Science & Mathematics

Chemical Balance

The Museum's collections hold thousands of objects related to chemistry, biology, physics, astronomy, and other sciences. Instruments range from early American telescopes to lasers. Rare glassware and other artifacts from the laboratory of Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen, are among the scientific treasures here. A Gilbert chemistry set of about 1937 and other objects testify to the pleasures of amateur science. Artifacts also help illuminate the social and political history of biology and the roles of women and minorities in science.

The mathematics collection holds artifacts from slide rules and flash cards to code-breaking equipment. More than 1,000 models demonstrate some of the problems and principles of mathematics, and 80 abstract paintings by illustrator and cartoonist Crockett Johnson show his visual interpretations of mathematical theorems.

Date: 1940s

Sheet Music, One-zy, Two-zy (I Love You-zy)

The bright pink cover of this sheet music shows two of the most common tools of mathematics teaching, the blackboard and the textbook. According to the cover, the words and music to the love song are by Dave Franklin and Irving Taylor.
Description
The bright pink cover of this sheet music shows two of the most common tools of mathematics teaching, the blackboard and the textbook. According to the cover, the words and music to the love song are by Dave Franklin and Irving Taylor. The sheet music was published in 1946 by Martin Music of Hollywood, California. Freddie Martin and his Orchestra recorded the song for RCA.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1946
maker
Martin Music
ID Number
1988.3086.042
catalog number
1988.3086.042
nonaccession number
1988.3086

Psychological Test, Psychological Examination for High School Students

After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment.
Description
After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment. The American Council on Education Psychological Examination for High School Students was prepared by L.L. Thurstone and Thelma Gwinn Thurstone, and was copyrighted by the American Council on Education in 1942. This test is the 1942 edition. It is twelve pages long and contains Ruth E. Myer’s name in the upper right-hand corner. The test evaluates the test-taker on “Same-Opposite,” “Completion,” “arithmetic,” and “number series.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1942
ID Number
1983.0168.15
catalog number
1983.0168.15
accession number
1983.0168

Victor Model 780 Adding Machine

This ten-key printing manual adding machine has a black plastic top, green plastic keys, and a metal mechanism, handle, and base. The number keys are arranged in a block. To the left of these is a lever used to clear the place indicator.
Description
This ten-key printing manual adding machine has a black plastic top, green plastic keys, and a metal mechanism, handle, and base. The number keys are arranged in a block. To the left of these is a lever used to clear the place indicator. The place indicator is above the keyboard. Numbers with as many as eight digits may be entered. Back near the carriage are two levers. One, on the right, is marked “T” and set forward to obtain totals. It also is marked "S" (the S has faded) and held backward for subtotals. The other, on the left, is adjusted for repetitition ("R") or subtraction ("- (/) T"). The printing mechanism is between these levers, with the paper tape to the back. Results up to nine digits long may be printed. The handle on the right side has a wooden knob painted black. The cover is of black cloth. The serial number, marked on the side of the base, is 531973.
According to Edwin Darby, this model was introduced in 1938. According to Office Machines Research, Inc., it was introduced in 1940. The serial number suggests that this example was made in 1947.
References:
NOMDA’s Blue Book: Approximate January 1st Ages Adding Machines and Calculator Retail Prices, November, 1980, p. 57.
E. Darby, It All Adds Up: The Growth of Victor Comptometer Corporation, Victor Comptometer Corporation, 1968, pp. 77-90
Office Machines Research, Inc., section 3,21, February, 1940.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940s
maker
Victor Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1984.0682.01
maker number
531973
accession number
1984.0682
catalog number
1984.0682.01

Booklet, Monroe Machine Service Bulletin No. 450 Mechanical Functions

This illustrated paper manual, bound with plastic rings, gives instructions for the Monroe Model 410-11-011 calculating machine. It is Monroe Machine Service Bulletin No. 450.
Description
This illustrated paper manual, bound with plastic rings, gives instructions for the Monroe Model 410-11-011 calculating machine. It is Monroe Machine Service Bulletin No. 450. The documentation was received with a Friden model SBT 10 calculating machine with catalog number 1983.0475.01.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1948-02
ID Number
1983.0475.03
accession number
1983.0475
catalog number
1983.0475.03

