposium was treated to a series of demonstrations by both Tom Jones (of the University of Rochester) and Jeremy. Many of us had the chance to see water boules and their behavior under electric fields for the first time. Along with the plaque, Jeremy was also awarded $500 in bills prominently displaying an earlier ESA Award winner, Benjamin Franklin.
Two Lifetime Achievement Awards were also presented. One was given to Emery Miller for his many contributions in the area of Electrostatic Finishing and one to S. Edward Law for his skillful application of Electrostatics in the field of Agricultural Engineering.
Emery has published numerous articles, given talks, and was granted over 20 US patents and many corresponding foreign patents relating to methods and apparatus for electrostatic finishing. He started his career as a physics instructor and became an assistant professor of physics at Purdue. After several years of consulting with Harold Ransburg in developing the first practical electrostatic spraying process, he joined a company that later became the Ransburg Corporation and in 1943 was named its Director of R&D. In 1956, he became Vice President, R&D for Ransburg Corp and was elected to the Board of Directors where he served until his retirement in 1973. Emery is a past president of the ESA as well as of the Association of Finishing Processes. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers and is a Fellow of that Society.
Ed Law is the author of 20 refereed publications, holds 4 US patents, 1 US patent pending, and 1 Canadian Patent, and has given many presentations for the ESA, IEEE-IAS, and others in the application of Electrostatics in Agricultural Engineering. This is an area he has practically created over the years and to which he continues to contribute as Brooks Distinguished Professor at the University of Georgia, Athens, GA. He is a Fellow of the IEEE-IAS and the American Society of Agricultural Engineers as well as being elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering. He has received Inventor of the Year Award and the Creative Research Medal from the University of Georgia Research Foundation, and has received seven ASAE and IEEE Superior Awards for research publications. Last year, he was the organizing chairman for the 25th Annual Meeting for the ESA and serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Electrostatics. Finally, Bernard ("Bernie") Vonnegut entered the ESA Hall of Fame (Part II) for promoting interest in Electrostatics, particularly in the community where he was known and loved for his iconoclastic ideas --- Atmospheric Science.
Bernie was an atmospheric scientist who, at the start of his long career, invented cloud-seeding with silver iodide crystals during his work at GE, Schenectady. Later, at Arthur Little and as a professor at the State University of NY at Albany and the Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, he took on the mantle of "gentle iconoclast" as he proposed and argued the merits of his theory of convective cloud electrification, which at the time was considered nearly heretical. His observations and hypotheses sparked an active debate which added significantly to the area of Atmospheric Electricity. Through his life, Bernie published over 190 refereed papers, most of them on one aspect or another of the role of electrostatics in defining our planet's weather, whether it was thunderstorms, tornadoes, or even volcanic eruptions. He also received 28 patents for various types of instrumentation. He was a Charter Member of the ESA and his signature appears on the original incorporation papers for our organization. He served as a member of the USAF Scientific Advisory Board, was named Distinguished Research Professor by the State University of NY at Albany, and helped establish the National Center for Atmospheric Research. Bernie passed away on April 25, 1997, but he is still well-remembered and well-loved by those who knew him.
Please join me in offering warm congratulations to our ESA Award winners of 1998!
Humphrey Wong
My experience with electrostatics over the years has taught me that (1) when two bodies that have been close together for some time are separated a shock will be experienced; (2) that the magnitude of the shock will be directly proportional to the magnitude of the separation; (3) that the reason for the shock is not always completely understood; (4) the occurrence of the shock usually is described as having something to do with electrostatics. When Bill Smart, upon his return from the recent Electrostatic Conference in California, handed me the plaque which the Members of ESA had awarded to me I was shocked, pleased and rightly appreciative. It was not until later that I fully realized just how appropriate my shock had been. Certainly the two bodies, myself and the members of ESA, had been close for some time and now were in a sense separated since I had not attended the Conferences for some time and had recently given up my job as Sect.-Treas. We were also separated, distance wise, by some thousands of miles, which would account for the size of the shock.
Certainly I did not fully understand the reason that had prompted the award and so the shock. Lastly as is usually the case the shock was certainly connected with electrostatics. QED the shock was real, large and met all the criteria of a shock. Now I want to express to the members of ESA my appreciation for extending this award to me. I would ask only that when the matter is discussed that everyone realizes that such awards are made to individuals but are really earned by many others who have contributed from behind the scenes. We can reach higher if we have someone to give us a boost.
