Important GENERAL KNOWLEDGE OF WORLD

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Important GENERAL KNOWLEDGE OF WORLD

Anderson—Discovered positive electrons.

Archimedes—Discovery of the Principles of lever and of speci c gravity; invention of the
famous Archimedean screw.
Avogadro—An Italian scientist known for Avogadro’s Hypothesis.
Bacquerel—Radio-activity of uranium. Baird—Television.
Baron Napier—Logarithms.
Benjamin Franklin—Invented lightning conductor.
Bessemer—Steel smelting process.
Bhabha, Dr H.J.—Research in Cosmic rays and Quantum theory.
Binet—Intelligence Test.
Birbal Sahni—Researches in Botany.
Bose, J.C.—Invented Crescograph and published many works on plant physiology. He
discovered that plants have sense and perception.
Bose, S.N.—Discovery of a group of nuclear particles named after him “Boson”.
Boyle—Boyle’s law; Pressure x volume = constant at a constant given temperature. Boyle
was the greatest scientist of England in his time.
Bohr—Electron Theory—Atomic structure.
Braun, Dr Wernher von—space ying.
Bunsen—Invention of the spectroscope.
Carothers—Nylon plastics.
Cavendish—Discovery of chemical composition of water; discovery of hydrogen
(In ammable Air); ‘rare gases’.
Chadwick—Discovery of the neutron.
Chandrasekhar—Mathematical Astrophysics.
Charles Darwin—Theory of Evolution; Origin of Species.
Clarke, Arthur C.—Concept of Geostationary Orbit.
Curie, Madame—Discovery of radium.
Dalton—Atomic theory; laws of chemical combination; law of partial pressures; the law of
multiple proportions.
Democritus—Greek philosopher—(Atomic theory).
Dewar—Invented cordite, liquid oxygen and introduced thermos ask.
Einstein—Theory of relativity.
Euclid—Science of geometry.
Fahrenheit—Fahrenheit mercury thermometric scale in which freezing point is –32° and
boiling point is 212°.
Faraday—Electromagnetic induction and laws of electrolysis.
Fermi—Discovered arti cial splitting of atoms.
Freud—Doctrine of Psycho-analysis.
Gay Lussac—Law of gases.
Gauss—System of absolute electric measurements.
Good Year—Discovered the art of vulcanising rubber.
Herschel, William—Discovered the Planet—Uranus.
Hertz—Electrical waves.
Hippalus—Founder of scienti c astronomy.
Hoffmann—Discovered the rst aniline dye.
Kelvin, Lord—Dynamical theory of heat.
Khorana, Dr Hargobind—Deciphering the genetic code.
Kodak—Film and photographic goods.
Lablanc—Manufacture of washing soda.
Lawrence—Invention of cyclotron.
Lockyer—Helium gas.
Louis Braille—Perfected his system of reading and writing for the blind.
Marconi—Wireless telegraphy; radio.
Maria-Montessori—‘Montessori’ method of teaching children.
Maxwell—Electro-magnetic Theory of Light.
Meghnad Saha—Effect of pressure on Radiation through bodies.
Mendel—Laws of heredity.
Mandeleev—Periodic Table.
Morse—Morse system of electric telegraphy.
Newton—Laws of gravitation; Law of Motion.
Nobel—Dynamite.
Oliver Lodge—Physicist. Researches in wireless communications.
Oppenheimer—Researches in atomic theory.
Otto Hahn—Discovery of uranium ssion.
Parkes—Celluloid.
Parsons—Steam turbine.
Pavlov—Theory of Conditioned Re ex.
Perkin—‘Mauve dye’.
Pitman—Founded the Pitman system of phonographic shorthand.
Planck—Quantum theory.
Plimsoll—Introduced a line of demarcation on the ships beyond which the ships cannot be
loaded.
Priestley—Discovery of Oxygen.
Raman, C.V.—“Raman Effect” on polarisation of light and theories on crystals and
diamond formation.
Ramanathan—Molecular scattering of light in uids.
Ramanujam—A great Indian mathematician.
Ramsay—Discovery of Inert gases such as Argon, Neon, Helium etc.
Ray, P.C.—Researches in chemistry.
Regnault—Experiments in regard to the physical properties of bodies and their relation to
heat.
Roger Bacon—Gun powder.
Rontgen—Discovery of X-rays.
Rohmkorff—Induction coil.
Rutherford—Atomic Research; succeeded in splitting the atom for the rst time in 1918.
Shalimar—Paints.
Stephenson—British engineer and pioneer in Railways. He was the rst to put a
locomotive on the line that was able to draw a train of 31 carriages.
Thomson, J.J.—Discovered electron.
Travers—Discovery of Neon gas (Working with Ramsay).
Urey—Discovery of Heavy Hydrogen.
Volta—Current electricity and electric battery.

