Le coup d'oeil du scarab\'ee : Charles Nordmann, ou pourquoi la guerre est l'affaire des savants

TL;DR

This paper examines Charles Nordmann's wartime activities, highlighting how his scientific work and writings demonstrated that war was a matter for scientists to engage with and interpret.

Contribution

It reveals how Nordmann's activities exemplify the role of scientists in understanding and shaping wartime discourse during World War I.

Findings

Nordmann was mobilized in 1914 and worked on sound-ranging.

He authored a witness account and a scientific chronicle during the war.

His work exemplifies scientists' engagement with wartime issues.

Abstract

This paper discusses the wartime activities of the astronomer Charles Nordmann from the Paris Observatory. Nordmann was briefly mobilized in 1914 before starting to work on sound-ranging. He also wrote a witness account of the war as well as a monthly scientific chronicle in the influential Revue des Deux Mondes. We argue that his work can be interpretation as the conscious demonstration that war was the business of scientists.