Hemmi 153 Duplex Slide Rule

This bamboo rule is coated on both sides and its long outer edges with white celluloid. The rule is held together with metal posts. The glass indicator has a metal frame with bamboo and celluloid sides.
Description
This bamboo rule is coated on both sides and its long outer edges with white celluloid. The rule is held together with metal posts. The glass indicator has a metal frame with bamboo and celluloid sides. The rule is marked in the lower right corner of the base front: "SUN" (between two drawings of the sun) (/) HEMMI (/) MADE IN JAPAN. The scales are 25 cm (9-7/8") long.
Hemmi designed this model for electrical engineers. The front of the base has L, K, A, D, T, and Gθ scales. The front of the slide has B, CI, and C scales. The back of the base has θ, Rθ, P, LL3, LL2, and LL1 scales, with Q, Q', and C scales on the back of the slide. The P, Q, and θ scales were used for trigonometric relationships in right triangles and for hyperbolic functions. They were developed in 1929 for Hemmi rules and credited to Sadatoshi Betsumiya and Jisuke Miyazaki. These scales were not used in the West, and even Hemmi did not use these scales on all of its models.
The rule is stored in a black rectangular cardboard box which is opened by removing the right end. This end is marked in silver: "SUN" (between two drawings of the sun (/) "HEMMI" BAMBOO (/) SLIDE RULE. There are two stars where the box joins together.
Hemmi, a Japanese firm, manufactured this model of slide rule between 1933 and 1967. From 1942 through 1946, Hemmi exports to the English-speaking world were severely limited. From 1946 to 1950, Hemmi rules were marked, MADE IN OCCUPIED JAPAN. After 1950, Hemmi rules were stamped with codes indicating the year and month of manufacture. Hence, it seems likely that this rule was made between 1933 and 1942.
Dr. Robert P. Multauf, who owned this rule, was an early director of the Museum of History of Science and Technology (later the National Museum of American History). Previously, he served in the U.S. Navy in postwar Japan.
References: Brian Borchers and Noël H. Cotter, "The Sun Hemmi System of Trigonometric and Hyperbolic Scales," Journal of the Oughtred Society 9, no. 2 (2000): 28–31; Hisashi Okura, "Hyperbolic Scale Rule" (U.S. Patent 2,079,464 issued May 4, 1937).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1933-1942
maker
SUN HEMMI JAPAN CF
ID Number
1989.0443.01
catalog number
1989.0443.01
accession number
1989.0443

C. A. Robert Lundin

C. A. Robert Lundin (1880-1962) took charge of the optical department of Alvan Clark & Sons in 1915, established his own telescope firm in 1929, and became head of Warner & Swasey’s new optical shop in 1933.
Description
C. A. Robert Lundin (1880-1962) took charge of the optical department of Alvan Clark & Sons in 1915, established his own telescope firm in 1929, and became head of Warner & Swasey’s new optical shop in 1933. His honors included fellowships in the Royal Astronomical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
This snapshot shows Lundin examining one element of the objective lens of the 24-inch refracting telescope that was built by John A. Brashear and installed at Swarthmore College in 1911. A paper label on the back reads: “1941 January 14 C. A. Robert Lundin and flint component of Sproul Objective.”
Ref: John W. Briggs and Donald E. Osterbrock, “The Challenges and Frustrations of a Veteran Astronomical Optician: Robert Lundin, 1880-1962,” Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage 1 (1988): 93-103.
John A. Miller, “The Sproul Observatory of Swarthmore College,” Popular Astronomy 21 (1913): 253-262.
The Sproul Observatory of Swarthmore College. History and Description (Swarthmore, 1948).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1941
ID Number
1986.0667.03
catalog number
1986.0667.03
accession number
1986.0667

Ultracentrifuge Rotor

This rotor was the workhorse behind an ultracentrifuge used in the Chemistry Department at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from the 1930s through the 1950s.
Description (Brief)
This rotor was the workhorse behind an ultracentrifuge used in the Chemistry Department at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from the 1930s through the 1950s. Invented by Swedish chemist Theodor Svedberg in the mid-1920s, the ultracentrifuge was originally developed to analyze the weight of large molecules like proteins. Today it is commonly used to separate out molecules in solution.
Although based in Sweden for most of his life, Svedberg spent the spring of 1923 as a visiting professor at the University of Wisconsin, where he developed the optical centrifuge. On his return to Sweden, he modified the centrifuge to have a higher centrifugal field, creating the ultracentrifuge.
The ultracentrifuge works on the principle that heavy molecules sediment out of a solution at a speed relating to their weight. But, gravity alone is not strong enough to cause very light molecules to fall out of solution. To address this, the ultracentrifuge spins rapidly to create a force stronger than gravity, causing particularly light molecules to begin sedimenting out of solution. As the molecules fall, they are photographed. Analysis of these photographs can be used to establish the speed at which the molecules fell. Because that speed is related to how heavy a molecule is, it can be used to determine molecular weights.
Before the introduction of the ultracentrifuge, there was no reliable method for determining the molecular weight of proteins and other large molecules. For this and similar research, Svedberg won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1926.
Sources:
“The Analytical Ultracentrifuge: The First Half Century 1924–1974. Part I: Svedberg and the Early Experiments.” Pedersen, Kai O. Fraction: News of Biochemical Instrumentation. No. 1. Published by Spinco Division of Beckman Instruments, Inc. 1974.
“The Analytical Ultracentrifuge: The First Half Century 1924–1974. Part II: From the Colloid Experiments to DNA.” Williams, J.W. Fraction: News of Biochemical Instrumentation. No. 1. Published by Spinco Division of Beckman Instruments, Inc. 1974.
“Centrifuge, Ultra-.” p. 95. Instruments of Science: An Historical Encyclopedia. edited by Robert Bud and Deborah Jean Warner. Taylor & Francis. 1998.
Accession File
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1947
ID Number
CH.337002
catalog number
337002
accession number
1979.0188

