Hermann Ludwig Ferdinand von Helmholtz (August 31, 1821 – September 8, 1894) was a German
physician and
physicist who made significant contributions to several widely varied areas of modern science. In
physiology and
psychology, he is known for his mathematics of the
eye,
theories of vision, ideas on the
visual perception of space,
color vision research, and on the sensation of tone, perception of sound, and
empiricism. In
physics, he is known for his theories on the conservation of
energy, work in
electrodynamics,
chemical thermodynamics, and on a
mechanical foundation of
thermodynamics. As a
philosopher, he is known for his philosophy of
science, ideas on the relation between the laws of perception and the
laws of nature, the science of
aesthetics, and ideas on the civilizing power of science. The largest German association of
research institutions, the
Helmholtz Association, is named after him.