Was Millikan's Oildrop Experiment Ethically Sound?

[Jamesss]

How did Millikan do it?

I've just completed Millikan's Oildrop experiment (with mixed results) and we haven't actually found the charge of an electron, but simply just tried to demonstrate the quantisation of charge by assuming a value of
e = 1.6022e-19C.

Question is how on Earth did Millikan from his data extract a common multiple in all those values? I have tried to find detailed sources on his exact methods but I haven't been able to find sources or his original paper. Methinks it was an abstract statistical handling of the data.

I do read however this whole ethical issue with him excluding some data that was inconsistent with e...interesting

Jimmy

 

[Integral]

You have done the experiment so you are familiar with the equipment and basic methods. The secret to Millikan's success? Patience and repetitions, lots of repetitions. He did not spend 1 or 2 3hr labs, but literally years running the experiment and collecting data.

 

[sir-pinski]

, thank you for bringing up this important question about the ethical soundness of Millikan's Oildrop experiment. While Millikan's experiment was groundbreaking and contributed significantly to our understanding of the charge of an electron, there have been debates about the ethical implications of his research methods.

Millikan's experiment involved suspending tiny oil droplets in an electric field and measuring their rate of fall. From this data, he was able to calculate the charge of the individual droplets and determine that they were all multiples of a specific value, which he assumed to be the charge of an electron. However, there have been criticisms about the validity of his data and the way he handled it.

One of the main concerns is that Millikan selectively chose which data points to include in his final calculations. He would discard any data that did not fit his expected results, leading to a bias in his findings. This raises questions about the accuracy and reliability of his experiment.

Furthermore, there have been suggestions that Millikan may have manipulated his data to fit his desired outcome. This goes against the principles of scientific integrity and raises concerns about the validity of his results.

In addition, there were also ethical concerns about the use of human subjects in Millikan's experiment. He employed a team of research assistants to conduct the experiment, and there were reports that he did not properly credit or compensate them for their contributions.

Overall, while Millikan's Oildrop experiment was a significant contribution to science, there are valid ethical concerns about the way it was conducted. It is important for scientists to uphold ethical standards in their research methods to ensure the validity and credibility of their findings.