Prix Guzman

The Prix Pierre Guzman (Pierre Guzman Prize) was the name given to two prizes, one astronomical and one medical. Both were established by the will of Anne Emilie Clara Goguet (died June 30, 1891), wife of Marc Guzman, and named after her son Pierre Guzman.^[1]

Astronomical

This prize was a sum of 100,000 francs, to be given to a person who succeeded in communicating with a celestial body, other than Mars, and receiving a response. Until this occurred, the will also allowed for the accumulated interest on the 100,000 francs to be given, every five years, to a person who had made significant progress in astronomy. The prize was to be awarded by the French Académie des sciences.^[1] Pierre Guzman had been interested in the work of Camille Flammarion, the author of La planète Mars et ses conditions d'habitabilité (The Planet Mars and Its Conditions of Habitability, 1892). Communication with Mars was specifically exempted as many people believed that Mars was inhabited at the time and communication with that planet would not be a difficult enough challenge.^[2] The prize was later announced in 1900 by the French Académie des sciences.^[3]

The five-yearly prize of interest was awarded, starting in 1905, as follows:

• In Dec. 1905, to Henri Joseph Anastase Perrotin.^[4][5] A portion of the prize was also given to Louis Fabry.^[6][7]
• In Dec. 1910, to Maurice Loewy.^[8]

Nikola Tesla claimed in 1937 that he should receive the prize for "his discovery relating to the interstellar transmission of energy."^[9] The prize was awarded to the crew of Apollo 11 in 1969.^[10][11]

Medical

This prize was a sum of 50,000 francs, to be awarded by the French Académie de médecine, to be given to a person who succeeded in developing an effective treatment for the most common forms of heart disease. Until this occurred, the will also allowed for the accumulated interest to be given yearly to someone who had made progress in heart disease.^[1][12]

The yearly prize of interest was awarded as follows:

• In 1903, to Paul Bergougnan.^[13]
• In 1905, to Gillet, with an honorable mention to Braillon.^[14]

References

1. pp. 2-7 (minutes of meeting), Transactions of the New York Academy of Sciences, series I, 11 (October–November 1891; issue 1-2), doi:10.1111/j.2164-0947.1891.tb01835.x.
2. Camille Flammarion, Dreams of an Astronomer, trans. E. E. Fournier D'Albe (New York: D. Appleton & Co., 1923), p. 154.
3. Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des séances de l'Académie des sciences, 131 (1900), p. 1147.
4. Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des séances de l'Académie des sciences, 141 (1905), p. 1071.
5. p. 491, Bulletin de la Société astronomique de France, 20 (1906).
6. Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des séances de l'Académie des sciences, 141 (1905), p. 1077.
7. p. 339, Bulletin de la société de géographie de Marseille, 29 (1905).
8. Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des séances de l'Académie des sciences, 151 (1910), p. 1187.
9. "Sending of Messages to Planets Predicted by Dr. Tesla on Birthday," New York Times, 11 July 1937, p. 13, c. 2.
10. Michael Collins, Mission To Mars, (ISBN 0802111602, Grove Weidenfeld, 1990), p. 6.
11. p. 60, "Apollo 11 Crew Awarded Medals for Moon Trip", The Blade (Toledo, Ohio, USA), Dec. 10, 1969.
12. p. 222, L'Aesculpe: guide pratique à l'usage des étudiants et des docteurs en médecine, Paris: Masson & Cie, 1905.
13. p. 545, Bulletin de l'Académie de médecine, 3rd series, 50 (1903).
14. pp. 424-425, Bulletin de l'Académie de médecine, 3rd series, 54 (1905).

• p. 131, Patrick Moore's Data Book of Astronomy, Patrick Moore and Robin Rees, 2nd ed., Cambridge University Press, 2011, ISBN 1107671655.
• p. 282, "Idée d'une Communication Entre les Mondes a Propos d'un Testament Astronomique", C. Flammarion, L'Astronomie 10 (1891), pp. 282–287, Bibcode: 1891LAstr..10..282F.
• "The Strange Case of Madame Guzman and the Mars Mystique", Frank H. Winter, Griffith Observer 48 (Feb. 1984), pp. 2–15, Bibcode: 1984GriO...48....2W.
• "Mme. Guzman's Curious Will", Chicago Tribune, Sep. 14, 1891, p. 9.