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Stent Technology
<P> Stents are tiny synthetic tubes that can be used to prop-open arteries or veins blocked due to surgery or disease, thus allowing for regular blood-flow. </P> <P> Boston Scientific's invention involved coating stents with drug-infused layers of polymer in order to deliver controlled amounts of the substance over time. While there have been a number of legal battles over the true owner of this technology, Boston Scientific continue to produce and sell their product the world-over. </P>
Image is present on following page(s): 20th Century Innovations
Stent Technology -
Female Aedus aegypti mosquito
<P> Adrian Stokes proved that mosquitoes such as this female Aedus aegypti were spreading Yellow Fever in affected areas of Africa. While there is still no true cure for the virus, this discovery led to the development of a vaccine that effectively saved tens of thousands of lives the world over. </P> <P> Image: <EM>Courtesy of <A HREF="http://www.cdc.gov">CDC</A> <P>
Image is present on following page(s): Taking a Pulse
Female Aedus aegypti mosquito -
George Boole
George Boole is best known as the inventor of boolean algebra, a logic based true/false theorem which, to this day, is a fundamental component in the world of both electronics and software programming. Originally from England, Boole moved to Ireland in 1944 to become professor of mathematics at Queen's College, Cork (now University College Cork) where he lived until his death in 1864.
Image is present on following page(s): Logic and Computers
George Boole -
The Birr Leviathon
<P> The great telescope had the biggest metal mirror ever cast: it measured 1.8 metres across and sat at the bottom of a wooden telescope tube that was over 16 metres long. The combined weight was 12 tonnes, and needed a complex system of counterweight, pulleys and chains to move it. </P> <P> Substantial walls were built to support and shelter the telescope and to hold the observing platforms and lifting mechanisms. Most of the work was done by local tradesmen, and the project probably cost several million euro in today's money. </P> <P> It remained the world's largest telescope until 1917, but its bulk made it hard to control and it was too clumsy to use with new instruments such as cameras, plus its location in Ireland's boggy midlands meant skies were seldom clear and the metal mirrors quickly tarnished. </P> <P> Birr telescope has been restored to working order, and the castle is open to the public. </P> <P> Pictured above is a sketch of the Birr Leviathon alongside that of the whirlpool nebula (as seen through it). </P>
Image: Courtesy of Offaly County Library
Image is present on following page(s): The World's Biggest Telescope
The Birr Leviathon -
Coffey's Still
This highly efficient distilling apparatus, invented by Aeneas Coffey in 1830, was the world's first heat-exchange device. Its principles are still used in the chemical industry.
Image is present on following page(s): Chemistry in Ireland
Coffey's Still -
The Rotunda Hospital
Dr Bartholomew Mosse (1712-59), was a surgeon and midwife born in Maryborough (now Portlaoise). He trained abroad, and returned determined to establish a lying-in and teaching hospital to treat Dublin women, rich and poor. His hospital opened in a small premises on South Great George's Street, which it quickly outgrew, so Mosse began campaigning for a larger premises: running lotteries (for which he was arrested), seeking donations, and holding fund-raising events (his fund benefited from the charity premiere of Handel's Messiah). In 1757 his New Lying-in Hospital, as it was called, opened in fine purpose-built premises, popularly known as the Rotunda, on account of its tower and cupola. Sadly, Mosse died two years later, penniless and exhausted. The new hospital, designed by architect Richard Cassells, had a pleasure garden, theatre and concert hall where the fundraising continued, to enable the hospital to treat poor women for free. The Rotunda had an international reputation for its midwifery training and attracted students from Britain, Europe, Russia and North America.
Image: © Rotunda Hospital
Image is present on following page(s): Maternity Care
The Rotunda Hospital -
First Taoiseach Éamon de Valera
One of the most significant developments in Irish physics in the 20th century was when then Taoiseach and former mathematics teacher Eamon de Valera (pictured) set up the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies in 1940.
Image is present on following page(s): 20th Century Physics
First Taoiseach Éamon de Valera -
Royal Dublin Society
This private society, still on the go, undertook initiatives that in other countries were the responsibility of government. It also helped establish numerous institutions such as the National Botanic Gardens, National Library, Natural History Museum, National College of Art and Design, the veterinary college, and even cancer radiation units and a marine research programme.
Image: Royal Dublin Society Buildings at Night (courtesy of the RDS)
Royal Dublin Society -
Irish Fossils
Mysterious fossils found at Bray Head in 1844 were the oldest in the world at the time. They are Oldhamia: small, trace fossils around 550 million years old. Some resemble fans and others fronds. They are now found around the world, and were probably made by small burrowing animals. The oldest fossil plants in the world were found in the Slieve Bloom mountains in the 1980s. These Cooksonia fossils (pictured above) are about 460 million years old, and date from the time when primitive plants were starting to colonise dry land. Fossils of the extinct giant deer, sometimes called the great Irish elk are frequently found in Ireland, though it is also found across Europe to Siberia. Important examples of early amphibians and fish were found in 1867 in coal deposits at Jarrow in Co Kilkenny.
Image: Courtesy of John Feehan
Image is present on following page(s): 19th Century
Irish Fossils -
The Grubb Twin Equatorial
An advertisement for a telescope designed by Sir Howard Grubb in 1887.
Image is present on following page(s): Telescope Makers to the Stars
The Grubb Twin Equatorial -
Boyle's Air Pump
Basing his pump on that of German scientist Otto von Guericke, Boyle completed his improved 'machina Boyleana' in 1659. His subsequent experiments on the properties of air led to the coining of 'Boyle's Law', describing the relationship between the volume and pressure of a gas. While the name stuck, this discovery was later attributed to another.
