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How to Tell the Birds From The Flowers And Other Woodcuts
65 pages, Paperback
Published April 3, 2025
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About the author
Robert Williams Wood
81 books7 followersRobert Williams Wood (May 2, 1868 – August 11, 1955) was an American physicist and inventor. He is often cited as being a pivotal contributor to the field of optics and a pioneer of infrared and ultraviolet photography. Wood's patents and theoretical work shed much light on the nature and physics of ultra-violet radiation and made possible the myriad uses of uv-fluorescence which became popular after World War I.
Although physical optics and spectroscopy were Wood's main areas of study, he made substantial contributions to the field of ultrasound as well. His main contributions were photographing sound waves and working with Alfred Lee Loomis in the development of power ultrasonics.
His first contribution to the field of ultrasonics was from the photography of sound waves. Wood's primary research area was physical optics, but he found himself confronted with the problem of demonstrating to his students the wave nature of light without resorting to mathematical abstractions, for which he cared little. He therefore resolved to photograph the sound waves given off by an electric spark as an analogy to light waves. An electric spark was used because it produces not a wave train, but a single wavefront, making it much simpler to study and visualize. Although he did not pioneer that method, an honour belonging to August Toepler, he did more detailed studies of the shock waves and their reflections than Toepler.
Rumford Medal of the Royal Society, for his work in physical optics, 1938.
Henry Draper Medal of the National Academy of Sciences, for his contributions to astrophysics, 1940.
The crater Wood on the far side of the Moon is named after him.
Honorary degrees from Berlin University, Clark University, University of Birmingham, and Edinburgh University.
Member of the Royal Society, London ( (ForMemRS), London Optical Society (honorary), Konigliche Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen (corresponding), Accademia dei Lincei, Rome (foreign), Russian Academy of Science, Leningrad, American National Academy of Science, Academy of Arts and Sciences, Philosophical Society, Physical Society, Royal Institution, London (honorary), Physical Society of London (honorary fellow), Royal Swedish Academy, Stockholm (foreign), Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Calcutta (foreign).
Medal awarded by the Royal Society of Arts for his diffraction process in color photography, 1899.
Franklin Institute John Scott medal, awarded by the City of Philadelphia for further progress in diffraction color photos, 1907.
J. Traill Taylor medal, awarded for photography by invisible rays, 1910.
Gold medal, Societa’ Italiana della Scienze, for general outstanding scientific achievement, 1918.
Frederic Ives Medal, awarded by the Optical Society of America for distinguished work in physical optics, 1933.
Served as vice-president (1934) and president (1935) of the American Physical Society.
R. W. Wood Prize of the Optical Society of America, recognizes an outstanding discovery, scientific or technological achievement or invention.
Although physical optics and spectroscopy were Wood's main areas of study, he made substantial contributions to the field of ultrasound as well. His main contributions were photographing sound waves and working with Alfred Lee Loomis in the development of power ultrasonics.
His first contribution to the field of ultrasonics was from the photography of sound waves. Wood's primary research area was physical optics, but he found himself confronted with the problem of demonstrating to his students the wave nature of light without resorting to mathematical abstractions, for which he cared little. He therefore resolved to photograph the sound waves given off by an electric spark as an analogy to light waves. An electric spark was used because it produces not a wave train, but a single wavefront, making it much simpler to study and visualize. Although he did not pioneer that method, an honour belonging to August Toepler, he did more detailed studies of the shock waves and their reflections than Toepler.
Rumford Medal of the Royal Society, for his work in physical optics, 1938.
Henry Draper Medal of the National Academy of Sciences, for his contributions to astrophysics, 1940.
The crater Wood on the far side of the Moon is named after him.
Honorary degrees from Berlin University, Clark University, University of Birmingham, and Edinburgh University.
Member of the Royal Society, London ( (ForMemRS), London Optical Society (honorary), Konigliche Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen (corresponding), Accademia dei Lincei, Rome (foreign), Russian Academy of Science, Leningrad, American National Academy of Science, Academy of Arts and Sciences, Philosophical Society, Physical Society, Royal Institution, London (honorary), Physical Society of London (honorary fellow), Royal Swedish Academy, Stockholm (foreign), Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Calcutta (foreign).
Medal awarded by the Royal Society of Arts for his diffraction process in color photography, 1899.
Franklin Institute John Scott medal, awarded by the City of Philadelphia for further progress in diffraction color photos, 1907.
J. Traill Taylor medal, awarded for photography by invisible rays, 1910.
Gold medal, Societa’ Italiana della Scienze, for general outstanding scientific achievement, 1918.
Frederic Ives Medal, awarded by the Optical Society of America for distinguished work in physical optics, 1933.
Served as vice-president (1934) and president (1935) of the American Physical Society.
R. W. Wood Prize of the Optical Society of America, recognizes an outstanding discovery, scientific or technological achievement or invention.
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