William Gilbert and his studies of electrical and magnetic phenomena. William Gilbert and the beginning of experimental studies of electricity and magnetism William Gilbert's discoveries

William Gilbert (physicist) William Gilbert (physicist)

GILBERT (Gilbert) William (1544-1603), English physicist and physician. In the work “On the Magnet, Magnetic Bodies and the Great Magnet - the Earth” (1600), he was the first to consistently consider magnetic and many electrical phenomena.
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GILBERT (Gilbert, Gylberde) William, English physician and naturalist, founder of the doctrine of electricity and magnetism.
William Gilbert was born into the family of the chief justice and city councilor of Colchester in Essex. In this city he graduated from a classical school and in May 1558 entered St. John's College in Cambridge. Later his studies continued at Oxford. In 1560 he received a bachelor's degree, and after 4 years he became a "master of arts." By that time, his choice had already been determined: he seriously began studying medicine, received the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1569, and was elected a senior member of the learned society of St. John's College in Cambridge.
Gilbert's biographers write that at about this time he "... made a journey through the continent, where he was probably awarded the degree of Doctor of Physics, since he does not seem to have received it either at Oxford or at Cambridge."
During the 1560s, Gilbert, both on the Continent and in England, "practised as a physician with great success and approval." In 1573 he was elected a member of the Royal College of Physicians, where he was subsequently entrusted with many important posts - inspector, treasurer, councilor and (from 1600) president of the college. Gilbert's successes as a healer were so significant that Queen Elizabeth Tudor (cm. ELIZABETH I Tudor) made him her personal physician. The Queen was keenly interested in his scientific activities and even visited his laboratory, where Gilbert showed her some experiments.
His many colleagues and friends often gathered in the house and laboratory of Gilbert, who, according to the recollections of people who knew him, was a cheerful, sociable and hospitable person. Among them were sailors who told him about observations made on the compass during their voyages around the world. This allowed Gilbert to collect rich material about the declination of the magnetic needle, which was included in his famous book.
At first, Gilbert's scientific interests related to chemistry (probably in connection with his medical activities), and then to astronomy. He studied almost all the available literature concerning the motion of the planets, and was the most active supporter and propagandist of the ideas of Copernicus in England (cm. COPERNIUS Nikolai) and J. Bruno (cm. BRUNO Giordano).
After the death of Elizabeth Tudor in 1603, Gilbert was left as physician to the new king James I (cm. JAMES I Stuart (1566-1625)), but did not stay in this position for even a year. In 1603 William Gilbert died of the plague and was buried in Holy Trinity Church, Colchester.
Gilbert, who had no heirs, bequeathed his entire library, all the instruments and collection of minerals to the college, but, unfortunately, all this was destroyed in 1666 during the great London fire.
Of course, Gilbert's main contribution to science is associated with his work on magnetism and electricity. Moreover, the very emergence of these most important branches of physics in modern times should rightly be associated with Hilbert.
Gilbert - and this is his special merit - was the first, even before Francis Bacon (cm. Francis BACON (philosopher), who is often called the progenitor of the experimental method in science, purposefully and consciously came from experience in the study of magnetic and electrical phenomena.
The main result of his research was the work “On the Magnet, Magnetic Bodies and the Great Magnet - the Earth.” This book describes more than 600 experiments carried out by Hilbert and outlines the conclusions to which they lead.
Gilbert established that a magnet always has two inseparable poles: if the magnet is cut into two parts, then each of the halves again has a pair of poles. The poles, which Hilbert called like poles, repel, while others - unlike poles - attract.
Gilbert discovered the phenomenon of magnetic induction: a bar of iron located near a magnet itself acquires magnetic properties. As for natural magnets, the strength of attraction of iron objects to them can be increased by using proper iron fittings. The action of a magnet can be partially blocked by iron partitions, but immersion in water does not noticeably affect the attraction to them. Gilbert even noted that hitting magnets could weaken their effect.
Gilbert not only experimented with magnets, he set himself a problem, which, as it turned out, even half a millennium was not enough to solve: why does magnetism of the Earth exist at all?
The answer he offered was again based on experimentation. A permanent magnet was made, called by Gilbert Terella (i.e., a small model of the Earth), which had the shape of a ball, and Gilbert, using a magnetic needle placed over various parts of its surface, studied the magnetic field it created. It turned out to be very similar to what is above the Earth. At the equator, that is, at equal distances from the poles, the arrows of the magnet were located horizontally, that is, parallel to the surface of the ball, and the closer to the poles, the more the arrows tilted, taking a vertical position above the poles.
Gilbert's idea that the Earth is a large permanent magnet has not stood the test of time. Much later, in the 19th century, it was found that at high temperatures (and in the depths of the Earth they are very high), a permanent magnet becomes demagnetized. The problem of magnetism of the Earth, other planets, as well as other celestial bodies - one of the oldest problems of classical natural science - confronted natural scientists with new urgency. But the significance and role of Gilbert's works remain enduring.
There was already some interest in magnets, at least for the applied purposes of navigation, even before Gilbert, but in the study of electricity he was certainly and unconditionally the first. And here he has important achievements. Even the first device is a prototype of an electroscope (cm. ELECTROSCOPE)(he called it “versor”) - was invented by him. Gilbert established that electrification (also his term) occurs when rubbing not only amber (this was noticed by the ancient Greeks), but also many bodies of other composition, including glass. (It may be noted that electrification by friction remained the main, if not the only tool for studying electrical phenomena until the mid-18th century.)
Gilbert even managed to experimentally discover such subtle effects as the influence of a flame on charged bodies. He even, significantly ahead of his time, associated heating with the thermal movement of particles of bodies.
A proper assessment of Hilbert's visionary ideas both in the field of physics and the methodology of science has appeared only now, three hundred, even four hundred years after the publication of his brilliant works.

