Simon Newcomb
Simon Newcomb
Simon Newcombwas a Canadian-American astronomer, applied mathematician and autodidactic polymath, who was Professor of Mathematics in the U.S. Navy and at Johns Hopkins...
NationalityCanadian
ProfessionMathematician
Date of Birth12 March 1835
CountryCanada
arrived berlin circle event history occurred transit
In October, 1865, occurred what was, in my eyes, the greatest event in the history of the observatory. The new transit circle arrived from Berlin in its boxes.
carried circle existing far forward latter pursued transit work
In the latter part of 1869 I had carried forward the work with the transit circle as far as it could be profitably pursued under existing conditions.
consider declined due looking suggestion toward western
A suggestion had been made to me looking toward a professorship in some Western college, but after due consideration, I declined to consider the matter.
class cope flight men problems
Aerial flight is one of that class of problems with which men will never have to cope
greatly halfway prevent traveled
Astronomers are greatly disappointed when, having traveled halfway around the world to see an eclipse, clouds prevent a sight of it; and yet a sense of relief accompanies the disappointment.
admiral charge continued davis death retirement returned sands until
On the retirement of Admiral Sands in 1874, Admiral Davis returned to the observatory, and continued in charge until his death in February, 1877.
age district lived mile passed school summer town
In the summer of 1851, when I had passed the age of sixteen, we lived in a little school district a mile or two from the town of Yarmouth, N. S.
dreaming national pay summer vacation visit
In 1854 I availed myself of my summer vacation to pay my first visit to the national capital, little dreaming that it would ever be my home.
activity chicago director fire forced great pursue work
The great fire practically put an end to the activity of the Chicago Observatory and forced its director to pursue his work in other fields.
prayer men knives
When about fifteen I once made a great scandal by taking out my knife in prayer meeting and assaulting a young man who, while I was kneeling down during the prayer, stood above me and squeezed my neck.
years annapolis naval
A few years later the Naval Academy was founded at Annapolis, and a similar course was pursued to provide it with a corps of instructors.
powerful giving earth
Ten decimal places of π are sufficient to give the circumference of the earth to a fraction of an inch, and thirty decimal places would give the circumference of the visible universe to a quantity imperceptible to the most powerful microscope.
men discovery flight
Construction of an aerial vehicle which can carry even a single man . . . requires the discovery of some new metal or force. Even with such a discovery, we could not expect one to do more than carry its owner.
teacher school training
What we now call school training, the pursuit of fixed studies at stated hours under the constant guidance of a teacher, I could scarcely be said to have enjoyed.