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

Tote Machine Section

Accurate rapid calculation is important to those placing and collecting bets in horse racing.
Description
Accurate rapid calculation is important to those placing and collecting bets in horse racing. From the 1930s through at least the 1960s, American race tracks rented room-sized totalisators, or tote machines, to calculate the amount bet on various horses, the odds of winning and placing, and payoffs.
This section (an intermediate distribution frame) of an American Totalisator C-7 Counter Tote has a light green metal and wooden cabinet with two glass doors in front and a black plastic and cloth cover. Outside the cabinet, at the top of the front, is a row of switches on a black rectangular board. Nine sections of circuitry are within the cabinet, each with its own glass cover in a metal frame. The upper section second from the right was removed for exhibition. Metal holders for the relays are marked individually. Viewed form the back, the cabinet has a large panel, an ammeter and thermometer, and several cylinders on top suited for cable connections. The cover shields the top and about half the sides of the machine.
The machine is marked on a paper tag with a portion removed for exhibit: RELAYS (/) 7307 ADJUSTED (/) BY R. DONELSON (/) DATE 7/17/64.
Reference:
Accession File.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940s
maker
American Totalisator
ID Number
1990.0008.01
accession number
1990.0008
catalog number
1990.0008.01

Psychological Test, Minnesota Personality Scale (For Women)

Psychologists John Gordon Darley (1910-1990) and Walter J. McNamara (1908-1982) were both at the University of Minnesota in the late 1930s. Darley received his PhD. there in 1937 and worked in the Student Counseling Bureau.
Description
Psychologists John Gordon Darley (1910-1990) and Walter J. McNamara (1908-1982) were both at the University of Minnesota in the late 1930s. Darley received his PhD. there in 1937 and worked in the Student Counseling Bureau. He later would become an assistant to the dean of the graduate school, and then dean of the graduate school himself.
McNamara was a graduate student who received his PhD. in 1938 and would work at IBM as an industrial psychologist, perhaps most notably creating a programmer’s aptitude test.
This is the first edition of a personality scale Darley and McNamara published in 1941. It was specifically designed to test the personality of women – they prepared a similar scale for men. Characteristics tested included morale, social adjustment, family relations, emotionality, and economic conservatism. This test did not prove as influential as another test of personality developed at the University of Minnesota, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory.
Compare 1989.0710.31(the 1941 test for men) and 1990.0034.058 (also the 1941 test for men).
References:
American Psychological Association, 1962 Directory, ed. James Q. Holsopple, Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 1962, p. 155, 481.
Taxler, Arthur E., “Psychological Tests and Their Uses,” Review of Educational Research, 14 #1, 1944, p. 56.
“Walter J. McNamara,” Rutland [Vermont] Daily Herald, May 10, 1982.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1941
author
McNamara, W. J.
Darley, J. G.
maker
Psychological Corporation
ID Number
1990.0034.059
accession number
1990.0034
catalog number
1990.0034.059

Psychological Test, Infant Intelligence Scale

This is a record sheet for the Infant Intelligence Scale prepared by Psyche Cattell for children from 2 months to 2 ½ years in age.
Description
This is a record sheet for the Infant Intelligence Scale prepared by Psyche Cattell for children from 2 months to 2 ½ years in age. For each month between two months and twelve months and for each two months from twelve months and thirty months of age, five activities are listed along with one or two alternates. The child was assigned points if he or she could perform that activity.
Psyche Cattell (1893-1989) was the daughter of Josephine Cattell and her husband, American psychologist James McKean Cattell. She and her six siblings were home schooled. Although she did coursework at Cornell University and elsewhere, she was not awarded an undergraduate degree as she lacked a high school diploma. She did received a master’s of education (1925) and doctorate of education (1927) from Harvard University. In the 1930s, Cattell’s interests turned to studying the intelligence of very young children. By 1940, she had prepared both a book on the subject and the Infant Intelligence Scale published by the Psychological Corporation that year. She also had moved to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where she spent the rest of her career working with children.
References:
American Psychological Association, 1962 Directory, ed. James Q. Holsopple, Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 1962, p. 115.
Cattell, Psyche. The Measurement of Intelligence of Infants and Young Children, New York: Psychological Corporation, 1940. This is the manual for the test.
McCulloch, T. L., “Review of ‘The Measurement of Intelligence of Infants and Young Children,’” The American Journal of Psychology, 1945, 58 # 1, p.153.
Sokal, M.M., “Psyche Cattell (1893-1989),” American Psychologist, 1991, 46 #1, p. 72.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940
maker
Cattell, Psyche
publisher
Psychological Corporation
ID Number
1990.0034.141
accession number
1990.0034
catalog number
1990.0034.141

