Faraday, Michael

Faraday, pronounced FAIR uh day, Michael (1791-1867), one of the greatest English chemists and physicists, discovered the principle of electromagnetic induction in 1831 (see Electromagnetism). He found that moving a magnet through a coil of copper wire caused an electric current to flow in the wire. The electric generator and the electric motor are based on this principle. Joseph Henry, an American physicist, discovered induction shortly before Faraday, but failed to publish his findings.

Faraday's work in electrochemistry led him to discover a mathematical relationship between electricity and the valence (combining power) of a chemical element. Faraday's law states this relationship. It gave the first clue to the existence of electrons (see Electron). Faraday introduced ideas that would become the basis of field theory in physics. He maintained that magnetic, electric, and gravitational forces are passed from one body to another through lines of force, or strains in the area between the two bodies.

Faraday was born near London. He was first apprenticed to a bookbinder. He became Sir Humphry Davy's assistant at the Royal Institution in London in 1813, and remained there for 54 years. Faraday was a popular lecturer. He gave scientific lectures for children every Christmas. The most famous of these lectures is called "The Chemical History of a Candle."

Contributor: Seymour Harold Mauskopf, Ph.D., Prof. of History, Duke Univ.

Faraday, Michael

Master Index