Subjective practices of war: The Prussian army and the Zorndorf campaign, 1758.

This article integrates the history of military theory - and the practical history of military campaigns and battles - within the broader history of knowledge. Challenging ideas that the new natural philosophy of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (the so-called Scientific Revolution) fostered attempts to make warfare mathematically calculated, it builds on work showing that seventeenth- and eighteenth-century natural philosophy was itself much more subjective than previously thought. It uses the figure of King Frederick II of Prussia (reigned 1740-1786) to link theoretical with practical military knowledge, placing the military treatises read and written by the king alongside the practical example of the Prussian army's campaign against the Russians in summer 1758 at the height of the Seven Years War (1756-1763), which culminated in the battle of Zorndorf. This article shows that both the theory and practice of war - like other branches of knowledge in the long eighteenth century - were fundamentally shaped by the contemporary search for intellectual order. The inability to achieve this in practice led to a reliance on subjective judgment and individual, local knowledge. Whereas historians have noted attempts in the eighteenth century to calculate probabilities mathematically, this article shows that war continued to be conceived as the domain of fortune, subject to incalculable chance. Answering Steven Shapin's call to define concretely "the subjective element in knowledge-making," the examples of Frederick and his subordinate, Lieutenant General Count Christoph zu Dohna, reveal sharply different contemporary ideas about how to respond to uncertainty in war. Whereas Dohna sought to be ready for chance events and react to them, Frederick actively embraced uncertainty and risk-taking, making chance both a rhetorical argument and a positive choice guiding strategy and tactics.

[The becoming and development of departmental medical statistic in Bavaria and Prussia (1800-1871)].

The article is devoted to the history of the emergence and functioning of departmental medical statistics in the German states in 1800-1871. The authors, on the basis of the analysis of German historiography, identify main actors, goals, methods of administration and representation of health statistics. Starting from the specifics of German terminology concerning the umbrella term "medical statistics" ("medizinische Statistik", "Medizinalstatistik", "sanitäre Statistik", "Gesundheitsstatistik"), the authors elaborate in detail on the cases of the Bavarian and Prussian kingdoms. By the beginning of the XIX century, the mechanisms of building modern state were started up in these countries. In its functioning, it was primarily based on statistical surveys of people and territories. The gradual institutionalization of medical statistics, its complexification and enhancement are considered in the context of state bureaucratic system reforming. The analysis of historical research results permitted to generate cumulative picture of becoming and development of medical statistics in Bavaria and Prussia. The study of transformation of reporting forms allowed to see how the bureaucratic institutions, by means of statistical methods, sought to rate the "death" and "health" of population.

Theodor Billroth: Surgeon, Musician, and Composer.

Music and surgery have a long and shared history, and the existence of musician-surgeons has been well documented. Best known for his 2 gastric reconstruction operations, Theodor Billroth was also a skilled musician and made valuable contributions to the field of music theory and composition. While he was a prolific composer during his lifetime, most of his works have unfortunately been lost. His 1 surviving composition Todessehnsucht offers insight into his composition process and serves as a testament to the amalgamation of his personal life, his career as a surgeon, and his lifelong love of music. This article seeks to analyze Billroth's only musical composition from a historical, musical, and sociopolitical perspective and to illustrate the close interplay between science and art in one of the most quintessential musician-surgeons in history.

France's "année terrible" of the Franco-Prussian War and Paris Commune, 150 years ago, and some remarkable neurologists at the time

Franco-Prussian War started 150 years ago, and it was a short but a tragic turning point to France as a whole, but also a challenging moment for medicine and some outstanding French neurologists. Besides, a new continental European power emerged, consolidating German as a united state. Two Parisian sieges at this time, from the Prussian and that related to the Communards, struggled the Parisian health status. In Medicine, the wounded and diseased health care disorganized logistics were carried out through the military, municipal and civil health services subdivided into mobile ambulances and fixed hospitals. The novel Cross Red ambulances took part. Moreover, anesthesia and antiseptic surgery were applied, but they were in their beginnings. The Faculty of Medicine of Paris physicians were charged with the subsidiary health care of the population, among them Jean-Martin Charcot. Some of them added to the patient care the meetings at the Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Medicine. Many outstanding neurologists participated at this task force besides Charcot, such as Charles Lasègue, Edmé Felix Alfred Vulpian, Désiré-Magloire Bourneville, AlixJoffroy, Fulgence Raymond, Jules Joseph Déjerine and Henri Duret

