Speech Delivered at the Opening of the Meeting of German Naturalists and

Humboldt, Alexander von, 1769-1859Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.5

Word count: 13K words
Chapters: 2

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Rede, gehalten bei der Eröffnung der Versammlung deutscher Naturforscher undAuthor: Humboldt, Alexander von, 1769-1859,Language: German, Class: Q: Science, Release Date: Sep 18, 2007

Editor's review

This is Alexander von Humboldt's German-language speech at the opening of the Congress of German Naturalists and Physicians, a primary source for the history of science and the social history of science. The text is short but concentrates Humboldt's views on collaboration in natural research, the exchange of knowledge, and the public character of science, while also reflecting the organizational forms of the nineteenth-century German-speaking scientific community. As a free electronic text from Project Gutenberg, its value lies not in offering systematic scientific knowledge but in giving readers direct access to an important scientific figure's public speaking style and the issues of his time. It is suitable for historians of science, learners of German, and readers interested in the history of scientific institutions as a short text for close reading, and also for comparison with Humboldt's other works to understand his ideas on scientific communication.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Researchers or enthusiasts in the history of science and the social history of science
Learners with some German reading ability
Readers interested in scientific communities and the tradition of academic conferences
Scholars writing papers who need nineteenth-century German-language speech texts

Not a good fit for

General readers hoping to read Humboldt's scientific travelogues
Readers with no German who need Chinese translation support
Readers expecting systematic knowledge of physical geography or biology

Reading tips

First understand the occasion of the speech and its historical background, then read the text closely paragraph by paragraph
Mark passages concerning scientific collaboration and publicness and make thematic excerpts
Compare with prefaces or letters from Humboldt's other works to understand his ideas on communication
German learners can first read through once to grasp the general meaning, then look up key unfamiliar words

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

What is the theme of this speech?

It is Humboldt's address at the opening of the Congress of German Naturalists and Physicians, centering on collaboration in natural research, academic exchange, and the public value of science; it is a public speech for an occasion of the scientific community.

Can I read this book without knowing German?

The original is in German, and it would be very difficult to read directly without knowing German. It is advisable to use German-language tools or consult relevant research literature to understand the content; if you are only interested in Humboldt's thought, you may prefer translations of his works.

Is it suitable as an introductory reading for Humboldt's thought?

Not very suitable as an introduction. It is a short speech for a specific occasion, presupposing an audience of scientific professionals; introductory readers are better off starting with Humboldt's travel accounts or biographical studies.

Is there a Chinese translation of this speech?

The materials do not provide information on Chinese translations. Readers may search on their own for Chinese translations of Humboldt's speeches or historical science literature; the text provided in this project is the German electronic edition from Project Gutenberg.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Humboldt, Alexander von, 1769-1859 Author

Alexander von Humboldt (1769–1859) was a noted naturalist and travel writer of the modern era, with ten works held in this collection. His writing blends careful scientific observation with vivid travel narrative: Cosmos attempts a unified physical description of the natural world, while his personal narratives of travels to the equinoctial regions of the New World record his explorations and impressions of tropical environments. These works combine scientific value with literary quality and continue to attract readers. In Chinese book classification, his writings are often placed under inspirational growth, perhaps because his spirit of exploring the unknown and observing nature firsthand is inspiring. It should be noted that public information about his life and nationality in this collection is limited, and this introduction is based only on the works at hand.