Mechanical Inventions and Discoveries

Austin—Motor Car.
Bell, Graham—Telephone.
Berliner—Microphone.
Brequet—Helicopter.
Bushwell—Submarine.
Caxton—Printing Press.
Colt—Revolver.
Daimler—Gas engine.
Davy—Miner’s Safety Lamp.
Diesel—Internal Combustion engine (Diesel engine).
Dunlop—Pneumatic tyre.
Edison—First electric bulb and gramophone.
Faraday—Dynamo.
Fick—Law of Diffusion—Fick’s Law.
Frank Whittle—Jet propulsion.
Fulton—Stream boat.
Galileo—Telescope.
Gillette—Safety razor.
Guttenburg—Art of Printing.
Hoe—Rotary Printing Press.
Howe—Sewing Machine.
Huygens—Pendulum clock.
James Watt—Steam engine (patented in 1769).
Landstrom, J.E.—Safety Matches.
Macmillan—Bicycle (1842).
Mauser—Magazine of ri e.
Mercator—Celestial and a terrestrial globe.
Montgol er—Balloon (1883)
Pascal—Calculating Machine.
Puckle, James—Machine gun
Shockley—Transistor.
Sholes—Typewriter.
Stephenson—Railway engine.
Swinton—Military tank.
Torricelli—Barometer.
Watt, Robert Watson—Radar.
W. & O. Wright (Wright Brothers)—Aeroplane (1903).
Waterman—Fountain pen.
Brahmchari, U.M.—Cure of Kala-a-zar fever.
Davy—Isolation of metals by electricity; studied properties of chlorine.
Domagk—Sulpha drugs as bactericides.
Eijkman—Cause of Beri-Beri.
Finsen—Discovered curative effect of ultra violet rays; photography.
Fleming, Alexander—Penicillin (in 1929).
Harvey—Circulation of blood.
Hahnemann—Homoeopathy (founder).
Hopkins, Frederick Gowland—Vitamin D.
Jenner—Smallpox Vaccination.
Koch—Tubercle Bacillus.
Lainnec—Stethoscope.
Lister, Lord—Antiseptic treatment.
Pasteur, Louis—Treatment of rabies; cure of hydrophobia.
Ronald Ross—Malaria Parasite.
Salk, Jonas E.—Anti-polio Vaccine.
Simpson and Harrison—Chloroform.
Waksman—Streptomycin.

IMPROMINENT SCIENTISTS

Abdul Kalam, Dr A.P.J.: is credited with advancement of missile technology in India. He

was honoured with Bharat Ratna award on November 26, 1997. He is known as “father of
India’s Missile Technology”. Elected 11th President of India.

Alvares, Luis W.: is an American physicist teaching at the University of California, Berkeley,
U.S.A. He won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1968 for an important breakthrough he made
in elementary physics in 1960 when he discovered a new resonance particle—a discovery
that shattered the then prevailing notions as to how matter was built.

An nsen, Dr Christian B.: of the U.S.A.’s National Institute of Health, Bethseda, Maryland
was one of the three co-winners of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 1972.

Archimedes: Greek mathematician (born in Sicily) who lived about 250 B.C. is known for
the discovery of the Archimedes’ principle viz., The volume of any insoluble solid can be
found by noting its loss of weight when immersed in water. He is also credited with the
invention of Archimedean Screw, a cylindrical device for raising water.

