“If
I have seen further it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants.”
Isaac Newton in letter to Robert Hooke, February 5, 1675.
The
predecessor agencies of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
have
had many leaders in the American science community. These individuals
made great contributions either through their scientific accomplishments
or through their ability as science administrators. Collectively,
these “Giants” influenced the development of the infrastructure
of the American science community and were either the founders or
pioneers in the development of American participation in many of the
physical, geographical, and marine biological sciences. American developments
in cartography, geodesy, geophysics, oceanography, meteorology, climatology,
metrology, ichthyology, marine biology, and other fisheries-related
sciences would have had significantly different developmental paths
if not for the influence of these individuals. Organizations such
as the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American
Geophysical Union, the American Meteorological Society, the American
Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, and the American Fisheries
Society all would have significantly different histories without the
influence of these scientists and administrators. Indeed, even the
early histories of the National Academy of Sciences, the Smithsonian
Institution, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology
were intimately tied to NOAA predecessor organizations and many of
the men whose lives are related in these pages. Join us and learn
about some of the early shakers and movers of American science.