Psychological Test with Two Sheets, Test of Mechanical Comprehension Form MS

This is a version of a test of mechanical comprehension, originally published by George K. Bennett (1904-1975) and Dinah E. Fry (1913-1965) of the Psychological Corporation. Bennett had come to the corporation after receiving his PhD.
Description
This is a version of a test of mechanical comprehension, originally published by George K. Bennett (1904-1975) and Dinah E. Fry (1913-1965) of the Psychological Corporation. Bennett had come to the corporation after receiving his PhD. in psychology from Yale University in 1934, while Fry had her master’s degree in business and economics from Columbia. This is Form MS of the test, published by the Division of Training of the War Shipping Department during World War II. The test was designed to access the ability to understand connections between physical forces and mechanical components in practical situations. It is heavily illustrated.
Also included are two blank answer sheets, one for form AA of the test, designed to be graded by IBM machines, and another for form BB, apparently designed to be graded by hand.
Editions of the examinations had appeared as early as 1940 and it would be republished at least as late as 1973. It would be sold as the Bennett Mechanical Comprehension Test.
References:
M. Asch, The Scope of Industrial Psychology, New Delhi: Sanup & Sons, 2004, pp. 77-95.
Fry, Dinah Elizabeth, A History of the New York State Employment Service, Master’s Essay, Columbia University, Business & Economics, 1939.
Kim Johnson, “A Biography of George K. Bennett,” May, 2016, at the website of the Society for Industrial and Occupational Psychology (SIOP), accessed March 25, 2020.
Michael M. Sokal, “The Origins of the Psychological Corporation,” , 1981, 17 #1, pp. 54-67.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1943
maker
Fry, Dinah E.
Bennett, George K.
publisher
Psychological Corporation
ID Number
1989.0710.48
catalog number
1989.0710.48
accession number
1989.0710

Psychological Test Manual With Score Sheet, Army Individual Test

During World War II, as in World War I, the U.S. Army turned to psychologists to develop tests for sorting personnel. The National Research Council Appointed a Committee on the Classification of Personnel chaired by Walter V. Bingham.
Description
During World War II, as in World War I, the U.S. Army turned to psychologists to develop tests for sorting personnel. The National Research Council Appointed a Committee on the Classification of Personnel chaired by Walter V. Bingham. These documents are the manual and score sheet for one test developed under the direction of that committee, as a substitute for the Army General Classification Test. The test is called the Army Individual Test. As the title suggests, it was given to individuals. It had six sections. The three verbal tests were on Similarities-Differences, Story Memory, and Digit Span. It also had three performance tests on Trail Making, Block Assembly, and Shoulder Patches.
References:
Wassermann, John D. “A History of Intelligence Assessment: The Unfinished Tapestry,” in Contemporary Intellectual Assessment: Theories, Tests, and Issues, ed. D.P. Flanagan and P.L. Harrison, New York: Guilford Press, 2012, pp. 29-30.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1944
maker
U.S. War Department
ID Number
1990.0034.047
accession number
1990.0034
catalog number
1990.0034.047

Psychological Test, Army Information Sheet - 1

From August 1942 until June 1943, those entering the United States Army were given tests like this one. It was a revision of the Minimum Literacy Test given previously (for an example of that examination see 1990.0034.008).
Description
From August 1942 until June 1943, those entering the United States Army were given tests like this one. It was a revision of the Minimum Literacy Test given previously (for an example of that examination see 1990.0034.008). It has twelve fill-in-the blank questions, the last five of which relate to information in a paragraph of text (in this example, Form 1 of the test, the text is about road signs). Those who passed the test could be inducted. Those who failed took a group test of mental ability called the Visual Classification Test. Those failing it took two individual tests, the Concrete Directions Test and the Block Counting Test. If a man failed these, he was rejected. An examination called the Qualification Test replaced the Army Information Sheet in June 1943, and there were no limits on the number of illiterate men inducted.
Reference:
Uhlaner, J. E. and D. Bolanoich, Development of Armed Forces Qualification Test and Predecessor Army Screening Tests, 1948-1950, Personnel Research Section Report 976, Department of the Army, 1952, esp. pp. 4-5. This is available at
https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/000191.pdf, accessed April 1, 2020.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1942
maker
U.S. War Department
ID Number
1990.0034.018
catalog number
1990.0034.018
accession number
1990.0034

