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Giovanni Poleni | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1683-08-23)23 August 1683 |
| Died | 15 November 1761(1761-11-15) (aged 78) |
| Resting place | Basilica del Carmine, Padua |
| Occupation(s) | Physicist,mathematician andantiquarian |
| Spouse | Orsola Roberti[1] |
| Children | 6 |
| Parent(s) | Giacomo Poleni and Isabella Poleni (née de' Brugnol)[1] |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | University of Padua[1] |
Giovanni PoleniFRS (Italian pronunciation:[dʒoˈvanniˈpolɛni]; 23 August 1683 – 15 November 1761) was aMarquess,physicist,mathematician andantiquarian.[1]
He was the son of Marquess Jacopo Poleni and studied the classics, philosophy, theology, mathematics, and physics at the School of theSomaschi Fathers, Venice.
He was appointed, at the age of twenty-five, professor of astronomy at Padua. In 1715 he was assigned to the chair of physics, and in 1719 he succeededNicholas II Bernoulli as professor of mathematics. As an expert inhydraulic engineering he was charged by the Venetian Senate with the care of the waters of lowerLombardy and with the constructions necessary to prevent floods. He was also repeatedly called in to decide cases between sovereigns whose states were bordered by waterways.
Poleni was the first to build acalculator that used a pinwheel design. Made of wood, hiscalculating clock was built in 1709;[2] he destroyed it after hearing thatAnton Braun had received 10,000Guldens for dedicating a pinwheel machine of his own design to the emperorCharles VI of Vienna.[3] Poleni described his machine in hisMiscellanea in 1709, but it was also described byJacob Leupold in hisTheatrum Machinarum Generale ("The General Theory of Machines") which was published in 1727. In 1729, he also built a tractional device that enabledlogarithmicfunctions to be drawn.
Poleni's observations on the impact of falling weights (similar toWillem 's Gravesande's) led to a controversy withSamuel Clarke and other Newtonians that became a part of the so-called "vis viva dispute" in the history ofclassical mechanics.[4]
His knowledge of architecture causedBenedict XIV to call him to Rome in 1748 to examine thecupola ofSt. Peter's, which was rapidly disintegrating.As part of the structural investigation of the dome he used a correctly loaded hanging chain to determine itsfunicular shape.[5] He promptly indicated the repairs necessary. He also wrote a number ofantiquarian dissertations. In 1710 he was elected aFellow of the Royal Society,[6] in 1739 theFrench Academy of Sciences made him a member and later the societies of Berlin and St. Petersburg did the same. The city of Padua elected him as magistrate, and after his death erected his statue byCanova. Venice also honoured him by striking a medal.
He married Orsola Roberti of Bassano della Grappa. A pupil of his wasGiovanni Battista Suardi (1711 – 1767).
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Giovanni Poleni".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.. Cites:
