In 1851, struggling, self-taught physicist Léon Foucault performed a dramatic demonstration inside the Panthéon in Paris. By tracking a pendulum's path as it swung repeatedly across the interior of the large ceremonial hall, Foucault offered the first definitive proof -- before an audience that comprised the cream of Parisian society, including the future emperor, Napoleon III -- that the earth revolves on its axis.
Through careful, primary research, world-renowned author Amir Aczel has revealed the life of a gifted physicist who had almost no formal education in science, and yet managed to succeed despite the adversity he suffered at the hands of his peers. The range and breadth of Foucault's discoveries is astonishing: He gave us the modern electric compass, devised an electric microscope, invented photographic technology, and made remarkable deductions about color theory, heat waves, and the speed of light. Yet until now so little has been known about his life.
Richly detailed and evocative, Pendulum tells of the illustrious period in France during the Second Empire; of Foucault's relationship with Napoleon III, a colorful character in his own right; and -- most notably -- of the crucial triumph of science over religion.
Dr. Aczel has crafted a fascinating narrative based on the life of this most astonishing and largely unrecognized scientist, whose findings answered many age-old scientific questions and posed new ones that are still relevant today.
- 276 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
About this book
Table of contents
- Cover
- Preface
- Chapter 1: A Stunning Discovery in the Cellar
- Chapter 2: Ancient Logic: Bible and Inquisition
- Chapter 3: Failed Experiments with Falling Bodies
- Chapter 4: A Science “Irregular” in the Age of the Engineer
- Chapter 5: The Meridian of Paris
- Chapter 6: “Come See the Earth Turn”
- Chapter 7: Mathematical Bedlam
- Chapter 8: A New Bonaparte
- Chapter 9: The Force of Coriolis
- Chapter 10: The Panthéon
- Chapter 11: The Gyroscope
- Chapter 12: The Coup d’État and the Second Empire
- Chapter 13: An Unemployed Genius
- Chapter 14: The Observatory Physicist
- Chapter 15: Final Glory
- Chapter 16: A Premature End
- Chapter 17: The Defeat at Sedan
- Chapter 18: Aftermath
- Appendix: Proofs of Foucault’s Sine Law
- Acknowledgments
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
- About Amir D. Aczel
- Copyright
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