astronomy

John Muirhead Macfarlane

John Muirhead Macfarlane 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 John Muirhead Macfarlane rather than just read about it. In short: John Muirhead Macfarlane FRSE LLD (28 September 1855, Kirkcaldy, Fife – 16 September 1943, Lancaster) was a Scottish botanist. Life He was born in Kirkcaldy in Fife on 28 September 1855.

Key takeaways

John Muirhead Macfarlane belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect John Muirhead Macfarlane to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of John Muirhead Macfarlane from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

John Muirhead Macfarlane FRSE LLD (28 September 1855, Kirkcaldy, Fife – 16 September 1943, Lancaster) was a Scottish botanist.

Life He was born in Kirkcaldy in Fife on 28 September 1855. He was educated locally, then studied sciences at the University of Edinburgh, first graduating with a BSc, followed by a degree of Doctor of Science in 1883. He occupied several different academic positions at the University of Edinburgh and the Royal Dick Veterinary College. In 1885 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. His proposers were Alexander Dickson, Robert Gray, Alexander Buchan and Andrew Peebles Aitken. During this period he lived at 3 Bellevue Terrace on the eastern fringe of the New Town. In 1892, he was elected an International Honorary Member of the American Philosophical Society. In 1893 he travelled to the United States to assume a professorial chair at the University of Pennsylvania. He held this position until retirement in 1920. During his time at the University of Pennsylvania he encouraged botanists such as Edith May Farr. He played a leading role in organising and diversifying the botanical garden of the University of Pennsylvania. On retiral he returned to Britain and died in Lancaster in northern England on 16 September 1943. John Muirhead Macfarlane died in Lancaster, New Hampshire USA. He is buried in the Durant Road Cemetery in Durant, New Hampshire.

Publications Macfarlane is best known for his first book, The causes and course of organic evolution. A study in bioenergics (1918). He also wrote many other works including The evolution and distribution of flowering plants (Apocynaceae, Asclepiadaceae) (1933), The evolution and distribution of fishes (1923), Fishes the source of petroleum (1923), and The quantity and sources of our petroleum supplies (1931). Macfarlane revised the tropical pitcher plant family in his 1908 monograph, "Nepenthaceae".

References

External links Media related to John Muirhead Macfarlane at Wikimedia Commons

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with John Muirhead Macfarlane

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what John Muirhead Macfarlane 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 John Muirhead Macfarlane 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 John Muirhead Macfarlane 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 John Muirhead Macfarlane

In research: John Muirhead Macfarlane 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 John Muirhead Macfarlane 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: John Muirhead Macfarlane is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1855 births, 1943 deaths, 19th-century Scottish botanists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for John Muirhead Macfarlane 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 John Muirhead Macfarlane in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what John Muirhead Macfarlane means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain John Muirhead Macfarlane out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is John Muirhead Macfarlane in simple terms?

John Muirhead Macfarlane FRSE LLD (28 September 1855, Kirkcaldy, Fife – 16 September 1943, Lancaster) was a Scottish botanist. Life He was born in Kirkcaldy in Fife on 28 September 1855.

Why does John Muirhead Macfarlane 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 John Muirhead Macfarlane?

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 John Muirhead Macfarlane.