Image: Out of Copyright (first published 1660)
Image is present on following page(s): Boyle's Law
Boyle's Air Pump -
Rev Nicholas Callan (1799-1864)
An experimental priest and a pioneer of electro-magnetism, Callan was responsible for such devices as the Maynooth battery and the modern induction coil.
Image is present on following page(s): Chemistry in Ireland
Rev Nicholas Callan (1799-1864) -
Thomas Andrews (1813-1885)
Born in Belfast, Andrews was best known for his work with the liquefaction of gases.
Image is present on following page(s): Boyle's Law
Thomas Andrews (1813-1885) -
Markree Telescope
The telescope mounted at Markree in 1834 by Thomas Grubb, who went on to make telescopes for the world's greatest observatories. Markree Castle is now a hotel.
Image is present on following page(s): Irish Astronomers
Markree Telescope -
Whirlpool Galaxy
<P> This image of the Whirlpool Galaxy, taken in January 2005 by the Hubble Space Telescope, illustrates a spiral galaxy's grand design, from its curving spiral arms, where young stars reside, to its yellowish central core, a home of older stars. The galaxy is nicknamed the Whirlpool because of its swirling structure. </P> <P> Located 31 million light-years away in the constellation Canes Venatici (the Hunting Dogs), the Whirlpool's beautiful face-on view and closeness to Earth allow astronomers to study a classic spiral galaxy's structure and star-forming processes. </P> <P> Text:<EM> NASA, ESA, S. Beckwith (STScI), and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) <BR> </EM>Image:<EM> Courtesy of <A HREF="http://hubblesite.org/copyright/">ESA/NASA/STScI</A> </EM> </P>
Image is present on following page(s): Astronomy Today
Whirlpool Galaxy -
The Drumm Battery Train
Drumm battery trains were used on the Dublin-Bray route until 1949, when the batteries had reached the end of their life and cheap diesel had become available.
© Iarnród Éireann
Image is present on following page(s): Transport and Tourism
The Drumm Battery Train -
Women naturalists
In 19th century Ireland there were many women naturalists. They included Ellen Hutchins (1785-1815) an internationally recognised expert on lichens and non-flowering plants, despite suffering ill-health and dying young. Anne Ball (1808-72) specialised in marine plants, while her sister Mary (1812-98) concentrated on insects and was the first to report stridulation in water bugs. Maude Delap's (1866-1953) research shed light on the complex life cycle of jellyfish. Cynthia Longfield (1896-1991) was an international expert on dragonflies. <EM>Image: Yellow-winged Darter by André Karwath (sourced from <A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Sympetrum_flaveolum_-_side_%28aka%29.jpg">Wikipedia</A> under the <A HREF="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/">Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.5</A> license)</EM> </P>
Women naturalists -
Newgrange
Image of Newgrange, Co. Meath
Copyright Limerick County Library 2009
Newgrange -
The Parsons Family
<P> The Parsons were an inventive and enterprising family. William's wife, Mary Field, was a noted early photographer. Their son Laurence, fourth Earl of Rosse, inherited his father's love of astronomy and produced the first accurate measurements of the moon's temperature. </P> <P> Another son, Sir Charles, invented the steam turbine which revolutionised marine transport and naval warfare and made a cheap and plentiful electricity possible. His turbine design is still used in electricity generating stations. </P> <P> Pictured above is the restored Birr Leviathon, built by the Parsons and once the world's largest telescope. </P>
Image: Courtesy of the Birr Scientific and Heritage Foundation
The Parsons Family -
Royal Dublin Society
Photograph of the exterior of the Royal Dublin Society at night
Courtesy of the workshop disk
Royal Dublin Society -
Alexander Nimmo (1783 - 1832)
Alexander Nimmo was born in Fife, Scotland, in 1783. He moved to Ireland and worked for the Irish Bogs Commission and later the Irish Fisheries Board.
Courtesy of the National Science & Engineering Plaques Committee
Image is present on following page(s): Nimmo, Alexander
Alexander Nimmo (1783 - 1832) -
Royal Irish Academy
One of the first actions of the RIA was to spend £30 on barometers and thermometers for a network of weather stations around the country. The academy quickly established a reputation and its rollcall of members included many of the great names of the time, including Richard Lovell Edgeworth, Richard Kirwan (pictured) and later William Rowan Hamilton. Scientific projects it organised over the years included dredging expeditions to Rockall and bio-geographical surveys of Clare Island.
Image: Richard Kirwan, MRIA, 1733-1812 (© RIA)
Royal Irish Academy -
Richard Kirwan
Richard Kirwan
outesey of Kilkenny County Library
Richard Kirwan -
Richard Kirwan
long description
none
Richard Kirwan -
Richard Kirwan
Richard Kirwan
statement
Richard Kirwan -
Royal Dublin Society
image of RDS 1900
courtesy of
Royal Dublin Society -
Newgrange
Newgrange
Permission
Newgrange -
Newgrange
Photograph of Newgrange and the surrounding lanscape
Courtesy of the Workshop disk
Newgrange -
Sir William Rowan Hamilton
Portrait of Sir William Rowan Hamilton Engineer.
Courtesy of Carlow County Library
Sir William Rowan Hamilton -
Royal Dublin Society
Royal Dublin Society
Permission blah blah
Royal Dublin Society -
Thomas Grubb (1800-1878)
Thomas Grubb and his son set up an engineering works in Rathmines, building some of the world's greatest telescopes, many of which are still in operation.
Courtesy of the National Science & Engineering Plaques Committee
Thomas Grubb (1800-1878)