Nationalism and internationalism in science: the case of the discovery of cosmic rays

TL;DR

The paper examines how nationalism and communication barriers affected the discovery of cosmic rays, highlighting overlooked contributions like Domenico Pacini's water immersion experiments that challenged Earth-origin hypotheses.

Contribution

It uncovers the historical neglect of Pacini's work and analyzes the interplay of nationalism and scientific communication during the discovery of cosmic rays.

Findings

Pacini's experiments showed cosmic rays did not originate from Earth's crust.

Nationalism influenced recognition of scientific contributions.

Communication barriers contributed to historical oversight.

Abstract

The discovery of cosmic rays, a milestone in science, comprised scientists in Europe and the US and took place during a period characterised by nationalism and lack of communication. Many scientists that took part in this research a century ago were intrigued by the penetrating radiation and tried to understand the origin of it. Several important contributions to the discovery of the origin of cosmic rays have been forgotten and in particular that of Domenico Pacini, who in June 1911 demonstrated by studying the decrease of radioactivity with an electroscope immersed in water that cosmic rays could not come from the crust of the Earth. Several historical, political and personal facts might have contributed to the substantial disappearance of Pacini from the history of science.