The Royal Society has been dedicated to scientific inquiry since the seventeenth century and has seen a long line of illustrious scientists and thinkers among its fellowship. The society's Assistant Secretary and Librarian, Charles Richard Weld (1813–1869), spent four years writing this two-volume History of the Royal Society, published in 1848, which also includes illustrations by his wife, Anne. Weld's aim was to document the 'rise, progress, and constitution' of the society. He charts how the informal meetings of like-minded men engaged in scientific pursuits in the mid-1600s developed into a prestigious society that by 1830 counted as one of the world's most influential scientific institutions. Volume 1 covers the period to 1755, describing the society's origins and key moments in its growth, with a focus on its governance, benefactors and organisation. It also contains biographies of presidents including Samuel Pepys and Isaac Newton.
The Royal Society has been dedicated to scientific inquiry since the seventeenth century and has seen a long line of illustrious scientists and thinkers among its fellowship. The society's Assistant Secretary and Librarian, Charles Richard Weld (1813–1869), spent four years writing this two-volume History of the Royal Society, published in 1848, which also includes illustrations by his wife, Anne. Weld's aim was to document the 'rise, progress, and constitution' of the society. He charts how the informal meetings of like-minded men engaged in scientific pursuits in the mid-1600s developed into a prestigious society that by 1830 counted as one of the world's most influential scientific institutions. Volume 2 describes the governance, funding and organisation of the society from the 1770s to 1830, as well as key scientific concerns. It also contains biographies of notable presidents including James Burrow, Humphry Davy and Joseph Banks.
The Royal Society has been dedicated to scientific inquiry since the seventeenth century and has seen a long line of illustrious scientists and thinkers among its fellowship. The society's Assistant Secretary and Librarian, Charles Richard Weld (1813–1869), spent four years writing this two-volume History of the Royal Society, published in 1848, which also includes illustrations by his wife, Anne. Weld's aim was to document the 'rise, progress, and constitution' of the society. He charts how the informal meetings of like-minded men engaged in scientific pursuits in the mid-1600s developed into a prestigious society that by 1830 counted as one of the world's most influential scientific institutions.
Originally apprenticed to a bookbinder, Michael Faraday (1791–1867) began to attend Sir Humphrey Davy's chemistry lectures purely out of interest. Although he soon recognised that science would be his vocation, there was no defined career path to follow, and when he applied to Davy for work he was gently told to 'attend to the bookbinding'. It was only after a laboratory explosion in which Davy partially lost his sight that Faraday was taken on as his amanuensis. From this difficult beginning stemmed perhaps the most famous scientific career of the nineteenth century. This three-volume collection of Faraday's papers, originally published between 1839 and 1855, provides a comprehensive record of a key branch of his work. Volume 1 covers his early work in electricity and magnetism. Volume 2 includes work on the illusions caused by lightning, and Volume 3 includes his landmark paper on the effect of magnetism on light.
John William Strutt, third Baron Rayleigh (1842–1919), was an English physicist best known as the co-discoverer of the element argon, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1904. Rayleigh graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1865 and after conducting private research was appointed Cavendish Professor of Experimental Physics in 1879, a post which he held until 1884. These highly influential volumes, first published between 1877 and 1878, contain Rayleigh's classic account of acoustic theory. Bringing together contemporary research and his own experiments, Rayleigh clearly describes the origins and transmission of sound waves through different media. This textbook was considered the standard work on the subject for many years and provided the foundations of modern acoustic theory. Volume 1 discusses the origin and transmission of sound waves in harmonic vibrations, the vibrations of bars, stretched strings, plates and membranes, through mathematical models and
Manchester-born Sir Joseph John Thomson (1858–1940), discoverer of the electron, was one of the most important Cambridge physicists of the later nineteenth and first half of the twentieth centuries. Succeeding Lord Rayleigh as Cavendish Professor of Experimental Physics, he directed the research interests of the laboratory, and eight of his students, including Rutherford, went on to win Nobel Prizes, as Thomson himself did in 1906. He was knighted in 1908, received the Order of Merit in 1912, and became Master of Trinity College in 1918. He also served as President of the Royal Society from 1915 from 1920 and was a government advisor on scientific research during World War I. This autobiography, published in 1936, covers all aspects of his career - his student days in Manchester, arrival in Cambridge, and growing international reputation. It gives a fascinating picture of Cambridge life and science at a dynamic period of development.