A guerra franco-prussiana começou há 150 anos e foi um período curto, mas trágico, para a França como um todo, mas também um momento desafiador para a medicina e alguns neurologistas franceses de destaque. Além disso, uma nova potência da Europa continental emergiu, consolidando a Alemanha como um estado unido. Dois cercos parisienses naquela época, dos prussianos e o relacionado aos "communards", lutavam contra o estado de saúde parisiense. Em Medicina, a logística desorganizada dos serviços de saúde, de cuidados aos feridos e doentes, foi realizada através dos serviços de saúde militar, municipal e civil subdivididos em ambulâncias móveis e hospitais fixos. As novas ambulâncias da Cruz Vermelha participaram. Além disso, anestesia e cirurgia anti-séptica foram aplicadas, mas estavam no início. Os médicos da Faculdade de Medicina de Paris foram encarregados dos cuidados subsidiários de saúde da população, entre eles Jean-Martin Charcot. Alguns deles acrescentaram ao atendimento aos pacientes, as reuniões da Academia de Ciências e da Academia de Medicina. Muitos neurologistas de destaque participaram dessa força-tarefa além de Charcot, como Charles Lasègue, Edmé Felix Alfred Vulpian, Désiré-Magloire Bourneville, AlixJoffroy, Fulgence Raymond, Jules Joseph Déjerine e Henri Duret

Differences in food consumption in regions of Poland that had been previously under Austrian, Prussian and Russian annexations

Background: It seems that one of the factors affecting the way of nutrition in Poland was the dietary habits of countries that in the late 18th century made partitions, ie. Russia, Prussia and Austria. Therefore, nutrition models in the areas of individual partitions have undergone significant changes. Objective: The aim of the study was to check whether after 85 years after regaining independence there were still differences in the way of feeding indigenous inhabitants of areas previously under Austrian, Prussian and Russian annexation. Material and methods: The data collected during the WOBASZ survey carried out in the years 2003-2005 were used for the analysis. Results: The greatest differences in the way of feeding were found in the area that was previously under the rule of Prussia. The nutrition model was still largely reminiscent of typical German cuisine. There was a large consumption of sausages and spreads, and small vegetables and fruit. Nutrition models in other areas were less characteristic. Conclusions: The way of feeding indigenous people living in areas that were once partitions of Poland is still diverse and similar to the cuisine of the occupying country.

[Not Available] / Randnotizen als Lebensspuren?

Are marginal notes marginal? Backed by a book from the private library of Emil von Behring the paper reflects whether annotations are peripheral sources or whether they can give some hints concerning biographical details. Behring's traces of reading are exposed and discussed by using the example of Otto Rot's Arzneimittel der heutigen Medicin (1877). The marginal notes demonstrate Behring's intensive work on hypnotics, sedativs, and analgetics which were possibly used for the therapy of others or himself. The findings will be compared to other sources of Behring's personal papers.

A variation on forced migration: Wilhelm Peters (Prussia via Britain to Turkey) and Muzafer Sherif (Turkey to the United States).

In 1933 the Turkish Republic formally offered university positions to 30 German-speaking academics who were dismissed with the coming to power of the National Socialist Government. That initial number went up to 56 with the inclusion of the technical assistants. By 1948 the estimated total had increased to 199. Given renewable five-year contracts with salaries substantially higher than their Turkish counterparts, the foreign émigrés were to implement the westernization program of higher education. The ten year-old secular Turkish Republic's extensive social reforms had encompassed the adoption of the Latin alphabet, and equal rights for women, removing gender bias in hiring. Such a high concentration of émigré academics in one institution, "the highest anywhere in the world," provides a unique opportunity to study a subject which has been neglected. In this article two cases in psychology will be examined: Wilhelm Peters (1880-1963), who came, via Britain, to Istanbul in 1936 from the University of Jena in Germany, and Muzafer Sherif (1906-1988) who went to the United States from Ankara University in 1945. The purpose of the comparative analysis is to identify the features that are specific to the German experience, and those that are shared and underlie translocation in science within the multifaceted complexity of the process of forced migration.