Microscope

Compound binocular microscope with quadruple nosepiece, large square mechanical stage, inclination joint, V-shaped base, and wooden case with extra lenses. The inscription reads “Bausch & Lomb Optical Co. / U.S.A. / Rochester, N.Y.” The stage is a Spencer.
Description
Compound binocular microscope with quadruple nosepiece, large square mechanical stage, inclination joint, V-shaped base, and wooden case with extra lenses. The inscription reads “Bausch & Lomb Optical Co. / U.S.A. / Rochester, N.Y.” The stage is a Spencer. An inscription on the base reads “ATLANTEX & ZIELER CORP / DEDHAM / MASS. 326-7410.”
This microscope was used at the Worcester Foundation for Experimental Biology, a facility in Shrewesbury, Ma., in which the biologist, Gregory Pincus, conducted research leading to the first oral contraceptive. Anne P. Merrill, who worked on that project, donated it to the Smithsonian.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1940
maker
Bausch & Lomb
ID Number
1991.0881.01.1
catalog number
1991.0881.01.1
accession number
1991.0881

Psychological Test Score Sheet, Wechsler-Bellvue Record Sheet Adult and Adolescent Scales

The Romanian-born psychologist David Wechsler (1896-1981) graduated from the City College of New York in 1916 and received his M.A. from Columbia University. During World War I, as an U.S. Army private, he was assigned to the testing program for draftees.
Description
The Romanian-born psychologist David Wechsler (1896-1981) graduated from the City College of New York in 1916 and received his M.A. from Columbia University. During World War I, as an U.S. Army private, he was assigned to the testing program for draftees. After the war he studied in London and Paris, and then earned his PhD. at Columbia in 1925.Wechsler worked for a time for the Psychological Corporation in New York and then, from 1932 to 1967, was chief psychologist at the Bellvue Psychiatric Hospital.
While at Bellvue, Wechsler published several intelligence tests. This is the record sheet for the Wechsler-Bellvue Adult and Adolescent Scales, published by the Psychological Corporation in 1940.
For materials relating to the Wechsler-Bellvue intelligence tests, see 1989.0710.28 as well as 1990.0034.034 through 1990.0034.041.
Reference:
Saxon, Wolfgang, “Dr. David Wechsler, 85, Author of Intelligence Tests,” New York Times, May 3, 1981
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940
maker
Wechsler, David
ID Number
1990.0034.037
accession number
1990.0034
catalog number
1990.0034.037

Psychological Test, The Personal Audit. Form LL

William M. Lepley (1906-1977) and Clifford R. Adams (1902-1987), psychologists on the faculty of Pennsylvania State University, first published this examination of personal preferences with Science Research Associates in 1941.
Description
William M. Lepley (1906-1977) and Clifford R. Adams (1902-1987), psychologists on the faculty of Pennsylvania State University, first published this examination of personal preferences with Science Research Associates in 1941. It sometimes was known as the Adams-Lepley Personal Audit. This edition (Form LL) appeared in 1945. The test was used at Penn State to assist in marriage counseling, and was tried in a variety of other situations before, during, and after World War II. Its nine parts test the characteristics of sociability, suggestibility, irritability, tendency to rationalization, anxiety, sexual emotional conflict, tolerance, flexibility, and worry over unsolved problems.
References:
Adams, C.R., “A New Measure of Personality,” Journal of Applied Psychology, 25, 1941, pp. 141-151
Adams, C.R. and V.O. Packard, How to Pick a Mate, Garden City, New York: Blue Ribbon Books, 1946, pp. 100-123.
Adams, C.R., “Prediction of Adjustment in Marriage,” Education and Psychological Measurement, 1946, 6, pp. 185-198.
United States Army Air Forces. Aviation Psychology Research Reports, Issue 5, Government Printing Office, 1947, p. 585-588 describes the test in some detail. Given to those undergoing training as pilots, it did not predict their success.
American Psychological Association, 1962 Directory, ed. James Q. Holsopple, Washington, D.C.”: American Psychological Association, 1962, p. 4. 419.
Traxler, Arthur E. "Current Construction and Evaluation of Personality and Character Tests." Review of Educational Research, 1944, 14, no. 1, pp. 55-56.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1945
author
Lepley, William M.
Adams, Clifford R.
publisher
Science Research Assoc. Inc.
ID Number
1989.0710.54
catalog number
1989.0710.54
accession number
1989.0710