Arrow, Kenneth, J.: of Harvard University, U.S.A. is co-winner of the Nobel Prize for
Economics, 1972 with Sir John Richard Hicks of Oxford University. The two men are
known for their pioneering contributions to general economic equilibrium and welfare
theories.
Aryabhatta: (A.D. 476-520) after whom India’s rst scienti c satellite has been named,
was a great Indian astronomer and mathematician. Among his important contributions
are the recognition of the importance of the mov ement of the earth round the sun,
determination of the physical parameters of various celestial bodies, such as diameter of
the earth and the moon. He laid the foundations of algebra and was responsible for
pointing out importance of “zero”.

Avogadro, Amedeo: (1776-1856) Italian physicist; founder of Avogadro’s hypothesis:

“Equal volumes of all gases under similar conditions of temperature and pressure, contain
equal number of molecules.” He also de ned a molecule.

Bardeen, Prof John: of the University of Illinois (U.S.A.) is co-winner of the Nobel Prize for
Physics, 1972 (with Prof Leon N. Cooper and Prof John Robert Schrieffer) for researches
into the “theory of super-conductivity” usually called the BCS theory.

Barnard, Christian: South African surgeon who shot into world news in December 1967
when he completed the rst heart transplant operation on Louis Washkansky.

Beadle, Dr G.: American scientist awarded Nobel Prize for medicine in 1958 for his work
concerning the actual basis of heredity—the way in which characteristics are transmitted
from one generation to another.

Becquerel, Henri: (1852-1908) French physicist known for his discovery in 1896 of
Becquerel rays, the rst indications of radio-activity; these rays were later named gamma
rays. He shared Nobel Prize for Physics with the Curies in 1903.

Berzelius, J.J: (1779-1848) Swedish Chemist, known for introduction of chemical

shorthand symbols and atomic weights.

Bessemer, Sir Henry: (1813-1898) English engineer. He invented the process for the
manufacture of steel known after his name.

Bhabha, Dr H.J.: (1909-66) Indian scientist. He published important papers on Cosmic

Rays and Quantum Theory. He was professor at the Indian Science Institute, Bangalore;
Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission; Director, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research;
President, Indian Science Congress in 1951 and presided at the Atoms for Peace
Conference held at Geneva in 1956. He had many signi cant researches in structure of
atom and contributed largely to the setting up of atomic reactors at Trombay (Mumbai).

Bhagvantam, Dr S.: is an eminent Indian scientist who has made a rich contribution to
research in radio astronomy and cosmic rays. He has published more than 150 research
papers and several books. He retired in October 1969 as the Scienti c Adviser to the
Ministry of Defence, and Director General of the Defence Research Development
Organisation. He is an old-time associate of Sir C.V. Raman.

Bhaskaracharya: Born in A.D. 1114, he was almost the last great Hindu mathematician
and astronomer until modern times. He wrote Sidhanta-Siromani in 1150 which
consisted of two mathematical and two astronomical parts. Bhaskara anticipated the
modern theory on the convention of signs (minus by minus makes plus, minus by plus
makes minus). He also anticipated Kepler’s method for determining the surface and
volume of sphere.

Bhatnagar, Dr Shanti Swarup: (1895-1955) great Indian scientist. He was Director of

Council of Scienti c and Industrial Research (C.S.I.R.). A chain of National Laboratories
has been established in the country due to his able organisation and unbounded energy.

Bohr, Neils: (born 1885) Danish Physicist. He was awarded Nobel Prize for Physics in
1922. He greatly extended the theory of atomic structure of devising an atomic model in
1913 and evolving theory of nuclear structure; assisted America in atom bomb research.

Borlaug, Norman Ernest: American agricultural scientist and winner of the Nobel Prize for
Peace in 1970. He was one of those who laid the groundwork of the Green Revolution.

Bose, Sir J.C.: (1858-1937) Eminent Indian physicist and Botanist; founder of Bose
Research Institute, Calcutta. Inventor of crescograph which is used to magnify
movements made by plants.
Bose, S.N.: Eminent Indian scientist who won fame by expounding the Bose-Einstein
theory, which is concerned in detection of a group of nuclear particles—named after him
‘Boson’ in recognition of his contribution to the subject; contributed to Plank’s law.
Professor of physics, Calcutta University; nominated member to the Council of States.
Awarded Padma Vibhushan in 1954. He died on February 4, 1974.

Boyle, Robert: (1627-1691) Irish natural philosopher; one of the founders of modern
chemistry and Boyle’s law: “Temperature remaining constant, volume of a given mass of
gas varies inversely as its pressure.”