Pamphlet, Iowa Language Abilities Test. Directions for Administering

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
1948
author
Greene, Harry A.
Ballenger, Harvey Leigh
publisher
World Book Company
ID Number
1990.0034.108
catalog number
1990.0034.108
accession number
1990.0034

Psychological Test, Cooperative General Achievement Tests. Revised Series. II. A Test Of General Proficiency In The Field Of Natural Sciences. Form X

The Cooperative Test Service, a branch of the American Council of Education, began administering achievement tests in schools and colleges in 1930.
Description
The Cooperative Test Service, a branch of the American Council of Education, began administering achievement tests in schools and colleges in 1930. In 1947, it would merge with the College Entrance Examination Board and the testing unit of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching to form the Educational Testing Service of Princeton, New Jersey. The author of this test was Paul J. Burke of the Cooperative Test Service, advised by Paul Eduard Kambly (1908-1976) who taught at the school associated with the University of Iowa and then was associated with the University of Oregon, and Vernon Herbert Noll (1900-1991) who had his PhD. from the University of Minnesota and then was affiliated with Michigan State University. This test, designed for high school and college students, was the second in a series of three forty-minute tests. The first was designed to test proficiency in social sciences, the third proficiency in mathematics.
On other tests of the American Council of Education, see 1990.0034.166.
Reference:
Greenleaf, Walter J., “Teachers are Needed,” Vocational Division Leaflet No. 15, U.S. Office of Education, p. 15.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1947
maker
Burke, Paul J.
Kambly, Paul E.
Noll, V. H.
Cooperative Test Service
ID Number
1989.0710.62
accession number
1989.0710
catalog number
1989.0710.62

Psychological Test, Kuder Preference Record. Form BB

Michigan-born G. Frederic Kuder (1903–2000) grew up in Wisconsin. He received a B.A. from the University of Arizona, an M.A. from the University of Michigan and a PhD. from Ohio State University.
Description
Michigan-born G. Frederic Kuder (1903–2000) grew up in Wisconsin. He received a B.A. from the University of Arizona, an M.A. from the University of Michigan and a PhD. from Ohio State University. He held positions at Proctor and Gamble Company, at the University of Chicago, and on the faculty of Duke University.
The Kuder Preference Test, first published in 1938, was designed to measure the motivation of high school and college students, to assist in both educational and vocational guidance. It sought to assess a student’s tastes in for several different kinds of activities. In this version of the test, called the Kuder Preference Record Form BB, the categories were mechanical, computational, scientific, persuasive, artistic, literary, musical social service, and clerical. This test was copyrighted in 1942. It was published by Science Research Associates of Chicago and has a tan cover. Two score sheets are included {IS THERE AN ACTUAL TEST???}
Tests in the tradition of Kuder are still given to this day.
Compare 1989.0710.35, 1989.0710.36, and 316371.031.
References:
Donald G. Zytowsky, “Obituary: Dr. G. Frederic Kuder,” American Psychological Association Division of Counseling Psychology Newsletter, July 2000, 21 #3, p. 18.
Kuder, G.F., The Construction of Valid Test Items, Ph. d. Dissertation, Ohio State University, 1937.
Kuder, G.F., Manual for the Preference Record, Chicago: Science Research Associates, 1939.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1942
maker
Kuder, G. Frederic
publisher
Science Research Assoc. Inc.
ID Number
1989.0710.35
catalog number
1989.0710.35
accession number
1989.0710

Psychological Test, Occupational Interest Inventory - Advanced. Form A

In 1943, Edwin A. Lee (1888-1966), dean and professor at the UCLA School of Education with a long time interest in vocational curricula, combined with Louis P.
Description
In 1943, Edwin A. Lee (1888-1966), dean and professor at the UCLA School of Education with a long time interest in vocational curricula, combined with Louis P. Thorpe (1893-1970), director of the psychological clinic at the University of Southern California and soon to be professor of education and psychology there, to take out the first copyright for this occupational interest inventory. This is a blank copy of Form A of the advanced version of the test, with a 1946 copyright. It was published by the California Test Bureau.
The test was divided into three parts. The first part ranked a person’s interest in six different fields. These were personal-social, natural, mechanical, business, the arts, and the sciences. The second part ranked types of interest – verbal, manipulative, or computational. The final part ranked level of interest.
Reference:
American Psychological Association, 1962 Directory, ed. James Q. Holsopple, Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 1962, p. 727
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1946
publisher
California Test Bureau
maker
Thorpe, Louis P.
Lee, E. A.
ID Number
1990.0034.117
catalog number
1990.0034.117
accession number
1990.0034

