A course of six lectures on the various forces of matter, and their relations to each other

by Michael Faraday

Excerpt from A Course of Six Lectures on the Various Forces of Matter, and Their Relations to Each OtherAppeared was so great that the republication of them in a separate form was considered to be a] m eat a duty to those young lovers of science to whom a purely chemical journal with its in evitable technicalities would be a sealed book. M a y the readers of these Lectures derive one ten th of the pleasure and instruction from their perusal which they gave to those who had the.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Classics, Physics

200 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1960

About the author

Michael Faraday, FRS (22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the fields of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. His main discoveries include those of electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism and electrolysis.

Although Faraday received little formal education, he was one of the most influential scientists in history. It was by his research on the magnetic field around a conductor carrying a direct current that Faraday established the basis for the concept of the electromagnetic field in physics. Faraday also established that magnetism could affect rays of light and that there was an underlying relationship between the two phenomena. He similarly discovered the principle of electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism, and the laws of electrolysis. His inventions of electromagnetic rotary devices formed the foundation of electric motor technology, and it was largely due to his efforts that electricity became practical for use in technology.

As a chemist, Faraday discovered benzene, investigated the clathrate hydrate of chlorine, invented an early form of the Bunsen burner and the system of oxidation numbers, and popularised terminology such as anode, cathode, electrode, and ion. Faraday ultimately became the first and foremost Fullerian Professor of Chemistry at the Royal Institution of Great Britain, a lifetime position.

Faraday was an excellent experimentalist who conveyed his ideas in clear and simple language; his mathematical abilities, however, did not extend as far as trigonometry or any but the simplest algebra. James Clerk Maxwell took the work of Faraday and others, and summarized it in a set of equations that is accepted as the basis of all modern theories of electromagnetic phenomena. On Faraday's uses of the lines of force, Maxwell wrote that they show Faraday "to have been in reality a mathematician of a very high order – one from whom the mathematicians of the future may derive valuable and fertile methods." The SI unit of capacitance, the farad, is named in his honour.

Albert Einstein kept a picture of Faraday on his study wall, alongside pictures of Isaac Newton and James Clerk Maxwell. Physicist Ernest Rutherford stated; "When we consider the magnitude and extent of his discoveries and their influence on the progress of science and of industry, there is no honour too great to pay to the memory of Faraday, one of the greatest scientific discoverers of all time".

Reviews

[Ian Mewhinney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved these lectures about the generalized 1800s understanding of physical forces in nature. I loved imagining being in the lecture with great descriptions of the experiments. if only I had the reference illustrations for a better understanding, but everything was very well explained as such for a younger audience. I already was familiar with much of the content, but alas it was a joy to listen on libravox. Did reference Google as I went, so my interest was fully satisfied. 4.75/5

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Michael Faraday gave beautiful lectures for children, where he performed scientific experiments and explained the science in ways that children could understand. Faraday's lectures were so fun and exciting that they became world-renowned events.