Wikimedia Commons/Google Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau is a Belgian physicist who invented a device called phénakistiscope, which is credited with leading to the birth of cinema. For that reason, he is sometimes called the “Father of Film.” Plateau was honored with a Google Doodle on October 14, 2019 on what would have been his 218th birthday. According to Google, it was Plateau’s “research on visual perception” that led to the world-changing invention. The device created “the illusion of a moving image.” The Google Doodle is animated in honor of Plateau’s style. It’s the “first Google Doodle with different artwork showing up across different device surfaces—desktop, mobile, and the Google App,” Google reports. “After studying law, young Plateau became one of the best-known Belgian scientists of the nineteenth century, remembered for his study of physiological optics, particularly the effect of light and color on the human retina,” Google wrote. Here’s what you need to know:1. Plateau Was Born in Brussels to a Father Whose Talent Was Painting Flowers GooglePlateau Google Doodle. Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau was born in Brussels, Belgium in 1801. His family tree was steeped in artistry. A lengthy 1800s era biography on Plateau by Gustaaf Van der Mensbrugghe, accessed here, says that Plateau was born in Brussels on October 14, 1801; his father, born at Tournai, “had a remarkable talent in the painting of flowers.” “Raised in an artistic milieu, the young Joseph could read at six, which at that time made him look like a prodigy,” the article says. “Sent to primary school, he made rapid progress; one day he attended a session of amusing physics, which struck his intelligence; Enchanted by the experiments of which he had been an attentive witness, he promised himself, no doubt, to penetrate the secret sooner or later.” However, he suffered tragedy early on. His parents died, and his uncle Thirion, a lawyer, became his guardian when he was a teen. Joseph was sickly, so he spent a lot of time in the country, drawing and collecting butterflies, according to Science Museum. Art crossed with an understanding of mechanics in a way that produced the ultimate invention. “Almost every year the young schoolboy would spend his holidays at the castle of Marche-les-Dames, at his grand-uncle’s, M. Jaumenne, master of ironworks,” the Van der Mensbrugghe article states. “He met there with his cousin Auguste Payen, who later became chief architect of the state’s railroads. He liked to visit the workshops of his great-uncle with his comrade, and the spectacle of the applications of mechanics struck his mind.”2. Plateau Studied Philosophy & the Sciences Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau Plateau was an educated man with many interests. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, he began studying at the University of Liège in 1822. He focused on philosophy and literature but eventually graduated doctor of physical and mathemati
Wikimedia Commons/Google Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau is a Belgian physicist who invented a device called phénakistiscope, which is credited with leading to the birth of cinema. For that reason, he is sometimes called the “Father of Film.” Plateau was honored with a Google Doodle on October 14, 2019 on what would have been his 218th birthday. According to Google, it was Plateau’s “research on visual perception” that led to the world-changing invention. The device created “the illusion of a moving image.” The Google Doodle is animated in honor of Plateau’s style. It’s the “first Google Doodle with different artwork showing up across different device surfaces—desktop, mobile, and the Google App,” Google reports. “After studying law, young Plateau became one of the best-known Belgian scientists of the nineteenth century, remembered for his study of physiological optics, particularly the effect of light and color on the human retina,” Google wrote. Here’s what you need to know:1. Plateau Was Born in Brussels to a Father Whose Talent Was Painting Flowers GooglePlateau Google Doodle. Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau was born in Brussels, Belgium in 1801. His family tree was steeped in artistry. A lengthy 1800s era biography on Plateau by Gustaaf Van der Mensbrugghe, accessed here, says that Plateau was born in Brussels on October 14, 1801; his father, born at Tournai, “had a remarkable talent in the painting of flowers.” “Raised in an artistic milieu, the young Joseph could read at six, which at that time made him look like a prodigy,” the article says. “Sent to primary school, he made rapid progress; one day he attended a session of amusing physics, which struck his intelligence; Enchanted by the experiments of which he had been an attentive witness, he promised himself, no doubt, to penetrate the secret sooner or later.” However, he suffered tragedy early on. His parents died, and his uncle Thirion, a lawyer, became his guardian when he was a teen. Joseph was sickly, so he spent a lot of time in the country, drawing and collecting butterflies, according to Science Museum. Art crossed with an understanding of mechanics in a way that produced the ultimate invention. “Almost every year the young schoolboy would spend his holidays at the castle of Marche-les-Dames, at his grand-uncle’s, M. Jaumenne, master of ironworks,” the Van der Mensbrugghe article states. “He met there with his cousin Auguste Payen, who later became chief architect of the state’s railroads. He liked to visit the workshops of his great-uncle with his comrade, and the spectacle of the applications of mechanics struck his mind.”2. Plateau Studied Philosophy & the Sciences Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau Plateau was an educated man with many interests. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, he began studying at the University of Liège in 1822. He focused on philosophy and literature but eventually graduated doctor of physical and mathemati
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