encyclopedic Dictionary. 2009 .

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I Hilbert Hilbert David (23.1.1862, Wehlau, near Königsberg, 14.2.1943, Göttingen), German mathematician. He graduated from the University of Königsberg, in 1893-95 he was a professor there, in 1895-1930 he was a professor at the University of Göttingen, until 1933... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

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Why Elizabeth I’s doctor became interested in magnets, how he came up with the word “electricity” and what is the connection between magnetic properties and the flow of water, read in today’s issue of “History of Science”.

The future scientist was born into the family of a city judge in Colchester. William graduated from a local school and entered Cambridge, but went to study to become a doctor. In 1560 he received a bachelor's degree, and nine years later he became a doctor of medicine.

Gilbert was very interested in chemistry, because this science was directly related to medical practice. Then astronomy occupied him for some time. He studied almost all the works available to him written about the planets. In his country, William was the most active propagandist of the ideas of Copernicus and Giordano Bruno. But the main thing that interested him was the ability of bodies to attract each other.

It is difficult to say why the doctor became interested in the nature of magnetism and conducted so much research into this phenomenon. Perhaps this was due to the fact that the crushed magnet was used by doctors of that time as a laxative. Gilbert wrote that magnetic iron “...restores beauty and health to girls suffering from pallor and bad complexion, as it strongly dries and tightens without causing harm.” He probably wanted to study the medicinal properties of the magnet.

The main result of Gilbert’s research was the work “On the Magnet...”. In the book, he said that a magnet always has two poles: if a magnet is cut into two parts, then each half will again have a pair of poles. The poles, which Hilbert called like poles, repel, and unlike poles attract. However, the scientist never established the nature of magnetism. Essentially, his thoughts boiled down to one thing: the magnet has a soul, everything is because of it.

Title page from William Gilbert's book On the Magnet, 1628

Wikimedia Commons

The most striking chapter of his book is devoted to the idea that our planet is a big magnet. The scientist wrote that just as the opposite poles of two magnets are attracted, the compass needle is attracted to the poles of the Earth, indicating the direction north and south. To prove this, Gilbert cut out a model of the planet from magnetite - terrella (from the word terra - “earth”). The compass placed on this model behaved exactly the same as if it were used for navigation, for example, by sailors.

Terrell William Gilbert

Wikimedia Commons

Our hero was also one of the first to explore electricity. It is even believed that the term “electricity” itself was coined by Gilbert. The scientist noticed that many bodies, like amber, after being rubbed against something, begin to attract small objects to themselves. By analogy, Gilbert called these phenomena electric (from the Latin ēlectricus - “amber”). At that time, people's knowledge about this phenomenon practically did not differ from the conclusions of the ancient Greek philosopher Thales, when it was only known that amber rubbed on wool attracts straws.

