The Scientific Papers of James Clerk Maxwell, Vol. 1 (Dover Phoenix Editions) - Hardcover

Maxwell, James Clerk

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0486495604 ISBN 13: 9780486495606

Publisher: Dover Publications, 2003

Synopsis

One of the greatest theoretical physicists of the 19th century, James Clerk Maxwell is best known for his studies of the electromagnetic field. The 101 scientific papers of this two-volume set, arranged chronologically, testify to Maxwell's profound scientific legacy and include the preliminary explorations that culminated in his most famous work, A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism.
One of the nineteenth century's most significant papers, "A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field," appears here, along with similarly influential expositions of Maxwell's dynamical theory of gases. The author's extensive range of interests is well represented, from his discussions of color blindness and the composition of Saturn's rings to his essays on geometrical optics, ether, and protecting buildings from lightning. His less technical writings are featured as well, including items written for the Encyclopedia Britannica and Nature magazine, book reviews, and popular lectures. Striking in their originality, these papers offer a wealth of stimulating and inspiring reading to modern students of mathematics and physics.

About this title

About the Author:

James Clerk Maxwell: In His Own Words — And Others
Dover reprinted Maxwell's Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism in 1954, surely one of the first classics of scientific literature over a thousand pages in length to be given new life and accessibility to students and researchers as a result of the paperback revolution of the 1950s. Matter and Motion followed in 1991 and Theory of Heat in 2001.

Some towering figures in science have to speak for themselves. Such is James Clerk Maxwell (1813–1879), the Scottish physicist and mathematician who formulated the basic equations of classical electromagnetic theory.

In the Author's Own Words:
"We may find illustrations of the highest doctrines of science in games and gymnastics, in traveling by land and by water, in storms of the air and of the sea, and wherever there is matter in motion."

"The 2nd law of thermodynamics has the same degree of truth as the statement that if you throw a tumblerful of water into the sea, you cannot get the same tumblerful of water out again." — James Clerk Maxwell

Critical Acclaim for James Clerk Maxwell:
"From a long view of the history of mankind — seen from, say, ten thousand years from now — there can be little doubt that the most significant event of the 19th century will be judged as Maxwell's discovery of the laws of electrodynamics. The American Civil War will pale into provincial insignificance in comparison with this important scientific event of the same decade." — Richard P. Feynman

"Maxwell's equations have had a greater impact on human history than any ten presidents." — Carl Sagan

About this edition

• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0486495604
• ISBN 13: 9780486495606
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 640