Psychological Test, General Classification Test 1a

In September of 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared a limited national emergency in the United States, increasing the size of the Army and the National Guard.
Description
In September of 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared a limited national emergency in the United States, increasing the size of the Army and the National Guard. The Adjutant General’s Office consulted with several psychologists about developing tests to sort the new personnel. By the end of 1940, the War Shipping Administration had published this General Classification Test 1a. Three more editions of what came to be called the Army General Classification Test (AGCT) followed.
For related materials, see 1989.0710.60 and 1989.0710.61.
Reference:
James H. Capshew, Psychologists on the March: Science, Practice and Professional Identity in America, 1929-1969, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999, pp. 99-104.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940
author
War Shipping Administration
ID Number
1989.0710.29
catalog number
1989.0710.29
accession number
1989.0710

Psychological Test with Instructions, Primary Business Interests Test

This pink typed manual is for a psychological test is by Alfred J. Cardall (1902-1962) who obtained his B.A. from Boston University in 1924, his M.B.A. there in 1927, and his doctorate in education from Harvard University in 1941.
Description
This pink typed manual is for a psychological test is by Alfred J. Cardall (1902-1962) who obtained his B.A. from Boston University in 1924, his M.B.A. there in 1927, and his doctorate in education from Harvard University in 1941. Cardall worked as the director of the Test Service Division at Science Research Associates from 1941 to 1943 and spent much of the rest of his career as a consultant. The manual in the collections indicates that at the time it was written (1941) Cardall was director of industrial relations at John B. Stetson Company in Philadelphia.
According to the manual, the test had two purposes. First, it could assist a vocational counselor in finding the area in which an individual was most likely to find job satisfaction. Second, it could help a high school or college student quickly find the appropriate program for business education.
Cardall also developed a test of arithmetic reasoning that was published as late as 1960.
References:
American Psychological Association, 1962 Directory, ed. James Q. Holsopple, Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 1962, p. 108.
“CAB is Continuing Plane Crash Probe,” The Levittown Times from Levittown, Pennsylvania, February 20, 1962.
Cardall, Alfred J. A Test for Primary Business Interests Based on a Functional Occupational Classification, Ed. D. Dissertation, Harvard University, 1941.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1941
maker
Cardall, Jr., Alfred J.
publisher
Science Research Assoc. Inc.
ID Number
1989.0710.32
catalog number
1989.0710.32
accession number
1989.0710

