Poster abstract details
Cosmologists Timeline
Abstract
My *Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers* (Springer, 2007) is also an encyclopedia of cosmologists. I have used the online version prosopographically to produce a unique timeline of both astronomers and cosmologists from antiquity to the early twentieth-century. When possible, this timeline depicts the life spans of individuals. The graphical representation makes it easy to spot contemporaries. Nearly sixteen-hundred persons appear, including many non-western scholars often underrepresented. All entries are denoted under their most familiar name. Dates are converted to Gregorian, with a maximum time resolution of one year. Different levels of certitude among the dates are shown symbolically. A consultant (academic web designer) helped maximize legibility in a small poster space.
“Post hoc, ergo propter hoc” is invalid in history, as it is in science. Contemporaries are separated by geography, language, etc. Yet while it cannot be used to trace influence, my timeline easily excludes potential influence.
“Post hoc, ergo propter hoc” is invalid in history, as it is in science. Contemporaries are separated by geography, language, etc. Yet while it cannot be used to trace influence, my timeline easily excludes potential influence.