The Fall Guys
‘Is a degree in Physics a necessary prerequisite to argue that an anecdote in history is not well documented (or perhaps even to write history of science)?’
Santa Marta and the WGM2012
WGM2012 shows that the highest Earth-surface free-air gravity anywhere in the world is about +970 mGal in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in NE Colombia. But there are problems with those values.
Pendulums and the Mascarenes
In 1819, between the 19th and 25th of May, Louis de Freycinet, with the help of some of his officers from the corvette Uranie, used pendulums to measure gravity in Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius.
Climate of suspicion
Scepticism is great, and vitally important in any science, but when science itself is under attack, anyone who claims to be a scientist needs to stand up and defend it.
Extreme gravity
Extremes are now again fashionable in many areas of life. But – extreme gravity? Is there anything to be gained by searching for those points on the Earth’s surface where gravity is highest, lowest, steepest?
Pendulum gravity on Guam
In 1819 Louis de Freycinet measured gravity on Guam using four pendulums, and in 1828 Fyodor Litke did the same thing, with just one pendulum. How well did they do?