Nestler 23R Simplex Slide Rule

This one-sided, ten-inch wooden slide rule has lengths of white celluloid screwed to all sides except the back. The indicator is glass with metal edges. The top edge of the base has a scale of 28 cm, divided to millimeters.
Description
This one-sided, ten-inch wooden slide rule has lengths of white celluloid screwed to all sides except the back. The indicator is glass with metal edges. The top edge of the base has a scale of 28 cm, divided to millimeters. The scales on the base and one side of the slide are not labeled. The top of the base has a scale divided logarithmically from 1 to 1,000 (i.e., from 1 to 10 three times) and a scale divided logarithmically from 1 to 100 (1 to 10 twice), which is repeated on the front of the slide. These are equivalent to K, A, and B scales. The second scale on the slide is divided logarithmically from 10 to 1. The third scale on the slide and the first scale on the bottom of the base are divided logarithmically from 1 to 10. These are equivalent to CI, C, and D scales. The bottom scale on the base is divided from 0.1 to 1.0 in equal parts (i.e., an L scale).
The scales on the back of the slide are lettered S, S&T, and T. Underneath the slide is a centimeter scale, marked from 30 to 56 and divided to millimeters. The instrument is marked there: Tailhade & Cia., Cangallo 445 Bs. - Aires SYSTEM REITZ No 23 R ALBERT NESTLER A.-G. LAHR i/B. D.R.G.M. D.R.PATENT Industria Alemana. The front of the instrument has a scale of equal parts labeled 1:25. Tables of constants and material properties, in Spanish, are on paper pasted to the back of the instrument. A cardboard box covered with black synthetic leather is marked: Albert Nestler A.G. (/) D.R.Patent Rietz No 23 RF (/) Industria Alemana. The box is also marked TAILHADE & Cia. (/) CANGALLO 445 (/) Bs. Aires.
The German firm of Albert Nestler established a factory in Lahr in 1878. (The "i/B" marked on the rule stands for "in Baden.") In 1902 Nestler began to offer slide rules with the arrangement of scales proposed that year by German engineer Max Rietz. These included the K and L scales, with the CI and ST (called S&T on this example) scales added about two decades later. The company held numerous German patents. Nestler first advertised model 23 with Rietz scales in 1907. The donor purchased this rule at a bookstore in Argentina around 1940, which is about the same time that Nestler stopped attaching celluloid to rules with screws.
Reference: Guus Craenen, "Albert Nestler: Innovation and Quality," Journal of the Oughtred Society 11, no. 1 (2002): 38–46; Dieter von Jezierski, Slide Rules: A Journey Through Three Centuries, trans. Rodger Shepherd (Mendham, N.J.: Astragal Press, 2000), 34, 64–68, 118; Peter M. Hopp, Slide Rules: Their History, Models, and Makers (Mendham, N.J.: Astragal Press, 1999), 96, 98.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940
maker
Albert Nestler
ID Number
1991.0445.01
accession number
1991.0445
catalog number
1991.0445.01

Psychological Test, Terman-Mcnemar Test Of Mental Ability, Form C

Lewis M. Terman (1877-1956) and his student and then colleague at Stanford University Quinn McNemar (1900-1986), coauthored this intelligence test, which was copyrighted by World Book Company in 1941.
Description
Lewis M. Terman (1877-1956) and his student and then colleague at Stanford University Quinn McNemar (1900-1986), coauthored this intelligence test, which was copyrighted by World Book Company in 1941. It is a revision of Terman’s Group Test of Mental Ability, a test first published in the 1920s (for an example see MA.316371.065). As the name suggests, these tests were administered to students in groups rather than individually. This version focused particularly on verbal ability. It was designed for students in grades seven through twelve. The test had seven parts – information, synonyms, logical selection, classification, analogies, opposites, and best answers.
Reference:
Boring, Edwin G. “Lewis Madison Terman 1877-1956,” Biographical Memoirs of the National Academy of Sciences, 1959.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1941
publisher
World Book Company
author
Terman, Lewis M.
ID Number
1990.0034.101
catalog number
1990.0034.101
accession number
1990.0034

Psychological Test, Progressive Reading Tests - Advanced Form A

Ernest W. Tiegs (1891-1970), the coauthor of this diagnostic test of reading, was born in Wisconsin.
Description
Ernest W. Tiegs (1891-1970), the coauthor of this diagnostic test of reading, was born in Wisconsin. He served as a principal and superintendent in the public schools of Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota; and also did graduate work in education at the University of Minnesota, completing his M.A. in 1921 and his PhD. in 1927. He then went to the University of Southern California as a member of the faculty in education and head of the university college, the downtown division of USC. By 1945, Tiegs was the editor-in-chief of the California Test Bureau. He would later be affiliated with Los Angeles State College (now California State University Los Angeles).
Willis W. Clark (1895-1964), the other author, received his A.B. (1916), A.M. (1918) and doctorate in education (1941) from the University of Southern California. He held a variety of positions in the Los Angeles public schools and at USC. He developed a diagnostic test in fundamentals of arithmetic for the L.A. Schools, and his wife, Ethel M. Clark, set out to market it to school districts around the country. The following year, she received an order from the Kansas City schools, and the California Test Bureau was born. Both Tiegs and Willis Clark published their tests with the company and would serve as administrators for it.
This particular object is the 1943 edition of the Progressive Reading Tests – Advance Form A. The test is copyrighted 1934, 1937, and 1943. It is intended for grades nine through adults.
References:
Ernest Walter Tiegs,A Study of Common School Support in the State of New Jersey M.A. Dissertation, University of Minnesota, 1921 – published in “Studies in “Public School Finance: The East”, Research Publications of the University of Minnesota, Education Series No.2, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota,1923, pp. 160-210.
Ernest W. Tiegs, An Evaluation of Some Techniques of Teacher Selection, PhD. Dissertation, University of Minnesota, 1927.
U.S. Congress, Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the 88th Congress, Part I, vol. 109, Part 15, pp. 20274-20275.
“U.S.C. Completes Faculty,” Los Angeles Times, August 14, 1927. The article lists new appointments at the University of Southern California. Ernest W. Tiegs of the Minneapolis public schools has been named assistant professor of education and head of university college.
Mark Walsh, “Quiz Biz,” Education Week, June 16, 1999 The article discusses the history of businesses marketing tests in the U.S. It may be found online (accessed May 2020).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1943
author
Clark, Willis W.
Tiegs, Ernest W.
maker
California Test Bureau
ID Number
1989.0710.40
catalog number
1989.0710.40
accession number
1989.0710

