In Memory Of John Dalton

John Dalton (1766–1844) was born into a modest Quaker family in Cumberland, England, and earned his living for most of his life as a teacher and public lecturer, beginning in his village school at the age of 12. After teaching 10 years at a Quaker boarding school in Kendal, he moved on to a teaching position in the burgeoning city of Manchester. There he joined the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, which provided him with a stimulating intellectual environment and laboratory facilities.

The first paper he delivered before the society was on color blindness, which afflicted him and is sometimes still called "Daltonism." John Dalton, an observer of weather and discoverer of color blindness among other things, came up with his atomic theory.  In 1803 Dalton noted that oxygen and carbon combined to make two compounds.  Of course, each had its own particular weight ratio of oxygen to carbon (1.33:1 and 2.66:1), but also, for the same amount of carbon, one had exactly twice as much oxygen as the other. Dalton was known for these acquisitions. On July 27, 1844, John Dalton passed away from a stroke, and he will be truly missed.

Letting Go
by Heather Marie Covaleski