Jacques Loeb (1859-1924) and His Forgotten Contributions to Electrolyte and Acid-Base Physiology in The Organism as a Whole.

Jacques Loeb (1859-1924) was the founder of the Journal of General Physiology which he co-directed in association with W.J.V. Osterhout in the years 1918-1924. Having worked (1889-1891)at the Marine Zoological Station of Naples, newly founded by Anton Dohrn, he was imprinted for life. A strong investigator used to perform the experiments personally. Loeb was engaged lifelong in the explanation of life on physico-chemical basis. He touched various fields (being a creative scientist full of ideas), and centered on the exchanges of electrolytes, acids and bases between the body and sea water in fish. He identified two equations: {[K+]+[Na+]}: {[Ca++]+[Mg++]} (Loebs 1st equation) {[K+]+[Na+]}: {[H+]+[Ca++]+[Mg++]} (Loebs final equation) Even nowadays these equations may have applications in a wide list of electrolyte and acid-base disturbances. Unfortunately his heredity has been dissipated.

The letters of Alix Joffroy (1844-1908), a medical intern at Lariboisière's Hospital at the time of the Commune of Paris.

Since opening in 1848, Lariboisière's Hospital was strongly associated with the history of Paris and especially with the terrible days of the siege of Paris and the fights of the Commune. On the day after the surrender, Alix Joffroy wrote his first letter to his mother. He described the events as he experienced them, expressing his feelings about the causes of this political and military disaster and his experience there as an intern. Some weeks after the defeat of France by the Prussians, humbled Parisians attacked governmental troops. From March to May 1871 an improvised insurrectionary movement, The Commune of Paris, had taken power in the capital During the Bloody Week from 21 to 28 May 1871; this movement was suppressed by the Versaillaise Army. In his second letter, Joffroy related with great realism the tooth and nail fighting at the barricades and then the savage repression by the Army of the Communards around Lariboisière's Hospital. Two letters preciously preserved by Alix Joffroy's descendants give this man's unique direct account of a tragic period of the 19th century.

[A Prussian in Venice: the botanist Melchior Wieland (1520-1589), pioneer in botanical field research in the Levant]. / Ein PreuBe in Venedig: Der Botaniker Melchior Wieland (ca. 1520-1589), Pionier der botanischen Feldforschung in der Levante.

The Italian physician and botanist Prospero Alpini (1553-1617) is considered as one of the most famous 16th Century Italian botanists having explored the plant species of Egypt and the Near East. Alpinis best-known works as for example De medicina Egyptiorum (Venetijs 1591) or De plantis Aegypti liber (Venetijs 1592), however, wouldn't certainly have been made possible without the influence of his academic teacher, the Prussian physician and botanist Melchior Wieland (ca. 1520-1589), having been applied director of the botanical garden of Padua in 1561. This study is therefore dedicated to the life, academic career, works and reception of this nearly forgotten botanist.

[The Malady of Emperor Frederick III. and Virchow's diagnostic role]. / Die Krankheit Kaiser Friedrichs III. und Virchows Rolle.

Crownprince Frederick Wilhelm of Prussia was once the hope of the liberal movement in Germany. He embodied and lived a humanistic ideal based on the spirit of the enlightenment. Starting in January 1887 the passionate pipe smoker suffered on an unusual long hoarseness. A polyp of the vocal cord was diagnosed. Although this diagnosis seemed harmless, an odyssee was launched that made history. Rudolf Virchow-the foremost pathologist of that time-was involved in the following histological diagnosis. His role and that of the sprouting histopathology will be presented in this essay.

The 'chemistry of space': the sources of Hermann Grassmann's scientific achievements.

