Oscillations, Waves, and Interactions - GWDG

Oscillations, Waves and Interactions, pp. 1–24
edited by T. Kurz, U. Parlitz, and U. Kaatze
Universitätsverlag Göttingen (2007) ISBN 978–3–938616–96–3
urn:nbn:de:gbv:7-verlag-1-01-8
Applied physics at the “Dritte”
Fruitful interplay of a wide range of interests
Manfred R. Schroeder, Dieter Guicking, and Udo Kaatze
Drittes Physikalisches Institut, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen,
Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
1 Historical antecedents
At the end of the 19th century the well-known Göttingen mathematician Felix Klein
proposed to promote the pursuit of applied sciences at German universities. He
was encouraged in this effort by a visit to the 1893 Chicago World Exhibition –
as an official representative of Kaiser Wilhelm II – and subsequent visits to several
American universities, which had a strong tradition of fostering applied sciences and
engineering. But Klein’s attempt to enlist the Technische Hochschule Hannover – let
alone any university – in his endeavour failed miserably. In 1898 he succeeded, with
support by German industry (Böttinger), to establish an Institut für Angewandte
Elektrizität and an Institut für Angewandte Mathematik und Mechanik at Göttingen,
Institut für Angewandte Elektrizität – the “Red House” on Bunsenstraße.