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Hermann von Helmholtz Birth
Hermann von Helmholtz was born on August 31st 1821 in Potsdam a Kingdom of Prussia. His father studied classical philology and philosophy. -
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Hermann von Helmholtz
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His First Important Scientific Achievement
He discovered the principle of conservation of energy while studying muscle metabolism. He tried to show that no energy is lost in muscle movement, motivated by the implication that there were no vital forces necessary to move a muscle. But it was not accepted beacause people didn't want to stop believing in in an old tradition that was popular. -
Fast Nerves
In 1849, while at Königsberg, Helmholtz measured the speed at which the signal is carried along a nerve fibre. At that time most people believed that nerve signals passed along nerves immeasurably fast. -
Famous in the Eyes
In 1851, Helmholtz revolutionized the field of ophthalmology with the invention of the ophthalmoscope; an instrument used to examine the inside of the human eye. This made him world famous overnight. -
Book of Physics
In 1863 Helmholtz published Die Lehre von den Tonempfindungen als physiologische Grundlage für die Theorie der Musik (On the Sensations of Tone as a Physiological Basis for the Theory of Music), once again demonstrating his interest in the physics of perception. -
Electric Phenomena
Helmholtz von Helmholtz started to focus on the study of the phenomena of electrical oscillations. -
Electric Lecture
In in a lecture delivered to the Nat. Hist. Med. Ver. at Heidelberg on April 30, 1869 titled On Electrical Oscillations he indicated that the perceptible damped electrical oscillations in a coil joined up with a Leyden jar were about 1/50th of a second in duration. -
Electric Speed
In 1871 he announced that the velocity of the propagation of electromagnetic induction was about 314,000 meters per second.
Helmholtz resonator was also created to identify various frequencies or musical pitches -
Professor of Physics
In 1871 Helmholtz moved from Heidelberg to Berlin to become a professor in physics. He became interested in electromagnetism and the Helmholtz equation is named for him. Although he did not make major contributions to this field, his student Heinrich Rudolf Hertz became famous as the first to demonstrate electromagnetic radiation. -
Death of a Scientist
Hermann von Helmholtz died on September 8, 1894 at the age of 73 in Berlin, Germany