Bragg, Sir William: (1862-1942) British physicist known for researches on the behaviour of
crystals with regard to X-rays incident upon them. Author of the book: “Atomic Structure
of Minerals”.

Cavendish, Henry: (1731-1810) English physicist and chemist; he discovered properties of

hydrogen in 1766 and identi ed it as an element.

Chadwick, Sir James: (1891-1974) British physicist. He discovered the particle in an

atomic nucleus which became known as the neutron, because it has no electric charge.

Chandrasekhar, Dr Subramanian: He was a scientist of Indian origin settled in the U.S.A.,

who shared the 1983 Nobel Prize for physics with an American, William Fowler. He was
one of the most outstanding astrophysicist of the world.
His theory of stellar evolution—the birth and death of stars—is more than 30 years old.
When he rst propounded his nding that old stars just collapse and disappear in the light
of denser stars of low light, the world’s top- ight astronomers laughed at him and rejected
his theory. A disappointed Dr Chandrasekhar left Trinity, Cambridge, to pursue his
research in the University of Chicago. Over the next two decades the “Chandrasekhar
Limit” became an intrinsic part of text-books on advanced astrophysics. Global
recognition and awards poured in, and the 1983 Nobel Prize tops a remarkable career
spanning almost half a century.

Charak: (c.A.D. 80-180) was a court physician to Kushan king Kanishka. His writings are
invaluable in the study of Hindu medicine.

Charles, Jacques Alexander Cesar: (1746-1823) a French scientist of great repute. He was
the rst to make a balloon ascension with hydrogen. He is known for his work on the
effect of temperature on the volume of gases.

Clarke, Arthur C.: He is known for his suggestion of the concept of Geostationary Orbit.

Clark Maxwell, James: (1831-79) British physicist. His theoretical work prepared the way
for wireless telegraphy and telephony. His principal works include: Perception of Colour,
Colour Blindness, Theory of Heat, Electricity and Magnetism, Matter and Motion.

Claude, Albert: is a biologist of Luxembourg who shared the 1974 Nobel Prize in
Medicine. His eld of research relates to causes and treatment of cancer.

Columbus, Christopher: (1446-1506) A well-known Italian navigator set out on his rst
voyage in 1492; he discovered West Indies Islands, Cuba and Bahamas; he also
discovered South America in 1498.

Cooper, Leon N.: Of the Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island (U.S.A.) was one of
the three co-winners of the Nobel Prize in Physics, 1972 for researches into the theory of
super-conductivity.

Copernicus: (1413-1543) A prominent astronomer of Poland who discovered the “Solar

System”.

Cornforth, John Warcup: co-winner of the 1975 Nobel Prize in Chemistry is a deaf
professor. He is an Australian living in England. His chief distinction is mapping out the
formation of cholesterols which he calls “a great discovery” and contains the key to, for
instance, sex hormones.

Curie, Madame Marie: (1867-1934) Polish physicist and chemist; famous for her
discovery of radium was awarded Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1911 and shared Nobel
Prize in physics in 1903 with her husband and Becquerel.

Dalton, John: (1766-1844) British scientist. He was founder of the Atomic Theory and law
of Multiple Proportions.

Darwin, Charles: (1809-82) was the British scientist who discovered the principle of
natural selection. His famous work is “The Origin of Species”.

Davy, Sir Humphrey: (1771-1829) British chemist. First to apply electric current for the
isolation of metals. Studied anaesthetic action of nitrous oxide, properties of chlorine and
alkali metals.

Debreu, Gerard: Gerard Debreu of the University of California at Berkeley, who has been
awarded the 1983 Nobel memorial prize in economics is known for his research on
market equilibrium in which he “incorporated new analytical methods into economic
theory”.
Mr Debreu has expanded on a mathematical model designed by the two men in the early
1950s that con rmed the logic of Adam Smith’s “theory of general equilibrium” in which
prices supply and demand tend to reach a balance within a free market economy.

Delbrueck, Dr Max: is a German-born American doctor working at the California Institute

of Technology. He was one of the three American co-winners of the Nobel Prize for
Medicine, 1969 for discoveries in molecular genetics.

De Vries: is known for Mutation theory.