William Gilbert also created a prototype of the electroscope and called it a versor. Using this device, the researcher showed that not only rubbed amber can attract, but also glass, diamond, opal, amethyst, rock crystal, glass, sulfur, rock salt and other materials. He called all these bodies “electric.” He also experimentally showed that heating destroys the attractive properties that bodies acquire through friction.

The scientist explained the nature of electricity this way: all things originate from two primary elements: water and earth. Bodies that originate from water have the property of attracting objects, since water is able to grab objects and carry them downstream. Gilbert emphasized the difference between magnetic and electrical attraction, justifying this by the fact that wet bodies are difficult to electrify, and humidity does not affect the attraction of magnets.

Our hero was known not only for his research on magnets and electricity, but also as a successful doctor. At the age of 30 he was elected a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians. The fame of William Gilbert as an excellent specialist reached Elizabeth I, who made him her personal physician. The Queen was very interested in scientific experiments and even visited Gilbert's laboratory, where the scientist showed her several experiments. After the death of Elizabeth, in 1603, the life physician was left under the new king, James I, but William did not stay in this position for even a year: our hero soon died of the plague.

English physicist, court physician to Elizabeth I and James I

Biography

Gilbert's family was very famous in the area: his father was an official, and the family itself had a fairly long pedigree. After graduating from the local school, William was sent to Cambridge in 1558. Very little is known about his life before the start of his scientific career. There is a version that he also studied at Oxford, although there is no documentary evidence of this. In 1560 he received a bachelor's degree, and in 1564 a master's degree in philosophy. In 1569 he became a doctor of medicine.

Having completed his studies, Gilbert went on a trip to Europe, which lasted several years, after which he settled in London. There in 1573 he became a member of the Royal College of Physicians.

Scientific activity

In 1600, he published the book “De magnete, magneticisque corparibus etc,” which describes his experiments on magnets and the electrical properties of bodies, divided bodies into those electrified by friction and non-electrified, thereby noticing the effect of air humidity on the electrical attraction of light bodies.

Gilbert created the first theory of magnetic phenomena. He established that any magnets have two poles, with opposite poles attracting and like poles repel. Conducting an experiment with an iron ball that interacted with a magnetic needle, he first suggested that the Earth is a giant magnet. He also proposed the idea that the Earth's magnetic poles might coincide with the planet's geographic poles.

Gilbert also investigated electrical phenomena, using the term for the first time. He noticed that many bodies, just like amber, after rubbing, can attract small objects, and in honor of this substance he called such phenomena electrical (from the Latin ?lectricus - “amber”).

The ancients knew nothing about electricity and magnetism. Of course, they knew the property of amber (in ancient Greek “electron”): rubbing amber in the dark, you can see bluish sparkles. That's all. A book was written about the magnet in 1269 by Pierre Peregrine, who for the first time spoke about the poles of a magnet, about the attraction of unlike poles and the repulsion of like ones, about the production of artificial magnets by rubbing iron with a natural magnet, about the penetration of magnetic forces through glass and water, about the compass.Founder The science of electricity and magnetism is William Gilbert. He was born in 1540 in Colchester (England). Immediately after school he entered St. John's College in Cambridge, where two years later he became a bachelor, four years later a master, and five years later a doctor of medicine. Gradually he reaches the pinnacle of his medical career at that time - he becomes Queen Elizabeth's physician.
Gilbert wrote his scientific work on magnetism because crushed magnets were considered a medicine in the Middle Ages. At the same time, while sawing the magnet, he became convinced that the parts of the magnet also had two poles, and it was impossible to obtain a magnet with one pole. Having made a ball (“small Earth”) from magnetite, Gilbert noticed that this ball was strongly reminiscent of the Earth in its magnetic properties. It turned out to have the north and south magnetic poles, the equator, isolines, and magnetic inclination. This allowed Gilbert to call the Earth “the great magnet.” Based on this, he explained the deviation of the magnetic needle.
Gilbert discovered that when a magnet is heated above a certain temperature, its magnetic properties disappear. This phenomenon was subsequently studied by Pierre Curie and called the Curie point. Gilbert discovered the shielding effect of iron. He expressed the brilliant idea that the action of a magnet spreads like light.
In the field of electricity, Gilbert invented the electroscope, a device for detecting charge. With his help, he showed that not only amber, but also other minerals have the ability to attract light bodies: diamond, sapphire, amethyst, glass, slates, etc. He called these materials electric (i.e., similar to amber). This is where the word “electricity” comes from!
In 1600, Gilbert published the book “On the Magnet, Magnetic Bodies and the Great Magnet - the Earth.” For the first time in the history of printing, Gilbert puts his name ahead of the title of the book, emphasizing his merits. Perhaps his most significant merit was that for the first time in history, long before F. Bacon, he proclaimed experience as a criterion of truth, and tested all the provisions of his book in the process of specially designed experiments.
Hilbert did and discovered a lot, but could explain almost nothing - all his reasoning was naive. For example, he explained the nature of magnetism by the presence of a “soul” in a magnet.
It seems very important in Hilbert’s teaching that he was the first to distinguish electrical phenomena from magnetic ones, which have since been studied separately.
After Hilbert, electrical and magnetic phenomena were studied very slowly, and nothing new appeared over the next 100 years. And only in the 18th century. a breakthrough has begun in this area. William Gilbert died in 1603.

