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Early Life
Ernst Mach began his philosophical journey at the early age of seventeen attending the University of Vienna in 1855. Here he took an interest in physiology under his teacher Johannes Müller who had started a new school of physiology in the 1840s. Though Mach's degree was in physics, during this period he attended school as a student in the medical faculty. In 1861 he became a professor for medical students publishing his first book Compendium der Physik für Mediciner. -
The Doppler Theroy
The changes in frequency as a source moves closer or further away from an observer. Considered one of Mach's first major contributions in 1860 he devised a simple mechanism that proved that this theory was real. Constructing a six-foot tube with a whistle attached at one end and that the tube rotated on its vertical axis. Observers who stood within the plane of the axis of rotation heard no changes in pitch. However, if they stood in the plane of rotation changes in pitch could then be heard. -
Mach Bands and Evolutionary Theroy
From 1864 to 1867 Mach accepted a chair in mathematics at the University of Graz. For the first time, Mach carried out his own experiments and research. Utilizing the Evolutionary theory, he conducted his research in Mach Bands which is the optical illusion where dark and light bands appear on the edges where gradient scales meet. He explained that the information is pre-processed before being sent to our brains giving a new perspective on how our brains process the information that we see. -
The Speed of Sound
From 1867 to 1895 he attended The Charles Prague University as a Professor in Experimental Physics. It was during this time he made his most famous contribution to science in the study of supersonic aerodynamics. In 1887 he delivered his paper to the Academy of Sciences in Vienna showcasing a shockwave produced by a bullet traveling faster than the speed of sound. His name then became associated with his formula on the ratio of the speed of an object to the speed of sound in a given medium. -
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Image Citation
Staley, Richard. “Ernst Mach on Bodies and Buckets.” Physics Today, American Institute of PhysicsAIP, 1 Dec. 2013, https://physicstoday.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/PT.3.2214. Contributions of Ernst Mach to Fluid Mechanics - Narod.ru. http://gidropraktikum.narod.ru/contributions-of-Mach.pdf.
Pojman, Paul. “Ernst Mach.” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Stanford University, 3 Mar. 2019, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ernst-mach/. -
Image Citation (Cont.)
“Ask US - Ernst Mach and Mach Number.” Aerospaceweb.org | Ask Us - Ernst Mach and Mach Number, http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/history/q0149.shtml. Macias, Amanda. “11 Photos of America's Fighter Jets Breaking the Sound Barrier.” Business Insider, Business Insider, https://www.businessinsider.com/fighter-jets-breaking-sound-barrier-2016-3. -
Works Cited
Pojman, Paul. “Ernst Mach.” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Stanford University, 3 Mar. 2019, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ernst-mach/. “Ask US - Ernst Mach and Mach Number.” Aerospaceweb.org | Ask Us - Ernst Mach and Mach Number, http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/history/q0149.shtml.
