PHYSICAL SCIENCES SERIES
Physics and the World Wars:

How Technology Shaped the Path of History
Professor Paul J. Angiolillo

This course will be held at the Wynnefield Branch of the Free Library , located at 5325 Overbrook Avenue, Philadelphia.

LECTURES BEGIN AT 6:15 PM

1. Wednesday, September 30, 2009 - Airships and Dirigibles
   The physics of gases and fluids will be explored as they relate to the operation of blimps and airships.
2. Wednesday, October 7, 2009 - Evolution of Flight
   Fluid dynamics is central to the understanding of flight and will be highlighted during this discussion.
3. Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - Communications
   The early development of electronic devices will be traced in this discussion of the transmission of intelligence.
4. Wednesday, October 21, 2009 - Armament and Metallurgy
   This lecture will provide a basic understanding of what it means to be a metal. The properties of metals and alloys relevant to armament will be explored.
5. Wednesday, October 28, 2009 - Remote Detection: RADAR and SONAR
   This lecture will trace the development RADAR and SONAR. Included will be an in-depth discussion of the electromagnetic spectrum.
6. Wednesday, November 4, 2009 - Atomic Weapons and Nuclear Energy
   A brief history of the developments of nuclear theory as it applies to the development of atomic weapons.
7. Wednesday, November 11, 2009 - No Class, Veterans Day
8. Wednesday, November 18, 2009 - Missiles and Rocketry
   A history of the development of rocket technology will be given with particular emphasis on the groundbreaking work of von Braun and his colleagues.
9. Wednesday, November 25, 2009 - No Class, Thanksgiving Holiday
10. Wednesday, December 2, 2009 - Spin-offs into Medicine
    This lecture will highlight several medical breakthroughs that have their origins as technologies for wartime use.

Unfortunately, many of the technological developments that have benefited mankind have their genesis during times of warfare. The rapid development of flight, communication, remote sensing, space travel, and even medical diagnostics and therapy can trace their origins to either weapons of war or technical developments that occurred through wartime expediency. This course will offer smorgasbord for those wishing to get a better grasp of the interplay between war and technology. It will explore the physics that forms the foundation for those developments and will weave the physics into a historical landscape where not only the science is discussed, but also the intriguing personalities responsible for those developments.

This course requires no textbook. The instructor will hand out his presentations and provide relevant readings and reading lists.

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