In the XVI - XVII centuries. With the development of trade in Europe, the experimental method of scientific research is becoming increasingly widespread, one of the founders of which is rightly called Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519). It is in his notebook that you can find significant words: “Do not listen to the teachings of those thinkers whose arguments are not confirmed by experience.” The previously mentioned Neapolitan Giovan Battista Porta (1538-1615), in his work “Natural Magic,” emphasizes that he tried to verify all the facts he read from the writings of ancient scientists and travelers with his own experience “day and night, at great expense.”

The experimental research method dealt a noticeable blow to mysticism and all sorts of fictions and prejudices.

A significant change in ideas about electrical and magnetic phenomena occurred at the very beginning of the 17th century, when the fundamental scientific work of the prominent English scientist William Gilbert (1554-1603) on the magnet, magnetic bodies and the big magnet - the Earth was published (1600 G.). Being a follower of the experimental method in natural science. V. Gilbert conducted more than 600 skillful experiments that revealed to him the secrets of “hidden causes of various phenomena.”

Unlike many of his predecessors, Gilbert believed that the reason for the action on the magnetic needle is the magnetism of the Earth, which is a large magnet. He based his conclusions on an original experiment that he first carried out.

He made a small ball from magnetic iron ore - a “small Earth - terella” and proved that the magnetic needle at the surface of this “terella” takes the same positions as it takes in the field of terrestrial magnetism. He established the possibility of magnetizing iron through terrestrial magnetism.

While exploring magnetism, Gilbert also began studying electrical phenomena. He proved that not only amber, but also many other bodies have electrical properties - diamond, sulfur, resin, rock crystal, which become electrified when rubbed. He called these bodies “electric”, in accordance with the Greek name for amber (electron).

But Gilbert tried unsuccessfully to electrify metals without insulating them. Therefore, he came to the erroneous conclusion that it was impossible to electrify metals by friction. This conclusion of Hilbert was convincingly refuted two centuries later by the outstanding Russian electrical engineer, Academician V.V. Petrov.

V. Gilbert correctly established that the “degree of electrical force” can be different, and that moisture reduces the intensity of electrification of bodies through rubbing.

Comparing magnetic and electrical phenomena, Gilbert argued that they have a different nature: for example, “electric force” comes only from friction, while magnetic force constantly affects iron, a magnet lifts bodies of significant gravity, electricity only light bodies. This erroneous conclusion of Hilbert lasted in science for more than 200 years.

Trying to explain the mechanism of the influence of a magnet on iron, as well as the ability of electrified bodies to attract other light bodies, Gilbert considered magnetism as a special “force of an animate being,” and electrical phenomena as “outflows” of the finest liquid, which, due to friction, “poured out of the body” and directly acts to another attracted body.

Gilbert's ideas about electrical "attraction" were more correct than those of many contemporary researchers. According to them, during friction, a “fine liquid” is released from the body, which repels the air adjacent to the object: more distant layers of air surrounding the body resist the “outflows” and return them, along with light bodies, back to the electrified body.

For many centuries, magnetic phenomena were explained by the action of a special magnetic fluid, and as will be shown below, Hilbert’s fundamental work survived during the 17th century. several editions, it was a reference book for many naturalists in different European countries and played a huge role in the development of the doctrine of electricity and magnetism.

Veselovsky O. N. Shneyberg A. Ya "Essays on the history of electrical engineering"