The legacy of Galvani and Volta in contemporary science

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The legacy of Galvani and Volta in contemporary
science
G. Giacomelli and L. Patrizii University of
Bologna and INFN

• Introduction
• Electricity in 700
• Galvani
• Galvanis Techniques
• Volta
• Galvani-Volta dispute
• The legacy of Galvani and Volta
• Technical names from Galvani, Volta

Colloquium Stanford University December 2004
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1. Introduction

• 1998 Bicentennial of Galvanis death
  Celebrations in Bologna
• 1999 Bicentennial of the invention of the
  battery by Volta Celebrations in Pavia,
  Como
• Workshops, Seminars, Exhibits, Itinerant
  Exhibitis and multimedial activities in Italy and
  abroad
• www.bo.infn.it/galvani
  http.//ppp.unipv.it/Volta/
• Itinerant Exhibitions of The legacy of Galvani
  and Volta in contemporary science for Italian
  Institutes of Culture
• Famous Galvani Volta dispute with important
  consequences in Physics,
• Physiology, Medicine,

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2. Electricity in 700

• First studies of electricity
• Electricism
• Irritability of muscles,

Sources of electricity
Leyden Jar
Electrostatic machine
Medicine, Philosophy, Physics, . No clearcut
divisions
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3. Luigi Galvani

• 9/9/1737 Born (via Marconi 25, Bologna)
• 1759 Graduates in Medicine at Bologna
  Univ.
• 
  Philosophy
• 1762 Marries
• 1763 Lecturer in Medicine at the
  Bologna Univ.
• 26/1/1781 First frog Jump (contraction)
• 1782 Prof. of Obstetrics at Inst. of
  Sciences
• 1791 Publishes De Viribus
  Electricitatis in
• Motu Musculari.
  Commentarii
• 1792 Starts the dispute with
  Volta
• 1794 Publishes LArco Conduttore
• 1795 Travels to Rimini and Senigallia
  to study
• electric fishes (Il
  Taccuino)
• 1798 Refuses to pledge allegiance to
  the
• Cisalpine Republic
• 4/12/1798 Dies
• Professor Emeritus

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4. Galvanis Techniques

• Frog prepared as usual
• lower body with exposed nerves
• metal inserted in the vertebral canal
• - various connections
• Electricity from Leyden Jar
• Electrostatic
  machine
• Lightning and
  thunder
• Animal electricity

artificial
natural
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Anatomical theatre Bologna
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Galvanis Discoveries in 1780-1790

• First frog jumps Galvani touches crural
  nerve in presence of external sources of
  electricity
• Frog jumps when Galvani touches a nerve and a
  spark is made by a distant machine
• (first detection of e. m. waves ? )
• Frog with antenna in balcony and lightning (e. m.
  waves)
• First electrical circuit frog jumps when he
  simply connects nerve-muscle with a metalwire

Galvani concludes that intrinsic electricity is
present in animals and that external conductors
induce contractions by allowing for the flow of
this internal electricity
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Frog prepared in the usual way for the experiment
with the Electrostatic machine and the Leyden
jar
Galvanis experiment with the frog prepared in
the usual way, with the electrostatic machine
and the Leyden jar
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Galvanis atmospheric discharge detector
Galvanis atmospheric discharge detector
Frog in balcony wind and no lightning legs
touche metal ?
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- The Galvanis lab was at his home with private
help from relatives, friends, .... - Second half
of 700 Institutes were formed, with labs for
researchers - Academies attached to the
Institutes, were places for discussions
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5. Alessandro Volta

• 18/2/1745 Born in Como
• 1763 Completes his studies in a
  catholic seminar
• 1769 First publication in physics.
  
• 1775 Invents the Electrophorus
  first example of electrostatic
• machine based on the
  induction principle
• 1776 Flammable air from marshes
  (methane). Volta constructs
• an interesting
  gadget later called Voltas Pistol.
• 1778 Professor of Physics at the
  University of Pavia
• 1780 Condenser electroscope
• 1781 - 1784 Travels to several european
  countries
• 1792 Startes the dispute with
  Galvani
• End 1799 Invents the battery
• 1801 Gold medal from Napoleon.
  Public life
• 5/3/1827 Dies

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Alessandro Volta
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Voltas Laboratory
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Voltas electric pistol
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VOLTA's INSTRUMENTSELECTRIC PISTOL
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6. GalvaniVolta dispute

• 1791 Volta repeats Galvanis experiments
• He gives importance to bi-metallic
  arc
• as source of electricity
• ( E la diversita dei metalli che
  fa)

• 1794 Galvani it works even with single metal
  
• (less violent contractions)
• Volta effects from metal-solution
  contact
• ( E la differenza che fa)

• 1797 Galvani only contact of two nerves (no
• metal) This experiment is now
  considered the foundation of electrophysiology

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GalvaniVolta dispute

• 1798 Galvani is fired . Dies
• 1799 Volta Electric Battery - Stacks of ( Ag
  solution Zn)
• 1800 Volta receives gold medal by Napoleon
• Volta wins!
• but

Animal electricity exists! And it is much more
complex than what one could possibly imagine
Galvani In animals there is a particular
machine capable of generating a
disequilibrium Now we know that this machine
corresponds to the cell membrane with ionic
pumps and Na, K ionic channels
Animals systems of complex computer networks
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1799 Volta invents the pile, the first reliable
source of electricity
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Neural circuit
PET
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PET, Positron Electron Tomography
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7. The legacy of Galvani and Volta

• From an academic dispute to great progress

Galvani
Volta
Animal electricity Biology of living
organisms Father of electrophysiology
Physics of non-living bodies Reliable sources of
electricity Sensitive detectors
A nerve is a conductor of large resistance. An
electric signal moves at low velocity ( 500
km/h) and is regenerated many times
Electromagnetism E.M. waves Biophysics, Health
Physics, Medical Physics
TV Communications Computers
Informatics Bio-electronics
Transformation of economics and of society,
progress in sciences and technologies, medicine,
improvements in the quality of life, ......
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8. Technical terms from Galvani, Volta
Webster dictionary

• 22 terms with Galvani

• 10 terms with Volta
• Volt
• Voltage
• Voltmeter
• Voltaic

Physics Galvanometer Medicine
Galvanotherapy Technology Galvanotechnique
... Galvanizing !!!
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Lucia Galeazzi, Galvanis wife
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