Dhanvantri: a great physician during the reign of Chandragupta Vikramaditya (375-413

A.D.).

Dhawan, Prof Satish: He is former Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation
(ISRO). Under his dynamic leadership India entered Space Age by launching “Aryabhata”, a
scienti c satellite, into space on April 19, 1975.

Edelman, Dr Gerald Maurice: of U.S.A. is co-winner of the Nobel Prize for Medicine, 1972.
He is known for researches into the chemical structure of blood-proteins or antibodies
which shield the human body against infection. He shared the prize with Dr Rodney
Robert Porter of Oxford. The two Nobel-laureates were able to break the giant molecules
formed by antibodies into their component sections.

Edison, Thomas Alva: (1847-1931) American inventor of Dutch-Scottish parentage. He

started life as a newsboy and then a telegraph operator. His inventions include:
phonograph, the incandescent lamp, a new type of storage battery, an early form of
cinematography etc.

Einstein, Prof Albert: (1879-1955) was German-Swiss world-famous scientist known for
his theory of relativity. He was awarded Nobel Prize for his work on photoelectric effect.

Faraday, Michael: (1791-1867) An eminent English scientist; showed great prominence in

the eld of electromagnetism; discovered the laws of electrolysis and wrote a number of
useful books on the subject.

Fleming, Alexander: (1881-1955) British bacteriologist. His notable discovery was

lysozyme (1922), followed by penicillin (1929)—an antibiotic drug.
Fleming, Sir John Ambrose: (1849-1945) British physicist and engineer who was pioneer
in the development of the telephone, electric light and radio.

Fraunhofer: German physicist. He gained prominence on the researches of ‘Light’ while

performing spectrum-analysis of Sunlight; he discovered the spectrum to be crossed with
some indifferent black lines. And the lines are so named as Fraunhofer Lines.

Freud, Sigmund: (1856-1939) originator of psycho-analysis, born of Jewish parents.

Works: The Interpretation of Dreams; The Psychopathology of Every-day Life; The Ego and
the Id; Civilization and Its Discontents.

Gabor, Dr Dennis: Who won the 1971 Nobel Prize award for Physics is a 71-year old British
electrical engineer working as a scientist in the U.S.A. He was cited for his “invention in
development of the holographic method”—three dimensional photography. Dr Gabor was
the 16th Briton to have won the Nobel Prize in Physics. He was born and educated in
Hungary. He later worked as research engineer in Germany and came to join the staff of
the Imperial College in London in 1949. He invented holography in the late forties. But the
science became fully developed with the coming of the laser in 1960. A holographic
image is so lifelike that a viewer can see around things in a holograph by moving his head
just as he looks around the real object.

Galileo: (1564-1642) Italian scientist. He was professor of mathematics. His view that all
falling bodies, great or small, descend with equal velocity, made him unpopular with the
orthodox scientists. He improved telescope and with it was the rst man to see the
satellites of Jupiter.

Gell-Mann, Prof Murray: was the recipient of the 1969 Nobel Prize for Physics. He is a
teacher in the California Institute of Technology. Born in New York in 1929, Prof Gell-Mann
has been the leading theorist in elementary particle research for the last 15 years. He was
the 28th American to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in which the U.S.A. now
leads. The Nobel Prize was given to him for “his classi cation of elementary particles and
their interactions”.

Goddard, Robert H.: was an American who mentioned the possibility of shooting a rocket
to the moon in a paper entitled “A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes” published by
him in 1919. By 1926 he had put some of his ideas into practice. He is looked upon as one
of the pioneers of space research.

Graham, Thomas: (1805-1914) Scottish chemist called the “father of colloidal chemistry”.
He did remarkable work on diffusion of substances in solution.

Heisenberg: is known for his theory of Uncertainty Principle.

Hahn, Otto: was a German pioneer of nuclear research. He won the Nobel Prize for
Chemistry in 1944. It was Hahn who had proved in 1938 that atomic ssion can be
achieved by bombarding uranium with neutrons. The discovery revolutionised atomic
science.

Hall, Charles Martin: (1863-1914) American chemist who discovered the modern method
of extraction of aluminium by electrolysis of bauxite in 1886.

Harvey, William: (1578-1675) English physician who discovered the circulation of blood.