Set of Sheets, Training Audit

The outbreak of World War II led to considerable strain among American workers as many left for war-related jobs. Some organizations, such the United States Employment Service for New York State, planned to do an audit of the training needed by employees.
Description
The outbreak of World War II led to considerable strain among American workers as many left for war-related jobs. Some organizations, such the United States Employment Service for New York State, planned to do an audit of the training needed by employees. This typescript describes the plan.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1942
maker
United States Employment Service
ID Number
1989.0710.75
catalog number
1989.0710.75
accession number
1989.0710

Psychological Test Score Sheet, Wechsler-Bellvue Record Sheet Adult and Adolescent Scales. 1940 Edition B

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 Edition B of 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
1990.0034.038
accession number
1990.0034
catalog number
1990.0034.038

Nier Mass Spectrograph

Background on Nier Mass Spectrograph; object id no. 1990.0446.01; catalog no. N-09567This object consists of the following three components: ion source with oven and acceleration electrode; semicircular glass vacuum chamber; ion collector with two plates.
Description
Background on Nier Mass Spectrograph; object id no. 1990.0446.01; catalog no. N-09567
This object consists of the following three components: ion source with oven and acceleration electrode; semicircular glass vacuum chamber; ion collector with two plates. The original device included an electromagnet, which is not part of this accession.
In 1939, as political tensions in Europe increased, American physicists learned of an astonishing discovery: the nucleus of the uranium atom can be split, causing the release of an immense amount of energy. Given the prospects of war, the discovery was just as worrying as it was intellectually exciting. Could the Germans use it to develop an atomic bomb?
The Americans realized that they had to determine whether a bomb was physically possible. Uranium consists mostly of the isotope U-238, with less than 1% of U-235. Theoreticians predicted that it was the nuclei of the rare U-235 isotope that undergo fission, the U-238 being inactive. To test this prediction, it was necessary to separate the two isotopes, but it would be difficult to do this since they are chemically identical.
Alfred Nier, a young physicist at the University of Minnesota, was one of the few people in the world with the expertise to carry out the separation. He used a physical technique that took advantage of the small difference in mass of the two isotopes. To separate and collect small quantities of them, he employed a mass spectrometer technique that he first developed starting in about 1937 for measurement of relative abundance of isotopes throughout the periodic table. (The basic principles of the mass spectrometer are described below.)
As a measure of the great importance of his work, in October 1939, Nier received a letter from eminent physicist Enrico Fermi, then at Columbia University, expressing great interest in whether, and how, the separation was progressing. Motivated by such urging, by late February 1940, Nier was able to produce two tiny samples of separated U-235 and U-238, which he provided to his collaborators at Columbia University, a team headed by John R. Dunning of Columbia. The Dunning team was using the cyclotron at the University in numerous studies to follow up on the news from Europe the year before on the fission of the uranium atom. In March 1940, with the samples provided by Nier, the team used neutrons produced by a proton beam from the cyclotron to show that it was the comparatively rare uranium-235 isotope that was the most readily fissile component, and not the abundant uranium-238.
The fission prediction was verified. The Nier-Dunning group remarked, "These experiments emphasize the importance of uranium isotope separation on a larger scale for the investigation of chain reaction possibilities in uranium" (reference: A.O. Nier et. al., Phys. Rev. 57, 546 (1940)). This proof that U-235 was the fissile uranium isotope opened the way to the intense U.S. efforts under the Manhattan Project to develop an atomic bomb. (For details, see Nier’s reminiscences of mass spectrometry and The Manhattan Project at: http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/ed066p385).
The Dunning cyclotron is also in the Modern Physics Collection (object id no. 1978.1074.01; catalog no. N-09130), and it will be presented on the SI collections website in 2015. (Search for “Dunning Cyclotron” at http://collections.si.edu/search/)
The Nier mass spectrometer used to collect samples of U-235 and U-238 (object id no. 1990.0446.01)
Nier designed an apparatus based on the principle of the mass spectrometer, an instrument that he had been using to measure isotopic abundance ratios throughout the entire periodic table. As in most mass spectrometers of the time, his apparatus produced positive ions by the controlled bombardment of a gas (UBr˅4, generated in a tiny oven) by an electron beam. The ions were drawn from the ionizing region and moved into an analyzer, which used an electromagnet for the separation of the various masses. Usually, the ion currents of the separated masses were measured by means of an electrometer tube amplifier, but in this case the ions simply accumulated on two small metal plates set at the appropriate positions. Nier’s mass spectrometer required that the ions move in a semicircular path in a uniform magnetic field. The mass analyzer tube was accordingly mounted between the poles of an electromagnet that weighed two tons, and required a 5 kW generator with a stabilized output voltage to power it. (The magnet and generator were not collected by the Smithsonian.) The ion source oven, 180-degree analyzer tube, and isotope collection plates are seen in the photos of the Nier apparatus (see accompanying media file images for this object).
Basic principles of the mass spectrometer
When a charged particle, such as an ion, moves in a plane perpendicular to a magnetic field, it follows a circular path. The radius of the particle’s path is proportional to the product of its mass and velocity, and is inversely proportional to the product of its electrical charge and the magnetic field strength. A mass spectrometer consists of three components: an ion source, a mass analyzer, and a detector. The ion source converts a portion of the sample into ions. There is a wide variety of ionization techniques, depending on the phase (solid, liquid, gas) of the sample and the efficiency of various ionization mechanisms for the unknown species. An extraction system removes ions from the sample and gives them a selected velocity. They then pass through the magnetic field (created by an electromagnet) of the mass analyzer. For a given magnetic field strength, the differences in mass-to-charge ratio of the ions result in corresponding differences in the curvature of their circular paths through the mass analyzer. This results in a spatial sorting of the ions exiting the analyzer. The detector records either the charge induced or the current produced when an ion passes by or hits a surface, thus providing data for calculating the abundance and mass of each isotope present in the sample. For a full description with a schematic diagram of a typical mass spectrometer, go to: http://www.chemguide.co.uk/analysis/masspec/howitworks.html
The Nier sector magnet mass spectrometer (not in Smithsonian Modern Physics Collection)
In 1940, during the time that Nier separated the uranium isotopes, he developed a mass spectrometer for routine isotope and gas analysis. An instrument was needed that did not use a 2-ton magnet, or required a 5 kW voltage-stabilized generator for providing the current in the magnet coils. Nier therefore developed the sector magnet spectrometer, in which a 60-degree sector magnet took the place of the much larger one needed to give a 180-degree deflection. The result was that a magnet weighing a few hundred pounds, and powered by several automobile storage batteries, took the place of the significantly larger and heavier magnet which required a multi-kW generator. Quoting Nier, “The analyzer makes use of the well-known theorem that if ions are sent into a homogeneous magnetic field between two V-shaped poles there is a focusing action, provided the source, apex of the V, and the collector lie along a straight line” (reference: A.O. Nier, Rev. Sci. Instr., 11, 212, (1940)). This design was to become the prototype for all subsequent magnetic deflection instruments, including hundreds used in the Manhattan Project.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1940-02
associated person
Nier, Alfred O.
maker
Nier, Alfred O.
ID Number
1990.0446.01
accession number
1990.0446
catalog number
1990.0446.01