The mathematician and physicist William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, (1824–1907) was one of Britain's most influential scientists, famous for his work on the first and second laws of thermodynamics and for devising the Kelvin scale of absolute temperature. Silvanus P. Thompson (1851–1916) began this biography with the co-operation of Kelvin in 1906, but the project was interrupted by Kelvin's death the following year. Thompson, himself a respected physics lecturer and scientific writer, decided that a more comprehensive biography would be needed and spent several years reading through Kelvin's papers in order to complete these two volumes, published in 1910. Volume 1 covers Kelvin's life to 1871, including his student days, his election (aged 22) as professor in Glasgow, his ground-breaking theoretical research on thermodynamics, his applied work on telegraphs including the Atlantic cable, and his involvement in a geological controversy about the age of the earth.
The mathematician and physicist William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, (1824–1907) was one of Britain's most influential scientists, famous for his work on the first and second laws of thermodynamics and for devising the Kelvin scale of absolute temperature. Silvanus P. Thompson (1851–1916) began this biography with the co-operation of Kelvin in 1906, but the project was interrupted by Kelvin's death the following year. Thompson, himself a respected physics lecturer and scientific writer, decided that a more comprehensive biography would be needed and spent several years reading through Kelvin's papers in order to complete these two volumes, published in 1910. Volume 2, beginning in 1871, covers not only Kelvin's mature research, but also more personal aspects of his life, including his love of music and sailing, his experiments with compasses and navigation, and the relationship between his scientific discoveries and his religious beliefs.
This short but distinctive paper was published in 1835 by Charles Daubeny (1795–1867), who began his career as a physician but soon found his passion to be volcanos. At this time, Daubeny held chairs in chemistry and botany at Oxford. He had made many field trips to European volcanic regions between 1819 and 1825, was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1822, and in 1826 published the first edition of his famous Description of Active and Extinct Volcanos, of which a later version also appears in this series. Here Daubeny describes a winter trip to the Apulia (Puglia) region in the south-east of Italy, rarely described by travel writers of his time, to visit Lake Amsanctus, famously mentioned by Virgil, and the extinct volcano Mount Vultur. Although Daubeny's overall focus is scientific, his account also includes lively descriptions of classical remains and rural society in southern Italy.
William Thomson, Baron Kelvin (1824–1907), was educated at Glasgow and Cambridge. While only in his twenties, he was awarded the University of Glasgow's chair in natural philosophy, which he was to hold for over fifty years. He is best known through the Kelvin, the unit of measurement of temperature named after him in consequence of his development of an absolute scale of temperature. These volumes collect together Kelvin's lectures for a wider audience. In a convivial but never condescending style, he outlines a range of scientific subjects to audiences of his fellow scientists. The range of topics covered reflects Kelvin's broad interests and his stature as one of the most eminent of Victorian scientists. Volume 3, published in 1891, deals with the science of the seas and oceans, particularly as it relates to navigation, tides and magnetic forces.
William Thomson, Baron Kelvin (1824–1907), was one of the most important Victorian scientists. These volumes collect together Baron Kelvin's lectures for a wider audience. They include elementary topi
William Thomson, Baron Kelvin (1824–1907), born with a great talent for mathematics and physics, was educated at Glasgow and Cambridge. While only in his twenties, he was appointed to the University of Glasgow's Chair in Natural Philosophy, which he was to hold for over fifty years. He is best known for lending his name to the Kelvin unit of measurement for temperature, after his development of an absolute scale of temperature. This book is a corrected 1884 edition of Kelvin's 1872 collection of papers on electrostatics and magnetism. It includes all his work on these subjects previously published as articles in journals including the Cambridge Mathematical Journal and the Transactions of the Royal Society. Kelvin also wrote several new items to fill gaps in this collection, so that its coverage of the state of electromagnetic research in the late nineteenth century is comprehensive.
Best known for his theory of electromagnetism, James Clerk Maxwell (1831–79) was Cambridge University's first Cavendish Professor of Experimental Physics. Albert Einstein described his work as 'the most profound and the most fruitful that physics has experienced since the time of Newton'. He carried out brilliant work in thermodynamics and statistical mechanics, laying the foundation for the kinetic theory of gases. This book, published originally in 1871, summarises his work in this field. It includes the 'Maxwell relations' that still feature in every standard text on thermodynamics. It also outlines his famous thought experiment, later named Maxwell's 'demon'. This idea, which appeared to contradict the second law of thermodynamics, would inspire scientific debate well into the twentieth century. More recently, it has sparked developments in the new sciences of nanotechnology and quantum computing.