Herzberg, Dr Gehard: has been awarded the 1971 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, for his
researches in atomic and molecular structures, particularly free radicals. He is the rst
Canadian to win a Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Holley, Robert: Co-winner of the Nobel Prize for Medicine, 1968, belongs to Cornell. His
researches into the genetic code and its function in building protein led to the discovery
of the complete structure of a transfer RNA molecule and the way it works.
Hopkins, Sir Frederick Gowland: He was an eminent English biochemist famous for his
important work on proteins and vitamins. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in medicine in
1929 for the discovery of Vitamin D.

Hoyle, Fred: is a British scientist and science- ction writer who won the £ 1,000 Kalinga
Prize in 1968.

Jenner, Edward: (1749-1823) Eminent English physician who discovered the vaccination
system of alleviating small pox.

Josephson, Dr Brian: is a British scientist who co-shared the 1973 Nobel Prize for physics
for “his theoretical predictions of the properties of a super-current through a tunnel
barrier, in particular those phenomena which are generally known as Josephson effects”.

Joshi, Prof S.S.: He has done commendable work on physical and chemical reactions
under electric discharge on active nitrogen; colloids; hydrogen peroxide; permanganates
and a phenomenon called “Joshi Effect”.

Joule, James Prescott: (1874-1937) a great English physicist who rst demonstrated that
mechanical energy can be converted into heat.

Kepler, Johannes: (1571-1630) German astronomer. He discovered 3 laws of planetary

motion that bear his name viz., (1) The orbit of each planet is an ellipse with the sun at
one of the foci; (2) the Radius vector of each planet describes equal areas in equal times;
(3) The squares of the periods of the planets are proportional to the cubes of their mean
distances from the sun.
Kepler had evolved a set of laws governing man in space with rare prescience. In a kind of
allegory, he referred to the dangers of solar radiation, the need to overcome gravitational
resistance, gravitational capture of spacecraft by the moon etc. What he wrote nearly 360
years ago was, however, little understood and his family was persecuted for it. His mother
had to die in jail having been condemned as a witch.
Khorana Hargobind: who shared with two others the 1968 Nobel Prize for Medicine is an
Indian by birth and an American by domicile. He deciphered the genetic code and later
created an arti cial gene.

Krishnan, Dr K.S.: (born 1898) collaborated with Sir C.V. Raman in the discovery of
“Raman Effect”. President, Indian Science Congress, 1949; delegate to several
international scienti c conferences; Director, National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi.

Lavoisier, A.L.: (1743-1794) French chemist; established law of Indestructibility of Matter,

Composition of Water and Air.

Lister, Joseph: (1827-1912) British surgeon. He was the rst to use antiseptic treatment
for wounds; introduced antiseptic surgery.

Lodge, Sir Oliver Joseph: (1851-1940) British physicist. He is chie y known for his
researches on radiation, and the relation between matter and ether.

Lovell, Sir Bernard: He is professor of Radio-Astronomy in the University of Manchester

and is also Director of the Jodrell Bank Observatory. He remains very much in the news
for tracking space-ships.

Lysenko: Author of Agro-biology, Lysenko gained fame as a Soviet geneticist. In 1948, he

declared the Mendelian theory obsolete and erroneous.

Marconi: (1873-1937) Italian scientist; pioneer in wireless telegraphy and radio.

Max Planck: He was a German theoretical physicist who formulated the quantum theory
which revolutionized physics. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1918.

Mendel, Johann Gregory: (1822-84) Austrian monk and naturalist whose discovery of
certain principles of inheritance (heredity) is of deep signi cance in the study of biology.

Mendeleef, D.I.: (1834-1901) a Russian chemist, founder of periodic law and famous for
the development of petroleum and other industries in Russia.

Meyer, Victor: (1848-1897) discovered a method to determine the molecular weights of

volatile substances.

Morley, Edward William: (1818-1923) American chemist and physicist best known for his
work in determining the composition of water by weight.

Moseley, Henry G.: (1887-1915) British physicist who did valuable work on atomic
structure, and in 1913, devised the series of atomic numbers.

Nagarjuna: the renowned chemist of Buddhist era whose works are mostly preserved in
China and Tibet. A great Philosopher and Chemist. He makes a mention of crucibles,
distillation stills, sublimation, colouring process, alloying of metals, extraction of copper
and use of many metallic oxides in medicines. About chemistry he said, “As long as the
science of chemistry prevails, let hunger, pain and poverty not torment men.”