Perrygraf Machining Calculator Slide Rule for LeBlond

This yellow and white rectangular paper rule has a white paper slide and is held together with four metal rivets. On the front, the top scales allow one to calculate the revolutions per minute for a given work diameter and surface speed.
Description
This yellow and white rectangular paper rule has a white paper slide and is held together with four metal rivets. On the front, the top scales allow one to calculate the revolutions per minute for a given work diameter and surface speed. The bottom scales allow calculation of the time in minutes and seconds for a given feed rate, length of cut, and R.P.M. The back of the instrument has tables for converting from fractions to decimals and for finding the suggested carbide surface speed of a lathe for different materials.
Perrygraf Corporation, described in 1979.3074.03, made this instrument in 1949 for the R. K. LeBlond Machine Tool Company of Cincinnati. A salesman could attach his card to the back of the calculator and give it to a client. Richard K. LeBlond (1864–1953) began making machines in 1887 and became known for the quality of his lathes in the 1890s. Products included lathes for manufacturing bicycles and automobile crankshafts. The company employed 1,200 workers and made a mammoth lathe for boring artillery during World War II. In 1981 Makino Corporation of Japan purchased the company. The factory in Cincinnati is now Rookwood Pavilion shopping center.
Perrygraf slide rules in the collection include: 1983.3009.04, 1983.3009.05, 1983.3009.06, 1987.0108.03, 1988.0323.01, 1988.0325.01, and 1992.3103.01.
References: Tom Wyman, "Slide Chart Calculators – A Modest Proposal," Journal of the Oughtred Society 13, no. 1 (2004): 6–10; Kenneth L. Cope, American Lathe Builders: 1810–1910 (Mendham, N.J.: Astragal Press, 2001), 89; Tony Griffiths, "LeBlond - USA," Machine Tool Reference Archive, http://www.lathes.co.uk/leblond/.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1949
maker
Perry Graf Corporation
ID Number
1992.3103.01
nonaccession number
1992.3103
catalog number
1992.3103.01