John William Strutt, third Baron Rayleigh (1842–1919), was an English physicist best known as the co-discoverer of the element argon, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1904. Rayleigh graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1865 and after conducting private research was appointed Cavendish Professor of Experimental Physics in 1879, a post which he held until 1884. These highly influential volumes, first published between 1877 and 1878, contain Rayleigh's classic account of acoustic theory. Bringing together contemporary research and his own experiments, Rayleigh clearly describes the origins and transmission of sound waves through different media. This textbook was considered the standard work on the subject for many years and provided the foundations of modern acoustic theory. Volume 2 discusses theories of aerial vibrations, with discussions of experimental procedures of aerial vibrations in tubes and rectangular chambers, and the theory of resonators.
William Parsons (1800–67), third Earl of Rosse, was responsible for building in 1845 the largest telescope of his time, nicknamed the 'Leviathan'. It enabled the Earl to make unprecedented astronomical discoveries, including the discovery of the spiral nature of galaxies. Rosse (then Lord Oxmantown) began publishing scientific papers on telescopes in 1828, and for the rest of his life made regular contributions to scientific journals in Ireland, England and Scotland. He served as President of the British Association for the Advancement of Science in 1843, and of the Royal Society from 1848 to 1854, and his addresses to those societies are also included in this collection. Edited by his younger son, the engineer Sir Charles Parsons (1854–1931) and published in 1926, these papers show the wide range of the Earl's interests, from astronomy and telescopes to ancient bronze artefacts and the use of iron in shipbuilding.
Margaret Bryan (c.1760–1816) taught natural science to women at a time when it was largely the preserve of men. She ran a boarding school for girls in Blackheath, London, from 1795 to 1806, and the curriculum included mathematics and sciences - rarely offered to young women. She published her lecture notes on astronomy in 1797, and after their positive reception she decided to undertake another volume of lectures. This resulting work, published in 1806, is a collection of Bryan's lectures on 'natural philosophy', containing thirteen chapters on topics such as mechanics, pneumatics and acoustics, magnetism and electricity. Each chapter provides illustrations, and at the end of the volume there is an appendix with astronomical and geographical questions and exercises, as well as a scientific glossary. These lectures provide a glimpse into the little-known world of women's education towards the end of the Georgian period.
Sir Humphry Davy (1778–1829) was a hugely influential chemist, inventor, and public lecturer who is recognised as one of the first professional scientists. His apprenticeship to an apothecary in 1795 led to his introduction to chemical experiments. A chance meeting with Davis Giddy in 1798 introduced Davy into the wider scientific community, and in 1800 he was invited to a post at the Royal Institution, where he lectured to great acclaim. This two-volume memoir was published by his brother, Dr John Davy, in 1836, in response to Paris' biography of 1831, authorised by Lady Davy (also reissued in this series). John Davy had additional papers in his possession, and felt that Paris had failed to convey Sir Humphry's character as a man and philosopher. Volume 1 deals with his education and apprenticeship, work at the Royal Institution, and European travels. The author quotes extensively from his brother's writings.
Sir Humphry Davy (1778–1829) was a hugely influential chemist, inventor, and public lecturer who is recognised as one of the first professional scientists. His apprenticeship to an apothecary in 1795 led to his introduction to chemical experiments. A chance meeting with Davis Giddy in 1798 introduced Davy into the wider scientific community, and in 1800 he was invited to a post at the Royal Institution, where he lectured to great acclaim. This two-volume memoir was published by his brother, Dr John Davy, in 1836, in response to Paris' biography of 1831, authorised by Lady Davy (also reissued in this series). John Davy had additional papers in his possession, and felt that Paris had failed to convey Sir Humphry's character as a man and philosopher. Volume 2 concentrates on his researches (including on the safety lamp) and travels in Europe. It includes poetry, and also memorials of Davy by friends.
Sir Humphry Davy (1778–1829) was a hugely influential chemist, inventor, and public lecturer who is recognised as one of the first professional scientists. This 1836 memoir by his brother John Davy ma
Robert Fitzroy (1805–65) is best remembered as the commander of HMS Beagle who took on Charles Darwin as the Ship's naturalist, but his most important scientific contribution was probably the establishment of the Meteorological Office in 1854. Convinced that falling barometric pressure was an indicator of storms, he had barometers set up at ports around the coast, so that boats would be aware of impending bad weather, and later had reports telegraphed to his office in London for collation; he invented the term 'forecasting the weather'. This work, published in 1863, gives an account of observations by himself and others, experiments, and proposals for future developments. Almost unbelievably, the Government declared that Fitzroy was exceeding his remit: he was instructed to restrict himself to collecting data, and it is believed that the depression he suffered at this setback was one of the factors which led to his suicide in 1865.