Nag-Chowdhury, B.D.: an eminent Indian nuclear physicist, known all over the world.

Narlikar, J.V.: Indian scientist; co-author of Hoyle-Narlikar Theory of continuous creation.

The theory of which he is co-author has been hailed as supplying some important missing
links in Einstein’s theory of Relativity. The new theory of gravitation propounded by both
the scientists, Narlikar and Hoyle, shows that gravitation is always attractive and there is
no gravitational repulsions.

Newton, Sir Isaac: (1642-1727) was the British natural philosopher. He discovered
binomial theorem; the differential and integral calculus. He expounded the universal law
of gravitation. He is author of Principia Mathematica.
Nirenberg, Dr Marshall: is a U.S. molecular biologist who shared the 1968 Nobel Prize for
Medicine with Dr Robert Holley and Dr Hargobind Khorana. Nirenberg is the author of a
very simple but ingenious experiment which helped a great deal in clarifying the general
character of the genetic code.

Oberth, Hermann: is a Rumanian-German Professor who is credited with establishing the

experimental basis of modern rocketry. In 1923, the publication of his book, “The Rocket
into Interplanetary Space” aroused great interest in space travel.

Ohm, George Simon: (1787-1854) physicist and mathematician; discovered the law known
as Ohm’s Law.

Onsager, Lars: is a U.S. Professor who became a Nobel laureate in 1968 by winning the
prize for Chemistry “for the discovery of the reciprocal relations bearing his name which
are fundamental for the thermo-dynamics of irreversible processes”.

Paraceisus: (1493-1541) a Swiss mystic and chemist. He was the rst to employ
laudanum and antimony in Pharmacy.

Parson, Sir Charles: (1854-1931) British engineer; inventor of Parson steam turbine.

Pasteur, Louis: (1822-95) He was a French chemist who discovered the causes of
fermentation in alcohol and milk and founded the Pasteur Institute in 1888. He made
researches in silkworm disease, anthrax, and hydrophobia.

Pauling, Linus: American bio-chemist. He applied the quantum theory to chemistry and
was awarded Nobel Prize (1954) for his contribution to the electrochemical theory of
valency.

Porter, Dr Rodney Robert: is Professor of Biochemistry in Oxford University. Dr Porter is

known for his discoveries relating to the chemical structure of antibodies.

Priestley, Joseph: (1733-1804) British Chemist; discovered oxygen and methods of

collecting gases.

Pythagoras: is known as the father of Geometry.

Rainwater, James: of the U.S.A. who co-shared the 1975 Nobel Prize in Physics is known
for the development of the theory that atomic nucleus is not always spherical but can
also be egg-shaped which has no immediate practical meaning but is extremely essential
to scientists.

Ramanna, Dr Raja: former Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre at Trombay. He

was one of the Indian scientists associated with staging India’s rst nuclear blast at
Pokhran on May 18, 1974.

Raman, Sir C.V.: (1888-1970) Eminent Indian Scientist (F.R.S.) National Professor of
Physics and founder Director of Raman Research Institute, Bangalore. He was awarded
Nobel Prize for his discovery of ‘Raman Effect’ (Feb 28, 1928). His work on study of
crystal structure is of unique importance. Feb 28 is celebrated every year as National
Science Day.

Ramanujan, Srinivas: (1887-1920) Indian mathematician who contributed to the theory of

numbers, theory of partitions, and the theory of continued fractions.

Ramsay, Sir William: (1852-1916) English chemist who discovered helium and later on
neon, argon in collaboration with Rayleigh and others. He was awarded Nobel Prize in
1904.
Rao, Prof U. Ramachandra: is the Director of Indian Scienti c Satellite Project (ISSP) at
Peenya near Bangalore.
Ray, Sir P.C.: (1861-1944) founder of Indian Chemical Society and Bengal Chemical and
Pharmaceutical Works Ltd., and author of ‘Hindu Chemistry’. His work about nitrous acid
and its salts deserves special mention.

Richards, T.W.: He was Prof of Chemistry at Harvard University in U.S.A. He did notable
work in the accurate determination of atomic weights and was awarded Nobel Prize in
1916.

