8. From the same spot, turning left, we complete our view of the circular main floor room, again seeing the blackboard and the other half of the lecture area. Speakers at the blackboard face the slightly schizophrenic experience of seeing two audiences, to the left and to the right!
MORE HISTORY: Howe went on to publish 28 papers, mostly concerning observations of comets, and two textbooks, "A Study of the Sky" and "Elements of Descriptive Astronomy". Howe's abilities as a scientist are amply demonstrated in these works. Although he wrote at a time when the canals of Mars were widely accepted as fact, Howe remained skeptical. His thoughts on the matter seem almost prophetic nearly a century later. He warns against the wild theories of Martian engineering, writing that "...it is better not to know so much, than it is to know so many things that are not so." Howe continued as director of the Observatory until his death in 1926. Throughout his time at DU, Howe limited his astronomical career to fulfill other duties. These included not only remaining Dean of the Liberal Arts College, but also a short stint as acting Chancellor of the University in 1899.
Howe's grandson recently reported discovering a truck containing the elder Howe's personal journals spanning his career at DU. We look forward to seeing what these contain!
Home, Previous image, Next image.