Physics, scientific investigation and society in Argentina, 1930-1940

Abstract

In this paper we continue our study of the scientific research carried out at the Institute of Physics of the National University of La Plata during the first half of the 20th century, and of the important role played by the physicist Ramon G. Loyarte. Based on his studies, alone or in collaboration with members of the Institute, towards the end of the 1920s Loyarte proposed the possible existence of a new quantum of rotational energy in the mercury atom. This idea raised criticism and generated a fierce scientific controversy that reached the national and international academic media. We analyse this controversy by studying the comments that appeared in international review journals. We also study Loyarte's activities in politics and science policy in Argentina in the 1930s and 1940s, where he was responsible for interesting political and scientific initiatives.