Mathematicians and physicists today think and calculate in much more than three dimensions. String theory - which attempts to unify the workings of all forces in nature, needs as many as eleven, to explain the workings of the smallest particles

But in the early nineteenth century, even the fifth dimension was revolutionary. Thinking about what it would look like required a lot of thinking and calculating for Groningen mathematician Hendrik Pieter Schoute.

But then he met Alicia Boole Stott. A woman from Britain who, without any formal training, made cardboard models that matched exactly what he had calculated.

This episode was written and researched by Christien Boomsma. Voices by Christien Boomsma, Rob van der Wal and Giulia Fabrizi. Sound by Rob van der Wal.

Shownotes

Want to know more? Check it out:

Irene Polo-Blanco. Alicia Boole Stott, a geometer in higher dimension. Historia Mathematica 35 March 2008, pp 123-139

In 1954, physicist and nuclear expert Hendrik Brinkman brought a promising PhD student to Groningen. At least, that's what he thought. It turned out differently: Finnish Runar Gåsström was investigated by almost every secret service from the Western world.

This episode was written by Christien Boomsma and researched by Hans Wilschut. Sound by Rob van der Wal. Voice by Tom Wilcox.

Shownotes

Want to read more about Runar Gåsström? Check out:

Hans Wilschut, The curious history of Runar Gåsström, Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Natuurkunde, March 2025, pp. 22-25

Groninger Archieven, inventory 2783 Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences of the RUG, (1875) 1957-1996, inventory numbers 616-618 Correspondence of H. Brinkman, 1954-1959

In a state-of-the-art laboratory on Westersingel, physicists Herman Haga and Cornelis Wind threw themselves into a completely new field of research from 1895 onwards: X-rays. The mysterious rays that passed through clothes and skin had only just been discovered.

The pair struggled for years until they achieved their big breakthrough. But no one believed them.

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The laboratory of Herman Haga and Cornelis Wind was located on Westersingel and is better known as “The Castle” on the spot where Noorderpoortcollege is now located. The X-rays Haga took are still in the possession of the University Museum.

This episode was written and researched by Jan Waling Huisman of the University Museum Groningen and Christien Boomsma. Sound by Rob van der Wal. Voice by Tom Wilcox.

Shownotes

Want to read more about Herman Haga? Check out:

Berkel, Klaas van, University of the North: four centuries of academic life in Groningen 2. The classical university 1876-1945 (2017)

W.A.H. van Wylick, Röntgen and the Netherlands. Röntgen's relations to the Netherlands and the rise of Röntgenology here in the country (Utrecht 1966)

Knecht-van Eekelen, A. de, J.F.M. Panhuysen, G. Rosenbusch (ed), Through the human flesh. 100 years of radio diagnostics in the Netherlands 1895-1995 (Rotterdam 1995)

Everyone knows Aletta Jacobs. Holland's first official female student in 1871. Holland's first female doctor and a fierce advocate of women's rights.

But who knows Charlotte? The second student, but the first female pharmacist? Older than Aletta, but someone who later managed to evade what society expected of her? She deserves them to be more than just 'the sister of...'

This episode was written and researched by Inge de Wilde and Christien Boomsma. Sound by Rob van der Wal. Voice by Tom Wilcox and Giulia Fabrizi.

Want to read more about Charlotte? Check out:

Mineke Bosch, An unwavering belief in justice. Aletta Jacobs 1854-1929 (Amsterdam 2005)

Annette Jenowein, 'Willpower, daring and unflinching zeal. Charlotte Jacobs ( 1847-1916), first female pharmacist in the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies (s.p.2019)

Inge de Wilde, New associates in science. Female students and lecturers at the University of Groningen 1871-1919 (Assen 1998)

Inge de Wilde, 'From the rocking chairs. Charlotte Jacobs and her circle in Batavia', in: E. Captain, M. Hellevoort and M. van der Klein (ed.), Familiar and strange. Encounters between the Netherlands, the East Indies and Indonesia (Hilversum 2000) 187-194.

Three Scottish students arrived at Groningen's academy in 1683. The three members of a strict conservative movement were persecuted in their homeland. They shared a dream: to become ministers so they could preach and baptise in Scotland.

That dream became a reality for one of the three: Scotland's James Renwick was confirmed, despite loud protests from his opponents.

You can still visit the spot in Groningen's Martini church, where Renwick was confirmed. Check the Martini church website for guided tours.

This episode was written and researched by Klaas van Berkel and Christien Boomsma. Sound by Rob van der Wal. Voice by Tom Wilcox.