Pamphlet, Michigan Vocabulary Profile Test Directions

These are the instructions for the 1949 revision of a test first published in 1939 by Edward Barrows Greene of the University of Michigan. See 1989.0710.24 for further information and references.Currently not on view
Description
These are the instructions for the 1949 revision of a test first published in 1939 by Edward Barrows Greene of the University of Michigan. See 1989.0710.24 for further information and references.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1949
maker
World Book Company
ID Number
1990.0034.165
catalog number
1990.0034.165
accession number
1990.0034

Radium secondary gamma-ray standard, 0.100x10E-6 gm

Background on secondary gamma-ray standards, Object IDs 1994.0125.55, .56, .57, & .58Instruments used for radiation detection, measurements, or surveys need to be calibrated periodically.
Description
Background on secondary gamma-ray standards, Object IDs 1994.0125.55, .56, .57, & .58
Instruments used for radiation detection, measurements, or surveys need to be calibrated periodically. A radioactive source (not necessarily calibrated) is used to confirm the satisfactory operation of an instrument. A standard source is a radiation source exhibiting a disintegration (e.g., disintegrations per second or dps), emission or exposure rate certified by or traceable to the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), formerly the National Bureau of Standards (NBS). NIST maintains the primary radiation sources, and makes available and/or certifies secondary sources for instrument calibration. For details on survey instrument calibration, see:
http://www.rso.utah.edu/policies/rpr/52instrucare/52instrucare.pdf
Detailed description of Radium secondary gamma-ray standard, 0.100x10E-6 gm, Object 1994.0125.58
(One of the accompanying] photographs provided by donor, Prof. Herbert Clark, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.)
Flat-bottomed glass ampoule, approximately 3 1/8” long, 5/8” diam., held by cotton wool in a test-tube shaped container capped by a shiny steel screw-cap, 5 ¾” long, 7/8” diam. The ampoule is more than two-thirds full of colorless liquid. The ampoule bears a legend printed on the glass: “0.1 Micro gms. / Radium”. The top of the containing tube bears an adhesive label with the following words printed: “CAUTION / [symbol] / RADIOACTIVE / MATERIAL”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1947
maker
National Bureau of Standards
ID Number
1994.0125.58
accession number
1994.0125
catalog number
1994.0125.58

Multi-Slide Slide Rule & Mathematical Tables

This yellow, red, black, and white slide rule has a cardboard front and back, held together with metal grommets along the top and bottom. A paper slide and a clear plastic cover fit inside the cardboard. Three red hairline indicators are on the plastic.
Description
This yellow, red, black, and white slide rule has a cardboard front and back, held together with metal grommets along the top and bottom. A paper slide and a clear plastic cover fit inside the cardboard. Three red hairline indicators are on the plastic. The front of the rule bears A, D, and K scales, with B, CI, and C scales on the front of the slide. The scales are 8-1/2 inches long. The front also has a vertical window for reading off four-place logarithms. There are tables for decimal equivalents and slide rule settings.
The back of the rule has A and D scales, with S, L, and T scales on the back of the slide. There are tables for trigonometric formulae and mathematical formulae, and a vertical window for reading off natural trigonometric functions.
The front of the rule is marked: SLIDE RULE & MATHEMATICAL TABLES (/) MIGHTY MITE (/) THERMAL CONTROLS; MECHANICAL INDUSTRIES (/) PRODUCTION COMPANY (/) 217 ASH ST. • AKRON 2, OHIO. The back of the rule is marked: Copyright 1945, Multi Slide Instrument Corp., Chicago, Ill.—Pat. Pending (/) Reproduction in whole or part will be prosecuted.
The rule is housed in an envelope that also contains a sheet of instructions and two samples of Mighty Mite Thermal Controls. The front of the envelope bears the same information about the distributor, Mighty Mite, which appears on the front of the rule. However, the address for Mechanical Industries is given as 217-233 Ash St. The front is also marked: Multi (/) SLIDE (/) RULE. The back of the envelope describes the company's single- and dual-action thermal controls.
The larger silver dual-action sample of a thermal control is marked: M.I.P.CO.AKRON.O. (/) PAT.PEND. The smaller copper single-action sample is marked on one side: M.I.P.CO. (/) AKRON O. (/) SUICOL. On the other side, it is marked: 40 H.P. (/) 15 V.A.C.
According to the magazines Popular Science and Professional Engineer, the Multi Slide Rule sold (without company logos) for $1.00. The company distributed its products from Chicago. Mighty Mite Controls began to manufacture bimetal thermostats for appliances in 1946. Thermtrol Corporation of North Canton, Ohio, purchased Mighty Mite in 1996. The patent mentioned on the slide rule may refer to Norman F. Dewar's 1946 application, which was assigned to the Graphic Calculator Company of Chicago (see 2000.3029.13). The patent for the thermal control is not known.
References: Advertisement, Multi-Slide Instrument Corp., Popular Science 147, no. 3 (October 1945): 294; Professional Engineer (1948): 64; Mechanical Industries Production Company, "Mighty Mite" (U.S. Trademark 71,617,720 issued March 24, 1953); Norman F. Dewar, "Slide Rule" (U.S. Patent 2,530,047 issued November 14, 1950).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
after 1945
maker
Multi-Slide Instrument Corp.
ID Number
1995.3051.01
nonaccession number
1995.3051
catalog number
1995.3051.01

