In 1880 he was awarded his Ph.D. from Humboldt-Universität of Berlin with a dissertation titled, Über den Einfluss von Luftdruck und Wärme auf die Pendelbewegung (On the influence of air pressure and heat on the movement of a pendulum).
ɪn wˈʌn θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪthˈʌndɹɪd ˈeɪɾi hiː wʌz ɐwˈɔːɹdᵻd hɪz pˌiːˈeɪtʃ.dˈiː. fɹʌm hˈʌmboʊldtjˈuːnɪvɚsˌɪɾɛt ʌv bɜːlˈɪn wɪð ɐ dɪsɚtˈeɪʃən tˈaɪɾəld, ˈuːbɚ dˈɛn ˈaɪnflʌs vˈɑːn lˈʌftdɹʌk ˈʌnd wˈɛəm ˈɔːf dˈaɪ pˈɛndɪlbjˌuːɪɡˌʌŋ ɔnðɪ ˈɪnfluːəns ʌv ˈɛɹ pɹˈɛʃɚ ænd hˈiːt ɔnðə mˈuːvmənt əvə pˈɛndʒuːləm.