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Michael Faraday is an English experimental physicist and chemist. He owns a number of important discoveries in the field of physics and chemistry. Among them: electromagnetic induction, the first electric motor, a transformer, the laws of electrolysis, diamagnetism, etc.
Biography of Michael Faraday
Michael was born on September 22, 1791 in a village near London to the family of a blacksmith. In addition to Michael, the family had three more children. They lived poorly, so thirteen-year-old Faraday left school and started working as a messenger in a bookstore. He early became addicted to reading scientific books on chemistry and physics.
Young Michael attended courses in the Philosophical Society, participated in disputes on astronomy and physics.
Royal Institution London
Fortune smiled at the teenager: he was presented with a ticket to Professor Humphrey Davy’s lecture cycle at the Royal Institution. Listening carefully to the lectures, he outlined the lecturer’s ideas. He later sent a letter to the professor asking for a job and attached these notes. A few months later, he was accepted as a laboratory assistant at the Royal Institution.
The resourceful guy was in the right place at the right time!
In 1813, as an assistant professor, Michael embarked on a two-year trip to European scientific centers. There he met with prominent scientists, among them were André-Marie Ampere and Alessandro Volta. Many drew attention to the young man’s talent.
When Faraday returned to England, he was promoted. He became Humphrey Davy’s assistant and continued his own scientific research. In 1825, Faraday took over as director of the chemical and physical laboratories. He then received a professorship at the Royal Institution.
In 1840, Faraday developed an illness (loss of strength and partial loss of memory). Probably, his ailment was the result of mercury vapor poisoning during experiments. The great physicist died at his desk. It happened on August 25, 1867.
Now imagine that Michael didn’t go to work in a bookstore. He would not have received a fateful ticket to Davy’s lectures. What would happen next? Undoubtedly, his talent would not have gone unnoticed, but everything would have turned out differently. The actions of the young Faraday prove that man himself creates Destiny.
Scientific activity and discoveries
The scientist has published 450 articles and several books. In 1830 he was elected an honorary member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. The scientist’s work has been marked by many high awards. His main achievements in science:
- created the first model of an electric motor;
- invented the electric motor and transformer;
- discovered the chemical effect of current and the effect of a magnetic field on light;
- discovered the laws of diamagnetism and electrolysis;
- predicted electromagnetic waves;
- discovered rotations of the plane of polarization of light in a magnetic field (the Faraday effect);
- introduced scientific terms: paramagnetism, cathode and anode, ion, electrolyte, dielectric and diamagnetism.
In the field of chemistry, he discovered:
- benzene and isobutylene;
- received chlorine in a liquid state;
- hydrogen sulphide;
- carbon dioxide;
- ammonia;
- ethylene;
- nitrogen dioxide.
Personal life
In 1821, Faraday married a friend’s sister, Sarah Barnard (not to be confused with Sarah Bernhardt). It was a happy union! Almost half a century (46 years) together. The spouses did not have their own children, but they raised the orphaned niece Jane.
Among the personal qualities of Michael Faraday, colleagues, friends and relatives noted his moral perfection, conquering charm and modesty.
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