Schoenner Wallet Case of Drawing Instruments Sold by Technical Supply Company

This folding cardboard case is covered with black leather and lined with green velvet. It is fastened with a brass snap that is marked with a pi symbol and with a backward letter R and the letter G. Inside the lid is marked: TECHNICAL SUPPLY Co. (/) SCRANTON PA.
Description
This folding cardboard case is covered with black leather and lined with green velvet. It is fastened with a brass snap that is marked with a pi symbol and with a backward letter R and the letter G. Inside the lid is marked: TECHNICAL SUPPLY Co. (/) SCRANTON PA. The set includes:
1) 6" German silver drawing compass with removable pencil point, pen point, extension bar, and needle point. On one side, the hinge is marked: SCHOENNER. On the other side, the hinge has the Schoenner logo (overlapping S, G, and two two-headed arrows) and the letters: D. R. P.
2) 3-1/4" German silver pen handle.
3) 6" German silver and steel fixed-leg dividers. On one side, the hinge is marked: SCHOENNER. On the other side, the hinge has the Schoenner logo (overlapping S, G, and two two-headed arrows) and the letters: D. R. P.
4) 1-5/16" cylindrical metal case for leads. Three pencil leads are loose in the tray of the wallet case.
5) 5" steel drawing pen. The handle is painted black.
6) 4" steel bow pen and bow pencil.
7) 1" metal joint tightener.
Technical Supply Company sold drawing materials in Scranton, Pa., by 1903. This set does not resemble any of the sets in the firm's 1912 catalog. Compare to 1989.0305.05. For other sets with Schoenner instruments, see 1977.0279.01, 1977.1101.0097, 1979.0868.01, 1990.0350.01, 1990.0690.01, and MA.317925.04.
Dr. Robert P. Multhauf (1919–2004), who owned this set, graduated from Iowa State College in 1941, served in the U.S. Navy from 1943 to 1947, and earned a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley in 1953. He joined the Smithsonian in 1954 and directed the Museum of History and Technology (later the National Museum of American History) from 1966 to 1969. After serving in other positions, he retired from the Smithsonian in 1987. He likely purchased this set early in his career.
References: "Dr. Robert P. Multhauf," Marin Independent Journal, May 15, 2004; Bernard S. Finn, "Robert P. Multhauf, 1919–2004," Technology and Culture 46, no. 1 (2005): 265–273.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1930-1940
maker
Schoenner, Georg
ID Number
1989.3072.01
catalog number
1989.3072.01
nonaccession number
1989.3072

Hemmi-Sun Mannheim Slide Rule

This small (4-inch) one-sided rule is bamboo with a metal backing, entirely covered with white celluloid. A magnifying glass indicator has a metal frame. There are A and D scales on the base. The slide has B and C scales on one side and S, L, and T scales on the other side.
Description
This small (4-inch) one-sided rule is bamboo with a metal backing, entirely covered with white celluloid. A magnifying glass indicator has a metal frame. There are A and D scales on the base. The slide has B and C scales on one side and S, L, and T scales on the other side. The lower edge of the base has a scale of centimeters divided to millimeters. The upper edge of the base has a scale of inches divided to thirty-seconds of an inch.
The D scale is marked at each end: Quot (/) +1; Prod (/) -1. The back of the slide rule is marked: "SUN" (between two drawings of the sun); HEMMI; MADE IN JAPAN. A brown leather case is stamped in gold on the flap: BAMBOO (/) SLIDE RULE (/) "SUN" (between two drawings of the sun) (/) HEMMI. Written in pen inside the flap is: BOB YINGLING.
According to the donor, a colleague used this slide rule in a training program at the American Brass Company Division of Anaconda Mining Company in Waterbury, Conn., in the 1940s. He used it for such problems as calculating the weight of samples from their volume and density.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1940
maker
SUN HEMMI JAPAN CF
ID Number
1995.0087.01
accession number
1995.0087
catalog number
1995.0087.01

