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Science on Tap: Bringing Physics to Physicians
September 14, 2009
Robert Hicks, Director, Mütter Museum and Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
“Bringing Physics to Physicians”
The cabinet of mementos, a “repository of historic souvenirs,” was assembled a century ago. It is part of the Mütter Museum’s collection but remains in the vestibule of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, a thing apart from other collections. The cabinet includes objects like a quartz piezo-electric apparatus presented by Marie Curie and made by Pierre Curie. Hicks argues that Dr. Robert Abbe, a Fellow of the College, who assembled the mementos, sought the Curie instrument to enhance his own standing as a pioneer in radiotherapy, and to signal to the medical professions the importance of radioactive substances to the 20th century physician’s repertoire of tools and techniques. Abbe held radiotherapy as the most important new area of medical research for the 20th century. The Curie memento may be the earliest surviving instrument to measure radioactivity.
This month’s Science on Tap is presented by the Mütter Museum of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia.
SCIENCE ON TAP
Eat. Drink. Science.
Who: Everyone you know or don’t yet know
What: Real Scientists. Real Conversations. Real Bar.
Where: National Mechanics
When: The second Monday of every month at 6:00 p.m.
Science on Tap is a monthly science café in Philadelphia for anyone who is interested in getting together with other people to discuss a range of engaging science topics. Held at the landmark National Mechanics Bar and Restaurant (22 South Third Street), a relaxed, convivial bar in Old City, Science on Tap features a brief, informal presentation by a leading scientist or other expert, followed by lively conversation. The goal is to promote enthusiasm for science in a fun, spirited, and accessible way, while also meeting new people.
Science on Tap is the hip hops creation of five of Philly’s most venerable science institutions— the APS Museum, The Academy of Natural Sciences, the Chemical Heritage Foundation, the Mütter Museum of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, and the Wagner Free Institute of Science. Science On Tap will convene on the second Monday of every month and the museums will rotate responsibility for choosing the evening’s star speaker.
Science for what ales you
The science café movement began in Leeds, England in 1998 when a local pub decided to foment a new kind of barroom brawl—a scientific debate. The idea took off as a unique way to advance public understanding of science. Now, there are locations from Maine to California where, for the price of a beer or a glass of wine or a cup of coffee, anyone can discuss scientific ideas with leading experts in their fields and learn about developments that are changing our lives.
