astronomy

Melville Amasa Scovell

Melville Amasa Scovell 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 Melville Amasa Scovell rather than just read about it. In short: Melville Amasa Scovell (February 26, 1855 – August 15, 1912) was an American academic from New Jersey. Moving with his family to Champaign, Illinois early in his life, he attended the University of Illinois there, graduating in 1875.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Melville Amasa Scovell (February 26, 1855 – August 15, 1912) was an American academic from New Jersey. Moving with his family to Champaign, Illinois early in his life, he attended the University of Illinois there, graduating in 1875. He worked at the school for the next seven years, until he was dismissed over a conduct violation. In 1885, he became director of the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of Kentucky. Scovell was named dean of the College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment there shortly before his death.

Early years Melville Amasa Scovell was born February 26, 1855, in Belvidere, New Jersey. Shortly after his birth, his family moved to Jasper County, Illinois. They later moved to Champaign, where his father worked as a principal. Scovell enrolled at the University of Illinois in 1871, studying chemistry. He graduated in 1875 and became an instructor there. From 1876 to 1877, he served as the secretary to university president John Milton Gregory.

Early career Scovell was named an assistant professor of chemistry in 1877, receiving a Master of science the next year. He was made professor of agricultural chemistry in 1880. He co-founded a method of clarifying cane sugar juice, but was forced to leave the university in 1882 because professors were expected to abstain from profiting from their research. Scovell founded a sugar factory in Champaign, but it was short-lived. He also worked as a special agent of the US Department of Agriculture following his dismissal.

Career In 1885, Scovell accepted a position at the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, a position he held until his death. There, he promoted agriculture in Kentucky, with a focus on Jersey cattle. James Ben Ali Haggin commissioned Scovell to purchase cattle for his Elmendorf Farm. In 1893, Scovell was chairman of the dairy test at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. He was awarded a Ph.D. by the University of Illinois in 1909. In 1911, Scovell was named dean of the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment. Scovell served terms as president of the American Association of Agricultural Colleges and Experiment Stations and the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists. He was also a member of the Fair Committee of the Kentucky State Fair from 1907, when it moved to Louisville, until his death. He was a member of the Society of Chemical Industry and the American Chemical Society. He is the namesake of Scovell Hall at the University of Kentucky.

Death Scovell died at his Lexington home from endocarditis on August 15, 1912.

Family life He married Nancy Davis, a member of his university class, in Monticello, Illinois on September 8, 1880; they had no children.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Melville Amasa Scovell

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Melville Amasa Scovell 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 Melville Amasa Scovell 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 Melville Amasa Scovell 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 Melville Amasa Scovell

In research: Melville Amasa Scovell 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 Melville Amasa Scovell 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: Melville Amasa Scovell is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1855 births, 1912 deaths, American chemists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Melville Amasa Scovell 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 Melville Amasa Scovell in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Melville Amasa Scovell 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 Melville Amasa Scovell out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Melville Amasa Scovell in simple terms?

Why does Melville Amasa Scovell 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 Melville Amasa Scovell?

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 Melville Amasa Scovell.