The History of the Cooling Law: When the Search for Simplicity can be an Obstacle.

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Title: The History of the Cooling Law: When the Search for Simplicity can be an Obstacle.
Authors: Besson, Ugo1 ugo.besson@unipv.it
Source: Science & Education. Aug2012, Vol. 21 Issue 8, p1085-1110. 26p. 1 Black and White Photograph, 1 Diagram, 6 Charts, 2 Graphs.
Subject Terms: *History education, Cooling, Heat radiation & absorption, Convection cooling
People: Newton, John, 1725-1807
Abstract: This paper presents an historical overview of the research on the cooling law, from Newton until the beginning of 20th century, and provides some suggestions for the use of this history as a resource for teaching. This history begins with a description and an interpretation of Newton's earlier work in 1701 and an overview of studies confirming or confuting Newton's law during the 18th century. Subsequently, it presents the early studies on cooling due to radiant heat, the fundamental work of Dulong and Petit published in 1817, and a brief overview of the research conducted after 1850 on the laws of thermal radiation and of natural and forced convection. It is shown that many scientists persisted in maintaining Newton's law, despite numerous evidence to the contrary, by attributing the found discrepancies to empirical errors or to other disturbance factors. Many scientists considered this law as a fundamental principle rather than a conjecture to be tested by means of experiments, while others were searching for a different but general and unique cooling law. The faith in the simplicity of natural laws and the spontaneous idea of proportionality between cause and effect seem to have strongly influenced Newton and many later scientists. A discussion of epistemological, methodological and pedagogical implications is offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Science & Education is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Science+%26+Education%22">Science & Education</searchLink>. Aug2012, Vol. 21 Issue 8, p1085-1110. 26p. 1 Black and White Photograph, 1 Diagram, 6 Charts, 2 Graphs.
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22History+education%22">History education</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Cooling%22">Cooling</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Heat+radiation+%26+absorption%22">Heat radiation & absorption</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Convection+cooling%22">Convection cooling</searchLink>
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  Data: This paper presents an historical overview of the research on the cooling law, from Newton until the beginning of 20th century, and provides some suggestions for the use of this history as a resource for teaching. This history begins with a description and an interpretation of Newton's earlier work in 1701 and an overview of studies confirming or confuting Newton's law during the 18th century. Subsequently, it presents the early studies on cooling due to radiant heat, the fundamental work of Dulong and Petit published in 1817, and a brief overview of the research conducted after 1850 on the laws of thermal radiation and of natural and forced convection. It is shown that many scientists persisted in maintaining Newton's law, despite numerous evidence to the contrary, by attributing the found discrepancies to empirical errors or to other disturbance factors. Many scientists considered this law as a fundamental principle rather than a conjecture to be tested by means of experiments, while others were searching for a different but general and unique cooling law. The faith in the simplicity of natural laws and the spontaneous idea of proportionality between cause and effect seem to have strongly influenced Newton and many later scientists. A discussion of epistemological, methodological and pedagogical implications is offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Science & Education is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – SubjectFull: Heat radiation & absorption
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      – SubjectFull: Convection cooling
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