Kirstine Bjerrum Meyer | |
|---|---|
| Born | Kirstine Bjerrum (1861-10-12)12 October 1861 Skærbæk, Denmark |
| Died | 28 September 1941(1941-09-28) (aged 79) Hellerup, Denmark |
| Alma mater | University of Copenhagen |
| Occupation | physicist |
| Known for | First Danish woman to earn a doctorate in natural sciences |
| Spouse | Adolph Constantin Meyer (1854-1896) |
| Children | Johannes (son) |
| Parents |
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Kirstine Bjerrum Meyer (12 October 1861 – 28 September 1941) was a Danishphysicist and was the first woman from her country to earn a doctorate in natural sciences.[1]
Kirstine Bjerrum was born inSkærbæk, Denmark and died inHellerup. She was the daughter of Niels Janniksen Bjerrum (1826-1880) and Christiane Degn (1826-1877).
She moved to Copenhagen at the age of 18, where she lived with her elder brother, ophthalmologistJannik Petersen Bjerrum (1851–1920). In 1885, she married mathematician Adolph Constantin Meyer (1854-1896) and took his surname. Following the death of her husband in 1896, she became the sole parent of the couple's young son Johannes.[2]
In 1882, Kirstine Meyer had taken a teacher's degree fromN. Zahles Skole. In 1885, she began her studies at theUniversity of Copenhagen. In 1893, she graduated with a Master's Degree in physics. She was associated with the school from 1885 to 1909 and then continued as a censor at N. Zahles Skole for a number of years. From 1892-93 she was also a substitute at the boys' schoolMetropolitanskolen.[3]
She was a high school teacher for many years, working on her education and research inphysics at the same time. She won the Gold Medal of theRoyal Danish Academy of Science and Letters in 1899, for a paper examining whether there exists a general equation of state for all fluid bodies,Om overensstemmende Tilstande hos Stofferne. She received her Ph.D. in physics from theUniversity of Copenhagen in 1909, becoming the first Danish woman to earn a doctorate in natural sciences.[4] Her dissertation,Temperaturbegrebets Udvikling gennem Tiderne (The Development of the Temperature Concept through Time), was an in-depth treatment of the history of the concept oftemperature.[5]
In 1902, Meyer foundedFysisk Tidsskrift, the Danish journal of physics. She was its editor until 1913. In 1925, she was awarded theTagea Brandt Rejselegat travel scholarship.
On 9 December 1986,DSB (the Danish railway company) named the newly delivered electric locomotive, Litra EA 3007,Kirstine Meyer.[6]