Roger Bacon: (1214-1294) He was inventor of Gun Powder and founder of experimental
science; man of remarkable gifts and inventive power.

Rontgen, W. Konrad: (1845-1923) German physicist. He discovered X-rays, also called

Rontgen rays. He was awarded the rst Nobel Prize in 1901 for discovery of X-Rays.

Ross, Ronald: (1857-1932) leading British physician who discovered the cause of Malaria;
awarded Nobel Prize for medicine in 1902.

Rutherford, Daniel: (1749-1819) a Scottish scientist who is given the credit for the
discovery of nitrogen.

Rutherford, Lord: (1871-1937) won a Nobel Prize for his work on structure of atom and
radio-activity.

Ryle, Sir Martin: of the U.K. who shared the 1974 Nobel Prize in Physics is known for the
development of “aperture synthesis” technique designed to identify stellar objects
through radio signals.

Saha, Dr Meghnad: (1893-1956) late Palit Prof of Physics, University College of Science
and Technology, Calcutta University—well known for his researches in nuclear physics,
cosmic rays, spectrum analysis and other branches of theoretical physics.
Sanger, Dr Frederik: British scientist awarded Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1958 for his
work in determining the composition of the insulin molecule. By his discovery he has put
science a step forward towards knowing how disease attacks the human body. In 1980,
he became only the fourth person ever to be awarded a second Nobel Prize.

Sarabhai, Dr Vikram A.: former Chairman of India’s Atomic Energy Commission and the
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) died on December 30, 1971. Dr Sarabhai was
an eminent physicist mainly interested in the astrophysical implications of Cosmic Ray
Time Variations.

Sen, P.K. (Dr): is the Indian surgeon who performed Asia’s rst heart transplant operation
in Mumbai.

Simpson, Sir James Young: (1811-70) British physicist who was largely instrumental in
the introduction of chloroform as an anaesthetic in 1847.

Soddy, Frederick: (1877-1956) British physical chemist. He was a pioneer of research into
atomic disintegration. He coined the term “isotopes”; did classic work on radioactivity.

Solvay, Earnest: (1838-1922) Belgian chemist known for devising a process known after
his name for manufacture of sodium carbonate.

Susruta: was a fourth century Hindu surgeon and physician. He wrote an important book
on medicine and also a thesis on the medical properties of garlic.

Sutherland, Dr Earl W.: was the recipient of the Nobel Prize for Medicine, 1971. He is
credited with the discovery that the hormones in the human body produce another
substance known as cyclic A.M.P., which activates them and controls the body’s cells. He
has demonstrated that changes in the level of cyclic A.M.P. in the body can in uence its
disease-resisting capacity. This discovery opens up new vistas for the development of
drugs that can treat diseases which have so far been regarded as incurable.
Teller, Edward (Dr): is a U.S. nuclear scientist who has played a major role in developing
the hydrogen bomb. He is in fact known as the “father of the H-bomb”.

Thomson, Sir J.J.: (1856-1940) British physicist. He discovered the electron which
inaugurated the electrical theory of the atom. He is regarded as the founder of modern
physics.

Tsiolkovsky: was a Russian teacher who in 1903 published a treatise presenting

remarkably accurate calculations on rocket dynamics and space-travel. He is looked upon
as the earliest among the pioneers who laid the foundations of space exploration. The
Russians call him the “Father of Rocketry”.

Varahmihira: (505-587) was a distinguished Indian astronomer, mathematician and

philosopher. He was one of the nine gems of the court of king Vikramaditya.

Verne, Jules: (1828-1905) French science- ction writer was author of “From the Earth to
the Moon” published in 1865. The book carried a more or less accurate prediction of the
launching and ight of Apollo-8.

Volta, A.: (1745-1827) Italian physicist and pioneer of electrical science; invented voltaic
pile, the electrophorus and electroscope. The volt is named after him.

Voronoff, S.: Russian scientist best known for his method of preventing or delaying
senility by grafting healthy animal glands, into the human body.

Watson and Crick: known for DNA double helix.

Watson-Watt, Sir Robert: British physicist. He developed radar.

Watt, James: (1736-1819) was Scottish engineer. He invented steam engine.