Emery Miller
I have often wondered if Franklin had ever received a shock when he was carrying out his early electrical experiments. My wonderings were answered recently when I came upon the following quotation from his writings.
In 1750 during which time he was experimenting with Leyden jars he wrote about an experience he had just before Christmas. "Being about to kill a turkey by the shock from two large glass jars, containing so much electrical fire as forty common phials, I inadvertently took the whole through my own arms and body, by receiving the fire from the united top wires with one hand while the other held a chain connected with the outsides of both jars. The company present (whose talking to me, and to one another, I suppose occasioned my inattention to what I was about) say that the flash was very great and the crack as loud as a pistol; yet, my senses being instantly gone, I neither saw the one nor heard the other; nor did I feel the stroke on my hand.... I then felt what I know not well how to describe: a universal blow throughout my whole body from head to foot, which seemed within as well as without; after which the first thing I took notice of was a violent quick shaking of my body, which gradually remitting, my sense as gradually returned That part of my hand and fingers which held the chain was left white, as though the blood had been driven out, and remained so eight or ten minutes after, feeling like dead flesh; and I had a numbness in my arms and in the back of my neck which continued till the next morning but wore off....I am ashamed to have been guilty of so notorious a blunder; a match for that of the Irishman who, being about to steal powder, made a hole in the cask with a hot iron.
It was comforting to learn that even the great Dr. Franklin could, and did, do the same thing that I have done myself on occasion. I am forced to wonder further if he finally got around to preparing the turkey. In all fairness I hope he did, but on the other hand I feel certain that there may have been one of his friends who hastened away tot try to find financing for the manufacture of his "New Electric Turkey Killer"....or maybe his friends were not so modern minded.
Emery Miller
If you missed the Stanford conference you can still keep up with the latest developments. A copy of the 436 pages of the proceedings of the 1998 ESA-IEJ Joint Symposium on Electrostatics can be purchased from the Electrostatic Source (phone: 408-779-7774, fax: 408-779-3638, email: electro@electrostatic.com) for a cost of only $30.00.
Mark your calendars. The 27th Annual ESA Meeting will be held at Boston University, Boston, MA, June 23-25,1999.
The February 11,1998 issue of the London Times carried the headline, "Remains of ten bodies at Ben Franklin's home". ESA member Jeremy C. Ahern sent a clipping of the article to Anne S. Benninghoff, who sent a copy to us. It ran as follows:
Workmen have dug up the remains of ten bodies hidden beneath the former London home of Benjamin Franklin, the founding father of American Independence.
The remains of four adults and six children were discovered during the A31.9 million restoration of Franklin's home at 36 Craven Street, close to Trafalgar Square. Researchers believe that there could be more bodies buried beneath the basement kitchens.
Initial estimates are that the bones are about 200 years old and were buried at the time Franklin was living in the house, which was his home from 1757 to 1762, and from 1764 to 1775. Most of the bones show signs of having been dissected, sawn or cut. One skull has been drilled with several holes. Paul Knapman, the Westminster coroner, said yesterday: "1 cannot totally discount the possibility of a crime. There is still a possibility that I may have to hold an inquest."
The principal suspect in the mystery is William Hewson, like Franklin a Fellow of the Royal Society, and the husband of Polly Stevenson, the daughter of Franklin's landlady, Mary Stevenson.
In the early 1770s Dr Hewson was in partnership with William Hunter, who, with his brother John, was one of the founders of British surgery. Dr Hunter and Dr Hewson ran a school of anat~ my in Soho, but after an argument Dr Hewson left to live in Franklin's house, where he is believed to have established a rival school and lecture 'theatre. Dr Knapman added yesterday: "It is most likely that these are anatomical specimens that Dr Hewson disposed of in his own house, but we are still not certain about the bones' exact age or origin."
Evangeline Hunter-Jones, deputy chairman of the Friends of Benjamin Franklin House, the charity concerned with restoring the property and opening it to the public, said: "The bones were quite deeply buried, probably to hide them because grave robbing was illegal. There could be more buried, and there probably are."
