Early History of Aluminum Metallurgy

Author(s):  
Norman C. Craig

Prior to the mid-1880s aluminum was known as a metallic substance but was too costly to be used for other than jewelry-type applications. In 1886, Charles Hall in the United States and Paul Héroult in France discovered an economical electrolysis process for reducing aluminum from its abundant ore, alumina (Al2O3). This method, known today as the Hall–Héroult process, was a direct application of the then-new development of dynamos and principally of waterpower to generate huge amounts of electricity. Within a few years, aluminum was being produced at a low enough price that this metal played a growing role in everyday life. As a lustrous and lightweight metal, aluminum transformed human expectations for the appearance and uses of metals. This paper traces the stories of Hall and Héroult in their historic paths from concept to industrialization for refining aluminum metal. The essentials of the Hall–Héroult process remain fundamental in the aluminum industry today.

NASPA Journal ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary H. Knock

In the introduction of this book, Arthur Cohen states that The Shaping of American Higher Education is less a history than a synthesis. While accurate, this depiction in no way detracts from the value of the book. This work synthesizes the first three centuries of development of high-er education in the United States. A number of books detail the early history of the American collegiate system; however, this book also pro-vides an up-to-date account of developments and context for under-standing the transformation of American higher education in the last quarter century. A broad understanding of the book’s subtitle, Emergence and Growth of the Contemporary System, is truly realized by the reader.


2011 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 297-302
Author(s):  
Benjamin L. Berger

The three articles offered in this forum on the early history of criminal appeals do us the great service of adding much of interest on this important but neglected issue in the development of Anglo–North American criminal procedure. The opaqueness of the legal history of criminal appeals stands in stark contrast to their centrality and apparent naturalness in contemporary criminal justice systems in England, Canada, and the United States. These three papers look at the period leading up to and immediately following the creation of the first formalized system of what we might call criminal appeals, the establishment of the Court of Crown Cases Reserved (CCCR) in 1848. This key period in the development of the adversary criminal trial was marked by both a concerted political effort to codify and rationalize the criminal law and by profound structural changes in the management of criminal justice.


Author(s):  
Peter Alilunas

Chapter one examines the early history of adult video from a variety of technological, cultural, and industrial perspectives beginning with the Panoram, a device invented in the 1940s and completely unintended for pornography. Following is an analysis of the adult motel landscape of Southern California, an early site of adult video distribution. The chapter concludes with a history of the early pioneers of adult video, including George Atkinson, who created the first video rental store in the United States.


Ballet Class ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 3-24
Author(s):  
Melissa R. Klapper

Ballet developed slowly in the United States and depended on European dancers and teachers at first, but by mid-nineteenth century a few American-trained ballet dancers were beginning to make their mark. The opening of the Metropolitan Opera Ballet School in 1909 and the tours of Anna Pavlova contributed greatly to popularizing ballet and inspiring young people to begin taking ballet class before World War I. Expansion continued from the 1920s through the 1940s with the founding of the School of American Ballet and the performances of the various Ballet Russe companies in every corner of the country. The Littlefield sisters and Christensen brothers helped make ballet American by establishing important homegrown ballet companies with primarily American dancers. The regional ballet movement fostered further growth. All these developments in professional ballet encouraged ever-increasing numbers of Americans not only to enjoy performances but also to take ballet class themselves.


Author(s):  
Jon B. Mikolashek

The chapter covers the early history of what will become known as the tank and the creation of the United States Tank Corps. Patton is the first “tanker” in American military history. After leaving the staff of John J. Pershing, Patton embarks on an educational journey to learn about tanks. He attends tank school in France and tours the Renault tank factory. It is here that he learns to drive a tank and selects the Renault light tank for use by the United States Army. The Renault tank is covered in detail, and Patton prepares to establish the American light tank school in France.


1981 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 44-46
Author(s):  
Gwen Shufelt

In the early history of education in the United States it was only the capable student who remained in school. At that time mathematics was considered a subject appropriate for the intellectually elite and the needs of a predominantly rural culture did not include extensive education for the majority. However, with the spread of the Jeffersonian ideal of democracy based on universal education, by the middle of the twentieth century, education for all was becoming a reality.


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