| Abstract: | John Calvin (1509–1564) founded a College and Academy in Geneva in 1559, the latter of which, through the efforts of many
of its scholars, was finally declared to be a genuine university, the University of Geneva, in 1872. Meanwhile, thanks to
the outstanding achievements of the rich, patrician Genevan scientists, in particular during the 18th century, Geneva secured
a prominent place in European learned society. With the appointment of Charles-Eugène Guye (1866–1942) to the University of
Geneva in 1900, Genevan research entered resolutely into 20th-century physics, particularly relativity, and continued to gain
momentum before and after the Second World War when, in 1953, Geneva was chosen as the site of one of the most prestigious
scientific laboratories in the world, CERN. I sketch these developments, pointing out many of the locations where they occurred
in Geneva.
For an interactive map of Geneva, see the website <www.ville-ge.ch/en/cartes/>.
Jan Lacki teaches history and philosophy of physics at the University of Geneva and is a member of the REHSEIS research unit
of the CNRS, Paris. |
