2003 Paul Bunge Prize of the Hans R. Jenemann Foundation for the History of Scientific Instruments
Judging the brightness and color of light has long been contentious. Alternately described as impossible and routine, it was beset by problems both technical and social. How trustworthy could such measurements be? Was the best standard of intensity a gas lamp, an incandescent bulb, or a glowing pool of molten metal? And how much did the answers depend on the background of the specialist?
A History of Light and Colour Measurement: Science in the Shadows is a history of the hidden workings...