Thermometer

by Courtney Adamen
(Auburn Maine)

Have a look at this old photograph.

Approximately five years before he passed away, this famous scientist created this artwork.

Barry's Response - They're not makin' them like that anymore.

Why do we care about the history of thermometers anyway?

The first thing it does is give you a history of how scientific tools and techniques have developed over time. Modern science and technology were shaped by many innovations and incremental improvements in the past and the invention and refinement of the thermometer exemplifies that well.

Second, knowing the history of thermometers helps us appreciate how temperature measurement has changed our lives. Many aspects of modern life depend on temperature measurement, from regulating the temperature in our homes to monitoring the weather.

The history of thermometers can provide insight into the cultural and social contexts in which these instruments were developed and used. As an example, early thermometers were often used in medical settings, so understanding their history can help us understand how medicine has evolved as well.

Anders Celsius

He was an astronomer in Sweden who lived from 1701 to 1744. He became well-known for starting the Uppsala Astronomical Observatory, and even more so for coming up with the Celsius temperature scale, which is shown on the thermometer above.As a result, Celsius' temperature scale was adopted as the scientific community's official temperature scale. The Celsius scale is widely used around the world, especially in science and meteorology.

More details can be found on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anders_Celsius

Thank you for this inspiration, Courtney.

This was a lively mix of questions, coughs, compliments, and conspiracy theories, so

Let's Recalibrate

Thermometers don't tweet, vote, or tweet, they just report. Treating them like prophets instead of tools makes us react instead of think.

People just see a number and move on. But What's the deal with that number? A thermometer needs a place to sit. In the sun, it spikes, in the shade, it drops. If it's surrounded by concrete, it'll cook. If you put it on grass, it chills. We see Small moves lead to big swings.

The temperature changes as clouds pass, oceans breathe, volcanoes sneeze, or sunspots fade. There's no such thing as a solo game when it comes to climate. There's CO2, but there's also wind, water, dirt, ice, trees, cows, fire, soot, and the giant fireball above. There's no single dial for Earth.

There weren't always thermometers. Our ancestors got signals from the wind, the smell, the tree buds, the fish patterns. There wasn't an app or alert. They used wind, smell, tree buds, fish patterns, observed, argued, and remembered. They planted food, caught storms, and survived winter. How did things change?

Then we turned to headlines and models. Seasons were no longer as important as projections. The field was replaced with a screen. Someone in New York panics if Winnipeg gets warm.

Droughts don't go away with panic. Shaming doesn't do any good. Blame doesn't clean the air. You have to act. You ask questions. It's all about curiosity. But Fear stalls things.

Here's a better question:

- When the Earth gets hot, is it always disaster?
- Why did it cool again?
- Temperatures wobble, CO2 is up, what else?
- Why do rural weather stations disappear, but airport weather stations grow?
- What's the deal with one year of heat getting more airtime than 10,000 years?

You don't need a PhD to understand patterns. You can find it here:

- Satellite data and street-level sensors.
- Over time, the jet stream shifts.
- Keep track of solar cycles and El Niño.
- Start graphs in 1850 like nothing happened before.

Now people can read the sky again. Take advantage of your...

Smarts and instincts.

If you care about weather, land, food, or the future, stay tuned. Keep it real, readable, and sometimes ridiculous. Ask: "Where's the thermometer?" when someone says, "It's hotter than ever."

I model air for a living. It's air, not opinions. Time, flow, heat, and turbulence. When a new factory applies, I predict emissions, not votes. Wind doesn't care about politics, so let's be honest.

Please feel free to comment on this topic below.

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