Leaflet, Scoring Key For The Iowa High School Content Examination. Revised Edition. Form M

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
maker
Meier, Norman C.
University of Iowa. Bureau of Educational Research and Service
ID Number
1989.0710.44
catalog number
1989.0710.44
accession number
1989.0710

Pamphlet, Test Construction Manual, Preliminary Form

During World War II, staff of the Personnel Research Section of the U.S. War Department’s Adjutant General’s Office prepared and published numerous tests for the classification and evaluation of military personnel at many levels and for many different occupations.
Description
During World War II, staff of the Personnel Research Section of the U.S. War Department’s Adjutant General’s Office prepared and published numerous tests for the classification and evaluation of military personnel at many levels and for many different occupations. This pamphlet, published in 1947, is a preliminary version of a manual on methods of test construction. Individual authors are not given.
Reference:
Sisson, E. Donald. "The Personnel Research Program of the Adjutant General's Office of the United States Army," Review of Educational Research, 1948, 18, # 6, pp.575-614. Accessed April 23, 2020 at www.jstor.org/stable/1168187. This gives a general description of activities of the Personnel Research Section during the war.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1947
maker
U.S. War Department
ID Number
1990.0034.091
catalog number
1990.0034.091
accession number
1990.0034

Pamphlet, Metropolitan Readiness Tests. Form R. Directions

Gertrude H. Hildreth (1898-1984) and Nellie L. Griffiths (1893-1977) developed a battery of six tests to measure the readiness of preschool children for first grade.
Description
Gertrude H. Hildreth (1898-1984) and Nellie L. Griffiths (1893-1977) developed a battery of six tests to measure the readiness of preschool children for first grade. It was given to groups of children, required some materials other than the tests themselves, and was to be administered over several days. This pamphlet gives directions for administering the tests – there is no example of the examinations. The first test involved word meanings – selecting a picture that matched a word spoken by the examiner. The second required matching a picture to the meaning of a sentence. The third required matching a picture to a description given by the examiner and was described as a test of information. The fourth sought to measure number knowledge, the sixth the ability to copy. The test came in two forms – R and S. These directions are for Form R. This ordering of the tests is quite different than in the 1933 first edition. The directions, like the MRT itself, were published by World Book Company of Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. That company copyrighted this direction sheet in1948 and 1949.
Hildreth and Griffiths participated in later editions of the test into the 1960s and versions of the examination are still available today.
Born in Indiana, Hildreth received her AB from North Central College (1920), her MA from the University of Illinois (1921) and her PhD. from Columbia University (1925). From 1925 to 1945 she was the staff psychologist at the Lincoln School of Columbia and taught at Columbia on occasion. From 1945 to 1965 she was on the faculty at Brooklyn College. She later taught at the American University in Beirut and at Voorhees College in Denmark, South Carolina. Born in Missouri, Nellie Lucy Griffiths obtained her master’s degree at the University of Chicago in 1927. She spent her career at North Texas State Teachers College (later North Texas State University) where she not only was on the faculty in education but established a reading laboratory and supervised the laboratory school.
References:
Griffiths, N.L., “A History of the Organization of the Laboratory School of the University of Chicago,” unpublished master’s thesis, University of Chicago, 1927.
Nellie L. Griffiths Collection, North Texas State University, Denton, Texas.
Harrison, M. Lucille, Reading Readiness, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1939. The version of the Metropolitan Readiness Tests that was copyrighted in 1933 is described in detail on pp. 75-80.
“Hildreth, Gertrude M.,” Biographical Dictionary of Modern American Educators, eds. F. Ohles, S.G. Ohles, S.M. Ohles, and J.G. Ramsay, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1997, pp. 158-159.
“Dr. Gertrude Hildreth, A Child Psychologist,” New York Times, March 9, 1984, p. D15.
“Dr. Gertrude Howell Hildreth,” Washington Post, March 10, 1984, p. B4.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1949
publisher
World Book Company
ID Number
1990.0034.090
catalog number
1990.0034.090
accession number
1990.0034

