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Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen

A Shining Life for Science

Birkhäuser

Editors:

  • Lively and comprehensible short biography of Röntgen together with some of his most important works
  • Gives a multifaceted outlook on the future of X-ray research
  • Also contains lesser-known documents from Röntgen's estate

Part of the book series: Classic Texts in the Sciences (CTS)

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Softcover Book USD 159.99
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Hardcover Book USD 159.99
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Table of contents (9 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xv
  2. The Founding Father of Radiology

    • Gerald Antoch
    Pages 1-2
  3. Introduction

    • Helmut Dosch, Gerhard Adam, Anca-Ligia Grosu, Matthias Purschke
    Pages 3-28
  4. Special Röntgen Places

    • Uwe Busch, Hans-Georg Stavginski, Roland Weigand
    Pages 219-239
  5. Data and Facts

    • Uwe Busch
    Pages 241-265

About this book

It was one of the great moments of humanity when Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845– 1923) discovered a new kind of radiation on 8 November 1895. He himself modestly called them “X-rays”. Röntgen’s name and his rays became world famous. On 10 December 1901, Röntgen received the first Nobel Prize in Physics. X-rays have lost none of their appeal since then. They still permeate all areas of science, technology and medicine and accompany us in our everyday lives.

However, Röntgen’s scientific work cannot be reduced to this one great discovery alone. He was an excellent natural scientist, and his spirit of research is still an example for many scientists today. Röntgen’s very special interest in precision physics is also more topical than ever.

This carefully curated volume offers a multifaceted view of an outstanding natural scientist and provides insights into his personal legacy.

Reviews

“A unique and valuable aspect of this biography is the detailed analysis of Röntgen’s many scientific contributions in addition to his discovery of x-rays, which seems to have eclipsed his other considerable scientific achievements. … This new biography is an important and well researched contribution to the literature on Röntgen and will appeal not only to radiologists, allied professionals and medical/science historians but also to other scientists who have benefited from his legacy.” (Arpan K Banerjee, RAD Magazine, May, 2022)

Editors and Affiliations

  • Deutsches Röntgen Museum, Remscheid, Germany

    Uwe Busch

About the editor

The editor Uwe Busch is a medical physicist and director of the German Röntgen Museum (Deutsches Röntgen-Museum). Together with the newly designed birthplace of Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, both museums offer a captivating insight into Röntgen's life and work as well as the experience of discovering the fascinating world of X-rays. A world that spans many spatial and temporal dimensions, from the nanoworlds of the microcosm to the infinite expanses of the cosmos and from the past to the future. All the world is full of X-rays. Making good use of Röntgen’s discovery is and remains the goal of science today and tomorrow.

Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen would have had fun doing just that: committing to research to broaden one's horizons, finding profound joy in gaining knowledge and discovering the wonders of natural science for the benefit of humankind.

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen

  • Book Subtitle: A Shining Life for Science

  • Editors: Uwe Busch

  • Series Title: Classic Texts in the Sciences

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-72243-2

  • Publisher: Birkhäuser Cham

  • eBook Packages: History, History (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-030-72242-5Published: 10 October 2021

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-72245-6Published: 10 October 2022

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-72243-2Published: 09 October 2021

  • Series ISSN: 2365-9963

  • Series E-ISSN: 2365-9971

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XV, 265

  • Number of Illustrations: 42 b/w illustrations, 100 illustrations in colour

  • Topics: History of Science, History of Medicine, Imaging / Radiology

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 119.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access