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Schwarz-weiß Foto. Max Wien im Kreis einer Familie.

Max Wien im Kreis einer Familie 1915 Photo: Familie Wien

Natural Sciences

Max Wien correspondence during WW I

The correspondence between the physicist Max Wien and his wife provides us with uncensored reports about his military activities

Content

Max Wien and his correspondence with his wife and his cousin Willy Wien during World War I

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Project description

Renate Haen, a great-grandchild of Max Wien, has already transcribed the correspondence between the spouses Max and Hanna Wien. For the comments, contemporary newspaper articles will be used, among others, besides the above-mentioned autobiography of Max Wien.

The correspondence between the physicist Max Wien and his wife will be complemented with the exchange of letters between the cousins Max and Willy Wien. Furthermore, we can use an unpublished autobiography of Max Wien for the comments. This enables us to present some of the developments of wireless communication as well as the evaluation of the political, military and scientific situation by the Wien cousins. Files from Jena university give some insight into his academic activities at that time.

Publications

  • Zwischen reiner und technischer Physik. Vor 150 Jahren wurde Max Wien geboren, Physik Journal 15 (2016), S. 39-43.
  • Der erste Weltkrieg und seine Auswirkungen auf die deutschen Physiker. In: Forstner, Christian; Neuneck, Götz (Hrsg.): Physik, Militär und Frieden. Wiesbaden 2018, S. 11–27.
  • Artikel: Max Wien, Neue Deutsche Biographie, Bd. 27. München 2020.

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