Psychological Tests, Pintner-Durost Elementary Test. Scale 1: Form A and Scale 2: Form A (with directions and key)

This test was designed to measure the general ability of students in the last half of second grade, third grade, and the first half of fourth grade. The authors were Rudolf Pintner (1884 -1942) of Teachers College of Columbia University and Walter N.
Description
This test was designed to measure the general ability of students in the last half of second grade, third grade, and the first half of fourth grade. The authors were Rudolf Pintner (1884 -1942) of Teachers College of Columbia University and Walter N. Durost (1906-1984) of World Book Company, the publisher of this test. It was part of a series of such tests developed by Pintner and colleagues for students in different grades (for the test for younger elementary school students, see the Pintner-Cunningham Primary Test – materials relating to it are at 1990.0034.011).
The test is divided into two parts, picture content and reading content. It sold in two forms, Form A and Form B. Materials here include Form A of the test for picture content, Form A of the test for reading content, a manual of directions for the whole test, and three scoring keys for various parts of the test.
Pintner, born in England, received a Master of Arts from the University of Edinburgh in 1906 and a PhD. from Leipzig University in 1913. He came to the United States in 1912. After a year at Toledo University in Ohio, he went to Ohio State University, and then, from 1921 until his death, was at Teachers College. Durost was born in Maine, graduated from Bates College in 1929, and received his M.A .(1930) and PhD. (1932) from Teacher’s College. He was director of the research test service at World Book Company in Yonkers from 1937 to 1948, then an assistant professor of education at Boston University, and then, from 1952, director of the Test Service and Advisement Center in Dunbarton, New Hampshire. In 1957, he took on responsibilities in Florida as well.
References:
American Psychological Association, 1962 Directory, ed. James Q. Holsopple, Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 1962, p. 185.
Harry L. Hollingworth [sic], “Rudolf Pintner, 1884-1942,” American Journal of Psychology, 1943, 56 #2, pp. 303-305.
“Dr. Rudolf Pinter of Columbia Dead,” New York Times, November 8, 1942, p. 51
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940
publisher
World Book Company
maker
Durost, W. N.
Pintner, Rudolf
ID Number
1990.0034.121
accession number
1990.0034
catalog number
1990.0034.121

Psychological Test, Cooperative English Test. Test C2: Reading Comprehension (Higher Level) Form S

This test of reading comprehension was prepared by Frederick B. Davis (1909-1975) and Harold VosBurgh King (1917-1986) of the Cooperative Test Service, working with a long list of collaborators. Davis earned his B.S.
Description
This test of reading comprehension was prepared by Frederick B. Davis (1909-1975) and Harold VosBurgh King (1917-1986) of the Cooperative Test Service, working with a long list of collaborators. Davis earned his B.S. from Boston University in 1931 and his masters of education (1935) and doctorate of education (1941) from Harvard University. He would serve as a consultant to the Army Air Force during World War II and was then associated with Hunter College and the University of Pennsylvania. King studied linguistics at the University of Michigan and would receive a PhD. there in 1950. After various teaching appointments, he joined the faculty in the English Department in Ann Arbor in 1958, retiring in 1979.
References:
American Psychological Association, 1962 Directory, ed. James Q. Holsopple, Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 1962, pp. 157-158.
“Dr. Frederick Davis, Test Developer, 65,” New York Times, March 3, 1975.
Flanagan, J.C. “Frederick Barton Davis (1909–1975),” Psychometrika, 1976, 41, pp. 4–7.
University of Michigan, Proceedings of the Board of Regents, 1978, p. 569.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1942
maker
King, Harold V.
Davis, Frederick B.
Cooperative Test Service
ID Number
1989.0710.34
catalog number
1989.0710.34
accession number
1989.0710