Brian Owen Smith has volunteered to lead researches on behalf of the friends. He said yesterday: "The discovery represents an important insight into very exciting years of medical history. Benjamin Franklin, through his support for Polly and Dr Hewson. socially and scientifically, was very much part of that"
To the suggestion that Franklin might have been a grave robber, or an accomplice to Dr Hewson, Hilaire Dubourcq, of the Friends of Benjamin Franklin House, responded: "It is possible that he has an alibi. It seems likely that he actually let Dr Hewson have use of the whole house for his school for a time, and went up the street to live with Mary Stevenson. He did not necessarily know what was happening below stairs in the house during his absence."
Dr Hewson fell victim to his own researches at an early age. He accidentally cut himself while dissecting a putrid body, contracted septicemia and died in 1774, aged 34.
Franklin, who wrote the opening words to the Declaration of Independence, continued to support the widowed Polly, and when he returned to Philadelphia he invited her there to live as his neighbour Both her sons became eminent medical men, as have successive generations of Hewsons in America.
If the first Dr Hewson did obtain bodies for his experiments and demonstrations by robbing local graveyards, he risked the death penalty or deportation. He might have had the help of his students in secretly burying the remain beneath the four-storey house where the dissections may have been performed.
It is hoped to reopen the house to the public at the end of the year. Regular visitors during Franklin's residency included Pitt the Elder (the Earl of Chatham), Edmund Burke, James Boswell, Adam Smith and Thomas Paine, the author of The Rights of Man
Jay Hennigan who is not an ESA member found our address on our home page and has a question he hopes one of our members can help him with. He writes as follows." I have just acquired a rather interesting US Navy surplus electrostatic demo kit. This item is in a wooden box with black imitation leather covering (much like the early Zenith T-O radios, Kickock tube testers, etc.).
It has a high voltage generator (tube type), numerous metal spheres for corona discharge demonstration, plastic rods, thread, a little spinner, and other items. It appears to have been made in the early 1950s judging from the tubes. The unit was apparently made as some type of training or demonstration kit, and has the following nomenclature:
ELECTROSTATIC KIT
NAVPERS 70126
CONTRACT N8sp 3180
PARKER ENGINEERING PROD. CO.
Has anyone ever seen this or a similar unit? Any source for a manual or other documentation as to the demonstrations and experiments it was intended for? The kit appears to be complete except for the documentation, and in really good shape. It is an intriguing piece of equipment, and I'd like to fix it up for one of the local schools where my wife is a teacher."
If you can help, contact Jay at jay@west.net or 1-805-884-6323.
Much thanks to Professor Inan who gave ESA members at our annual conference at Stanford University a grand tour of the STAR Labs (Space, Telecommunications and Radioscience Laboratory). It was complete with whistlers recorded at the Antarctic stations.
He is the author of the just published book, Fundamentals of Electromagnetics, ISBN 0-8053-4423-3 by Addison Welsey Press which includes a chapter on Electrostatics.
We understand that Professor Inan is planning to join the ESA and perhaps will keep us updated on his research through our Annual Conferences. and the Newsletter.
Anne S. Benninghoff
In rain's domain, hell's fire doth reign
Clouds rent burning from electrons blown astray
Separated from their more massive mates
Demanding reunion in a thunderous way.
Lightning forks the hapless clouds
Like tender, floating, morsels-to-be
Plucked down and around off Heaven's plate
And swirled like spaghetti into funnel shapes.
Oh, which the creator and which the created?
The debate roars on..
Lightning or rain, droplets or thunder?
Who's to say in a whirling dance
Of black clouds waltzing in sunset red,
Who is the leader...and who, the led?
Dedicated to the memory of Bernard "Bernie" Vonnegut
Locating historical physics collections is now easier thanks to the recent launch of the World Wide Web version of ICOS, the international Catalog of Sources for History of Physics and Allied Sciences. Prepared by the American Institute of Physics' Center for History of Physics, ICOS lists information on over 500 repositories of the worlds historical scientific documents. The catalog can be reached at http://www.aip.org/history/ Additional information is available via e-mail at nb@aip.org
The 20th Annual International EOS/ESD Symposium And Exhibits will be held in Reno, NV on October 4-8, 1998. For information contact: 1998 EOS/ESD Symposium, 7900 Turin Rd., Bldg. 3, Suite 2, Rome, NY 13440-2069, Phone; 315-339-6937, Fax: 315-339-6793.