Set of Sheets, Report of Medical Examination

This is a report (in duplicate) of a medical examination of one William Callahan of New Haven, Ct. who was 22 years old at the time of the teat and born December 23, 1922. The form had been prepared by the War Shipping Administration.Currently not on view
Description
This is a report (in duplicate) of a medical examination of one William Callahan of New Haven, Ct. who was 22 years old at the time of the teat and born December 23, 1922. The form had been prepared by the War Shipping Administration.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1943
author
War Shipping Administration
ID Number
1989.0710.78
catalog number
1989.0710.78
accession number
1989.0710

Pamphlet, Training and Reference Manual for Job Analysis

Federal legislation of the 1930s encouraged detailed analysis of American jobs. The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 gave workers the right to collective bargaining.
Description
Federal legislation of the 1930s encouraged detailed analysis of American jobs. The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 gave workers the right to collective bargaining. The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 stated which jobs were subject to working hour limits and overtime rules and which were exempt, based on specific work activities. One result was the Dictionary of Occupational Titles mentioned in the description of object 1989.0710.74. At the same time, the Occupational Analysis and Industrial Services Division of the U.S. Employment Service in the U.S. Department of Labor prepared this detailed manual describing techniques of job analysis. It appeared in 1944.
References:
For a digital form of the document, see the record in Hathitrust (https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/002007433), accessed March 31, 2020.
Mark A. Wilson, “A History of Job Analysis,” Historical Perspectives in Industrial and Educational Psychology, ed. Laura L. Koppes, New York: Psychology Press, 2007. This is a general introduction to job analysis, with nothing specific about the program discussed here.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1944
publisher
United States Employment Service
ID Number
1990.0034.002
catalog number
1990.0034.002
accession number
1990.0034

Psychological Test, Iowa Silent Reading Tests. New Edition. Advanced Test: Form DM

For a general discussion of testing at the University of Iowa, including mention of this object, see 1990.0034.086.Currently not on view
Description
For a general discussion of testing at the University of Iowa, including mention of this object, see 1990.0034.086.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1943
author
Greene, H. A.
Jorgensen, A. N.
Kelley, V. H.
maker
World Book Company
ID Number
1989.0710.46
catalog number
1989.0710.46
accession number
1989.0710

Sheets, A Tentative Guide for the Administration and Interpretation of the Bender Gestalt Test

New York-born Max L.
Description
New York-born Max L. Hutt (1908-1985), an instructor in clinical psychology at the Adjutant General’s School, prepared this typed document, which was distributed by the Department of Neuropsychiatry of the Medical Field Service School at Fort Sam Houston, Texas and is dated September of 1947. The materials also include a February 1948, guide relating to the Thematic Perception [Apperception?] Test. The Bender Gestalt Test was first introduced by neuropsychologist Lauretta Bender (1897-1987) in 1938 as a test of visual motor function consisting of nine drawings, each on its own index card. Subjects were asked to copy the drawings. The test was popularized by Hutt during and after World War II as a way to judge brain damage and what is now called post-traumatic stress syndrome.
From 1946 to 1960, Hutt was on the faculty in psychology at the University of Michigan. He then moved to the University of Detroit, although he returned to Ann Arbor in his later years.
For instructions for the Bender Gestalt Test, see MA.316372.21. For versions of the images shown on the test (all on one sheet), see MA.316371.113.
References:
Hutt, Max L., Characteristic Differences in the Achievement of Bright and Dull Pupils: An Analysis of Research Studies, , M.A. Dissertation, Department of Education, City College of New York,1930.
Hutt, Max L., “The Projective Use of the Bender-Gestalt Test,” in Projective Techniques in Personality Assessment, ed. A.I. Rabin, New York: Springer, 1968, pp. 397-420.
“Deaths”, New York Times, July 16, 1985, p. B6.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1945-1948
maker
Hutt, Max L.
ID Number
1990.0034.172
catalog number
1990.0034.172
accession number
1990.0034

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