Shownotes

Did the confirmation of James Renwick really take place in the consistory room? Historian Klaas van Berkel thinks so, but Jan Visser, connoisseur of the Martinikerk, has doubts. After all, the consistory room is not very large and there were easily twenty people present at the ceremony. The space next to the consistory room, the old library, seems more suitable. It is much larger and since all books were removed after the Reformation, there was also plenty of room.

More information on guided tours of Groningen's Martinikerk, can be found here.

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In Groningen's UB, you can find ebook versions of many of James Renwick's sermons. Several biographies have been written about him. Those works mostly date from the nineteenth century and were written by admirers and followers. Not neutral, but interesting.

See, for example:

Thomas Houston, The Life of James Renwick, A Historical Sketch Of His Life, Labours And Martyrdom And A Vindication Of His Character And Testimony (1865).

Life and Letters of James Renwick. Including the biography of Renwick by John Howie (Middelburg, 2007)

Sibrandus Stratingh became known as the inventor of the very first electric car. But the Groningen chemist and inventor was also responsible for the first ‘ordinary’ car. Because that is what you can rightly call the steam engine that drove through Groningen in 1834 with Stratingh at the driving seat.

Nothing has survived of Stratingh's steam car. But the Groningen university museum does have another of his inventions on display. There is a cart weighing less than three kilos that moves by means of a battery. It comes from 1835 and is considered the very first electric car in the world. More literature can be found in the show notes.

This episode was written and researched by Ulco Kooystra and Christien Boomsma. Sound and editing is done by Rob van der Wal. Voice-over is done by Tom Wilcox.

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Want to know more about Stratingh?

Ulco Kooystra, The Chemistry Artist. The innovative science of Groningen professor Sibrand Stratingh Ez 1785-1841 (Hilversum 2021)

In the eighteenth century, the debate about differences between white people and people of colour was in full swing. For instance, there were white scientists who believed that people of colour must have black blood, or black brains. Moreover, many of these theories were used to justify slavery.

The anatomist Petrus Camper thought otherwise. During his stay in Groningen, he performed public dissections on the bodies of both white and black, to prove that there were no fundamental differences. He would have been shocked had he known that a hundred years later his ideas were being misused to spread racial theories.

Camper's speech was printed in 1772 and can be read here.

Petrus Camper's collection is managed by the University Museum Groningen. An exhibition on Petrus Camper is on display there until 21 September 2025. More literature can be found in the show notes.

This episode was written and researched by Christien Boomsma. Sound and editing is done by Rob van der Wal. Voice-over is done by Tom Wilcox.

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Want to read more about Petrus Camper? Check out:

Berkel, K. van, red. Petrus Camper in Context : Wetenschap, Kunst en Samenleving in de Achttiende-eeuwse Nederlandse Republiek. Verloren, 2015.

van Berkel, Klaas, en Ramakers, Bart. Smaakvol en vruchtbaar gelezen worden: Petrus Camper als publiekswetenschapper. Uitgeverij Verloren, 2015, https://research.rug.nl/en/publications/5b028306-a65d-4d91-af84-c29b50a3017e.

Bancel, Nicolas, e.a., redactie. The Invention of Race : Scientific and Popular Representations. Routledge, 2014, http://site.ebrary.com/id/10866340.

Meijer, Miriam Claude. Ras en esthetiek in de antropologie van Petrus Camper (1722-1789). Rodopi, 1999.

Schuller tot Peursum-Meijer, J., en W. R. H. Koops. Petrus Camper (1722-1789) : Onderzoeker van de Natuur. Universiteitsmuseum Groningen, 1989.

Audio is coming from Envato and Pixabay

World War II marked the sudden end of the student life of hundreds of Groningen youths. Among them was Reint Dijkema: a medical student who not only became a prominent member of the Groningen resistance, but was also responsible for the liquidation of Jew hunter Jan Annes Elsinga on New Year's Eve 1943.

In front of Jozef Israelsstraat 16a in Groningen lies a Stolperstein, bearing Reint Dijkema's name. His name can also be found on the memorial plaque in the Academy Building in Groningen. More literature can be found in the show notes.

This episode was written and researched by Christien Boomsma. Sound and editing is done by Rob van der Wal. Voice-over is done by Tom Wilcox.

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Want to read more about Reint Dijkema? Check out:

Jeroen Kemperman, War in the college benches. Students in resistance 1940-1945 (Amsterdam 2018)

Klaas van Berkel, Academic Illusions. Groningen university in a time of crisis, occupation and recovery (Amsterdam, 2015)

Ingrid van der Vlis. The story of a Groningen resistance family (Bedum, 2014). This book is largely based on the family archives of the Dijkema family.

Jan A. Niemeijer, Donkere Stad (Haren, 1970)

Audio is coming from Envato and Pixabay