A negligible phenomenon - observed for fractions of a second - was used by Jules Verne to increase the attractiveness of science among school students
Chazi Yitzhak
Already in my childhood I thirstily read Jules Verne's books, and over time my love for his works grew. The combination of science and travel fascinated me. Over time, when I studied physics at the university, as well as when I worked as a physics teacher at the environmental high school at the Sde Boker Midrash, I tried to extract passages and anecdotes from the books in order to enrich the lessons and enthuse the students in studying the subject that was perceived as difficult and sometimes even boring.
While searching for an interesting question for an optics test, my eyes came across the description of the "green ray" from Jules Verne's book of the same name written in 1882. This description led me on a journey following the book and following this elusive horn, and finally even resulted in the book being translated into Hebrew. This marginal phenomenon, which Warren published for the first time, served as the subject of many scientific studies and even doctoral theses, and it expresses the hidden beauty that exists even in the most mundane phenomena, which is guaranteed to those who observe with a discerning eye - in the opinion of those who do not look, they lose.
The heroes of Vern's travels move towards their goal with a pulsating tenacity, and no obstacle will stop them. They use the principles of science and technology to overcome the difficulties. For example, the heroes of the journey to the North Pole in "Captain Tress" manage to light a fire by building a focusing lens out of ice, and Axel and his uncle, Professor Lindenbrook, estimate the distance between them in the thick of the earth by measuring the time it takes for the sound wave to travel this distance; What a great combination of science, adventure and imagination!
Later I learned that this was the goal of Verne and Etzel, the publisher of his books, and this is how it was written in the introduction to the series of books "Wonderful Journeys": "To summarize all the geographical, geological, physical and astronomical knowledge accumulated by modern science, and to report it in a picturesque and entertaining manner and create a kind of history of the universe". Etzel aspired for the books to improve the level of teaching, which was poor in those days in public schools in France, and even told Warren: "The audience does not want to be taught, but to be entertained."
Learning through play is an effective method even today, and I am sure that despite the rapid scientific progress of the last century, there is still a place to use excerpts from Verne's books during science classes at school, and this way it will perhaps be possible to encourage teenagers to read books.
Because what is science, if not a brilliant journey of the human intellect to crack the secrets of the universe. This is how we learned that the imaginary journey to the depths of the earth that Warren describes in his book "Journey to the Belly of the Earth" published in 1864, and is almost the only one of his stories that remains entirely a fantasy, was based on scientific theories of his time, which claimed that the earth was hollow. Even today there are still many who are desperately searching for the openings to the Earth's interior in the polar region.
Another issue that Warren wrestled with throughout his life was the role of technology in the service of society. Vern's point of view fluctuated between optimism and pessimism during his lifetime. He was aware of the destructive power of man and warned against the destruction of the ecological balance on planet Earth. For example, the heroes of "Journey to the Moon" are trying to build a mighty cannon again and divert the earth's axis from its orbit and melt the poles in order to use the minerals that were discovered in them. They do not consider the tremendous damage and suffering that will be caused to the coastal cities on the planet. Science, as it is described in this book, is neither good nor bad, but is a tool in the hand of man to use as he wishes. This claim was true in Verne's day, and it is still true today.
Many of Verne's predictions have turned into facts over the many years that have passed since he published his books, not even the bread of his heroes. Captain Nemo, Phileas Fog or Barbican are eternal heroes, expressing human curiosity and the longing to discover and explore the inherent in the human race.
Dr. Hezi Yitzhak, physicist. Midrash Sde Boker
