Hey—we've moved. Visit
The Keyword
for all the latest news and stories from Google
Official Blog
Insights from Googlers into our products, technology, and the Google culture
Searching for Descartes, solving a centuries-old international mystery
June 8, 2010
When I was a history major at
Haverford College
, I spent countless hours with old documents at Magill Library. It was one of the best parts of the Haverford experience—studying and researching with a great collection of musty works. Little did I or any other student know at the time that as we worked, we sat a few feet away from an international mystery involving none other than
René Descartes
.
It reads like a historical thriller. In 1641 the French philosopher penned a letter about
one of his forthcoming works
, a correspondence that found a home in the collections of the
Institut de France
. Nearly two centuries later, the Italian mathematician Count Guglielmo Libri thieved thousands of letters and documents from the Institut before fleeing to England, where he sold his stolen goods to collectors and booksellers—at least one of which found its way into the hands of Charles Roberts, a document collector and Haverford alum (Class of 1864).
More than 100 years ago, Roberts’s widow bequeathed her late husband’s collection to his alma mater, and these works have been the basis for ongoing scholarship ever since. For years, few people knew of the existence—or origins—of the Descartes letter held in Haverford’s archives until a few months ago
when a Google search led a Dutch scholar to uncover this missing treasure
.
After Haverford’s president Steve Emerson learned of the “long-lost and extremely valuable” document’s discovery, he contacted his counterpart at the Institut de France, and today, after nearly 170 years, this mystery reaches its conclusion. Haverford has returned the missing letter to its original home, and a representative from Google France will be joining the formal repatriation ceremony at the Institut in Paris.
Excerpt of the letter written by Rene Descartes in 1641.
SOURCE: Haverford College
Search isn't a solved problem, but it certainly helps solve problems—whether you’re looking for something as simple as the
library hours of a small liberal arts school outside Philadelphia
or trying to uncover a long-lost letter in the archives. Makes me wonder what mystery might be uncovered next.
Posted by John Saroff, Strategic Partnership Development Manager, Google TV Ads
Labels
accessibility
41
acquisition
26
ads
131
Africa
19
Android
58
apps
419
April 1
4
Asia
39
books + book search
48
commerce
12
computing history
7
crisis response
33
culture
12
developers
120
diversity
35
doodles
68
education and research
144
entrepreneurs at Google
14
Europe
46
faster web
16
free expression
61
google.org
73
googleplus
50
googlers and culture
202
green
102
Latin America
18
maps and earth
194
mobile
124
online safety
19
open source
19
photos
39
policy and issues
139
politics
71
privacy
66
recruiting and hiring
32
scholarships
31
search
505
search quality
24
search trends
118
security
36
small business
31
user experience and usability
41
youtube and video
140
Archive
2016
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2015
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2014
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2013
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2012
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2011
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2010
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2009
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2008
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2007
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2006
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2005
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2004
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Feed
Google
on
Follow @google
Follow
Give us feedback in our
Product Forums
.
Follow
