astronomy

James Francis Macbride

James Francis Macbride is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand James Francis Macbride rather than just read about it. In short: James Francis Macbride (19 May 1892 – 16 June 1976) was an American botanist who devoted most of his professional life to the study of the flora of Peru. Early life and education Born on 19 May 1891 in Rock Valley, Iowa, MacBride graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1914 and worked briefly at the Gray Herbarium, Harvard University.

Key takeaways

James Francis Macbride belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
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Reproduce the core statement of James Francis Macbride from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

James Francis Macbride (19 May 1892 – 16 June 1976) was an American botanist who devoted most of his professional life to the study of the flora of Peru.

Early life and education Born on 19 May 1891 in Rock Valley, Iowa, MacBride graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1914 and worked briefly at the Gray Herbarium, Harvard University.

Career In 1921, Macbride joined the staff of the Department of Botany at Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, to head the nascent Flora of Peru program. Peru had been selected as the center of floristic research by C. F. Millspaugh, the museum's first Curator of Botany. In 1922, Macbride and his assistant William Featherstone embarked on the first of two expeditions to Peru. They initially collected in the highland regions of the Departments of Lima, Junín, Huánuco, and Pasco. Macbride returned the following year to the Huánuco region and the Río Ucayali. For a decade from 1929, Macbride visited all the major herbaria of Europe to photograph types of tropical American flora preserved in herbaria, accumulating photographs of over 40,000 specimens. These photographs were to prove of particular importance, as many of the specimens held in German herbaria were later destroyed in the Allied bombing campaigns of World War II. Expeditions to Peru continued in his absence, and by 1936 the Field Museum's herbarium held over 33,000 Peruvian plant specimens, the largest such collection in the world. in 1936, publication of the Flora of Peru began, and continued for another 24 years. In the late 1940s, Macbride moved to California, where he continued his work on the Flora at the University of California and at Stanford University, publishing his last family treatment in 1960, leaving only 20 families out of 180 untreated in the series.

Personal life and death Macbride died aged 84 on 16 June 1976 at Riverside, California.

Eponymy Macbride is commemorated by the plant genus of Macbrideina Standley and numerous other species; such as Tephrosia macbrideana R.T.Queiroz, G.P.Lewis & A.M.G.Azevedo.

Works Macbride, J. F. (1936-1960). Flora of Peru, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago.

See also Category:Taxa named by James Francis Macbride

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with James Francis Macbride

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what James Francis Macbride claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to James Francis Macbride before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about James Francis Macbride ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of James Francis Macbride

In research: James Francis Macbride appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses James Francis Macbride in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: James Francis Macbride is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1892 births, 1976 deaths, 20th-century American people, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for James Francis Macbride outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study James Francis Macbride in 20 minutes

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Frequently asked questions

What is James Francis Macbride in simple terms?

James Francis Macbride (19 May 1892 – 16 June 1976) was an American botanist who devoted most of his professional life to the study of the flora of Peru. Early life and education Born on 19 May 1891 in Rock Valley, Iowa, MacBride graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1914 and worked briefly a…

Why does James Francis Macbride matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study James Francis Macbride?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on James Francis Macbride.