The Stachelschützenhaus in Basel, CH, that housed Daniel Bernoulli's Physics Cabinet - images: Gina Gunaratnam/EPS
Author: Gina Gunaratnam
On 22nd September, the former home of the Physics Cabinet of Daniel Bernoulli in Basel was inaugurated as an EPS Historic Site.
During
his time at the University of Basel, Daniel Bernoulli assembled a large
collection of demonstration experiments which he used for teaching and
public lectures. These were housed in the Stachelschützenhaus ("house of
the crossbow men"). The building is still used by the university and is
currently the centre for clinical virology.
The event started at
the University of Basel. Ernst Meyer, Friedrich-Karl Thielemann and
Philipp Treutlein, from the Department of Physics, welcomed the
participants.
Anne Pawsey, Secretary General of the European
Physical Society (EPS), introduced the Society and its Historic Sites
programme. She was followed by Martin Mattmüller, from the
Bernoulli-Euler Society, who described the life of Daniel Bernoulli in a
captivating presentation which included descriptions of the experiments
and quotations from attendees at his lectures.
Stephan Rosswog,
from the University of Hamburg and Stockholm University, showed how
Bernoulli’s theorem remains relevant in the extreme conditions of
neutron star mergers. Rossweg highlighted the importance of
multi-messenger astronomy to obtain sufficient complementary data, as
well as the enormous computational challenge of simulating these complex
processes across huge length and time scales.
After the lectures,
attendees walked to the nearby Stachelschützenhaus, where they were
introduced to the building's current use for research. The assembly
visited a part of the house before gathering in front of the plaque
describing Bernoulli's achievements and where he kept his physics
devices. Anne Pawsey and Philipp Treutlein officially distinguished the
house as the 6th EPS Historic Site in Switzerland.
More info
EPS Secretary General Anne Pawsey explaining the Historic Sites Programme
Martin Mattmüller from the Bernoulli-Euler Society
Stefan Rosswog from the University of Hamburg and Stockholm University
The participants in front of the Stachelschützenhaus
Anne Pawsey and Philipp Treutlein officially inaugurating the new Swiss EPS Historic Site
The plaque in front of the Stachelschützenhaus
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