Hermann von Helmholtz

31 August 1821 – 8 September 1894

Hermann von Helmholtz (1821-1894) was a German physicist and physician who made landmark contributions to physiology, optics, acoustics, and thermodynamics. He gave one of the first rigorous formulations of the conservation of energy, invented the ophthalmoscope, and became one of the most influential scientific figures of nineteenth-century Germany.

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Life events

Born in Potsdam, Prussia
31 August 1821

Hermann Ludwig Ferdinand Helmholtz was born in Potsdam, the son of a gymnasium teacher.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Studied medicine in Berlin
1838 – 1842

Helmholtz trained as a physician at the Friedrich Wilhelm Institute for Medicine and Surgery in Berlin, studying under physiologist Johannes Mueller, and received his medical doctorate in 1842.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Published 'Ueber die Erhaltung der Kraft'
1847

In his treatise 'On the Conservation of Force', Helmholtz gave a general mathematical formulation of the principle of conservation of energy.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Appointed professor of physiology at Koenigsberg
1849 – 1855

Helmholtz became associate professor of physiology at the University of Koenigsberg, where he measured the speed of nerve impulses.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Invented the ophthalmoscope
1851

Helmholtz invented the ophthalmoscope, an instrument for examining the interior of the eye, which revolutionized ophthalmology.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Moved to the University of Heidelberg
1858 – 1871

Helmholtz became professor of physiology at Heidelberg, where he completed his 'Handbook of Physiological Optics' and his major work on the sensation of tone.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Published 'On the Sensations of Tone'
1863

His treatise on acoustics and the physiological basis of music theory became a foundational work in the science of hearing.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Appointed professor of physics in Berlin
1871

Helmholtz took the chair of physics at the University of Berlin, turning fully to physics and training students including Heinrich Hertz and Max Planck.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Became first president of the Physikalisch-Technische Reichsanstalt
1888

Helmholtz was appointed founding president of the German imperial institute for physics and metrology in Charlottenburg.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Died in Charlottenburg, Germany
8 September 1894

Helmholtz died in Charlottenburg near Berlin following a stroke.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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