Albert Lewis's article (Annals of Science, 1977) analysing the influence of Friedrich Schleiermacher on Hermann Grassmann, stimulated many different studies on the founder of n-dimensional outer algebra. Following a brief outline of the various, sometimes diverging, analyses of Grassmann's creative thinking, new research is presented which confirms Lewis's original contribution and widens it considerably. It will be shown that: i. Grassmann, although a self-taught mathematician, was at the centre of a hitherto understated intellectual trend, which was defining for Germany. Initiated by Pestalozzi's concept of elementary mathematical education and culminating in the modern mathematics of the late 19th Century, it was reflected in the contributions of Grassmann, Riemann, Jacobi and Eisenstein. ii. Hermann Grassmann, his father Justus, and his brother Robert were all demonstrably influenced by Schleiermacher's dialectic; however the two brothers responded to it in very different ways. iii. Whilst the more philosophical parts of Hermann's 1844 Extension Theory are characterised by the influence of Schleiermacher and also by the mathematical knowledge of his father, the entire development of this work is the unfolding of a single idea based on the father's interpretation of combinatorial multiplication as a 'chemical conjunction', which was developed largely dialectically by Hermann.

[Behring's personal papers--Behring's lives]. / Behrings Nachlässe--Behrings Biographien.

The article wants to show the connection between the enriched personal papers of Emil von Behring (1854-1917) in the Behring archives in Marburg (established in 1927) and the history of the first biography of the scientist, which was published by Heinz Zeiss and Richard Bieling during Nazi era in 1940. One focus is placed on Behring's widow Else von Behring (1876-1936), who was active in arranging Behring's papers in proper order and in searching a biographer of her husband's life. The paper also presents new discoveries from the Behring Works archives in Marburg which show Behring--founder of the serum therapy and first winner of the Nobel Prize for medicine in 1901--as an entrepreneur who was fighting for control and influence in the field of science and of business: maybe another narration of Behring's life.

[Communication of ideas, intersections and consolidation - Fleck, Simmel, and Völkerpsychologie]. / Gedankenverkehr, Kreuzung und Verdichtung : Fleck, Simmel und die Völkerpsychologie.

Ludwik Fleck's rediscovery, initiated by Thomas Kuhn, was prominently related to its sociological emphasis. But while this emphasis as such resonated with the sociological circles within science studies, Fleck's actual sociological position was criticized for lacking clear boundaries to psychology and philosophy, and eventually for inconsistency. This article agrees with the former judgement and rejects the latter. It introduces as core and key to Fleck's own sociology the thought style of Völkerpsychologie, and the sociology Georg Simmel developed from this tradition

Chemical Expertise: Chemistry in the Royal Prussian Porcelain Manufactory.

Eighteenth-century chemists defined chemistry as both a "science and an art." By "chemical art" they meant not merely experimentation but also parts of certain arts and crafts. This raises the question of how to identify the "chemical parts" of the arts and crafts in eighteenth-century Europe. In this essay I tackle this question with respect to porcelain manufacture. My essay begins with a brief discussion of historiographical problems related to this question. It then analyzes practices involved in porcelain manufacture that can be reasonably identified as chemical practices or a chemical art. My analysis yields evidence for the argument that chemical experts and expertise fulfilled distinct technical functions in porcelain manufacture and, by extension, in eighteenth-century "big industry," along with its system of division of labor.

["... mein Recht muss mir werden!" Hermann Bahr's tragicomedy Der Querulant (1914)]. / "[...] mein Recht muss mir werden!" Hermann Bahrs Tragikomödie Der Querulant (1914).

At the end of the eighteenth century, people who became notorious for their excessive engagement in legal proceedings started being labeled as "querulents" or "paranoid litigants". The term "querulents" first appeared in the General Order of the Court for the Prussian States (Allgemeine Gerichtsardnung für die Preussischen Staaten) from July 6, 1793. From there on, the spectrum of juridical measures undertaken against the so-labeled litigators included classifying these persons as ineligible for legal action and psychiatric hospitalization. The paper discusses to what extent Hermann Bahr rearranges psychiatric and legal knowledge about this special type of the complainer in his tragi- comedy Der Querulant, premiered in 1914. This concerns, first, the theatricality of the body and speech, secondly, the use of cultural techniques of writing and, thirdly, conflict- ing notions of justice. Therefore, the paper analyzes the aesthetic function of querulous behavior in the dramatic structure of the play from the point of view of both media theory and literary theory.