Michael Faraday
Groundbreaking discoveries in electromagnetism and electrochemistry, including the principle behind the electric motor
Born to a poor family with almost no formal education, Faraday overcame the era's rigid class barriers to become one of the most consequential experimental scientists in history.
A Bookbinder's Apprentice
Faraday received almost no formal education, instead learning science by reading books he encountered as a young bookbinder's apprentice, before securing a position assisting renowned chemist Humphry Davy.
Discovering Electromagnetic Induction
Faraday's discovery of electromagnetic induction in 1831 demonstrated that a changing magnetic field could generate electric current, a principle underlying nearly all modern electricity generation.
Inventing the Electric Motor
Faraday built the first primitive electric motor, demonstrating that electricity could be converted into continuous mechanical motion, a foundational discovery for countless later technologies.
Foundational Work in Electrochemistry
Faraday also established key laws of electrochemistry, describing the relationship between electric current and chemical change in ways that remain fundamental to the field today.
A Legacy Despite Limited Mathematics
Remarkably, Faraday achieved his groundbreaking discoveries with relatively limited formal mathematical training, relying instead on careful experimentation and physical intuition that later scientists translated into mathematical form.