Psychological Test, O'Rourke Mechanical Aptitude Test. Form A

Lawrence James O’Rourke (1892-1965), the author of this test, was the first professional psychologist to work for the U.S. Civil Service Commission. O’Rourke received his A.B. from Lawrence College in Wisconsin in 1915, his A.M. from Cornell in 1918, and his PhD.
Description
Lawrence James O’Rourke (1892-1965), the author of this test, was the first professional psychologist to work for the U.S. Civil Service Commission. O’Rourke received his A.B. from Lawrence College in Wisconsin in 1915, his A.M. from Cornell in 1918, and his PhD. from George Washington University in 1922. He was hired to do personnel research for the Civil Service that same year, having previously worked at the War Department. He remained at the Civil Service Commission until his retirement in 1944.
O’Rourke developed several tests for vocational guidance, including this one from 1940. He also was closely associated with the Psychological Institute, the publisher of the test.
References:
According to the test, L.J. O’Rourke, PhD., had been a Development Specialist with the Advisory Board to the War Department and was Director of Personnel Research of the U.S. Civil Service Commission.
American Psychological Association, 1962 Directory, ed, James Q. Holsopple, Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 1962, p. 541.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940
maker
O'Rourke, L. J.
Psychological Institute
ID Number
1989.0710.27
accession number
1989.0710
catalog number
1989.0710.27

Instruction Manual for Charles Bruning Model 2401 Slide Rule

The citation information for this 16-page pamphlet is Charles Bruning Company, Inc., Instruction Manual for Bruning Slide Rule No. 2401 (New York, 1944). The cover notes that the company had applied for a patent on a slide rule indicator, but no such patent has been found.
Description
The citation information for this 16-page pamphlet is Charles Bruning Company, Inc., Instruction Manual for Bruning Slide Rule No. 2401 (New York, 1944). The cover notes that the company had applied for a patent on a slide rule indicator, but no such patent has been found. The manual begins with the claim that results on model 2401 were significant to three digits. After explaining the parts of a slide rule, the manual divides the process of learning to use a slide rule into twelve steps, each of which are discussed with examples, solutions, and exercises in the remainder of the pamphlet. This manual was received with 1991.0445.03.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1944
maker
Charles Bruning Company, Inc.
ID Number
1991.0445.03.01
accession number
1991.0445
catalog number
1991.0445.03.01

Pamphlet, Vineland Social Maturity Scale Manual of Directions

This is the manual of directions for the 1947 edition of The Vineland Social Maturity Scale, a test developed by Edgar A. Doll.
Description
This is the manual of directions for the 1947 edition of The Vineland Social Maturity Scale, a test developed by Edgar A. Doll. It was published by the Educational Test Bureau.
For related materials, see 1990.0034.049 through 1990.0034.054 (especially 1990.034.051) and 1983.0168.07.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1947
maker
Doll, Edgar A.
Educational Test Bureau
ID Number
1990.0034.054
accession number
1990.0034
catalog number
1990.0034.054

Sheets, Structural-Steel Worker (Riveting). Job Descriptions for the Construction Industry

This typescript has the job description for a structural-steel worker who does riveting. The United States government has been publishing volumes giving job descriptions from at least the time of World War I, when the U.S.
Description
This typescript has the job description for a structural-steel worker who does riveting. The United States government has been publishing volumes giving job descriptions from at least the time of World War I, when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics prepared for the United States Employment Service several books giving “descriptions of occupations” for such areas as logging camps and sawmills, water transportation, and textiles and clothing.
The Employment Service published a new series of volumes in the 1930s. For example, in 1936 there appeared a five-volume set entitled Job Descriptions for the Construction Industry. The fifth volume in the set included on p. 1197 a description of the job of a riveter. This is a typed copy of that description.
Reference:
United States Employment Service, Job Descriptions for the Construction Industry, vol.5, Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1936. The volume (as well as others in the series) is available online – accessed March 31, 2020.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1940
ID Number
1989.0710.73
catalog number
1989.0710.73
accession number
1989.0710

IBM 1441139x Punch Card Advertising the IBM 602A Calculating Punch

This white paper punch card demonstrates how an average hourly rate of pay can be calculated for a worker paid partly on piece work and partly on day work, receiving a bonus.
Description
This white paper punch card demonstrates how an average hourly rate of pay can be calculated for a worker paid partly on piece work and partly on day work, receiving a bonus. It was intended as advertising for the IBM 602A calculating punch.
The left half of the card has text describing the product. It reads in part: ARITHMETIC (/) CALCULATIONS ARE PERFORMED IN (/) ONE OPERATION BY THE NEW (/)TYPE 602A CALCULATING PUNCH. The right side has columns of holes to be punched that are numbered from 37 to 80.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1948
maker
IBM
ID Number
1995.3080.01
nonaccession number
1995.3080
catalog number
1995.3080.01

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