A D V E N T U R E S in C Y B E R S O U N DWilliam Thompson, (Lord Kelvin) : 1824 - 1907
Born in Belfast, Ireland, this British physicist began the papers on the laws of conservation and dissipation of energy. He published 661 papers on scientific subjects and patented 70 inventions. Knighted (as Lord Kelvin) by Queen Victoria for his work on the electrical engine, he was in charge of laying the first successful transatlantic cable in 1866. He was educated at the University of Glasgow and Cambridge University.
William Thomson's thermodynamics studies led to his proposal of an absolute scale of temperature. The Kelvin absolute temperature scale derives its name from the title, Baron Kelvin of Largs, that Thomson received from the British government in 1892. Born: 26 June 1824 in Belfast, Ireland Died: 17 Dec 1907 in Netherhall (near Largs), Ayrshire, Scotland) Thomson attended Glasgow University from the age of 10. While there he read Fourier's work on the application of abstract mathematics to heat flow. In 1841 Thomson entered Cambridge and took his BA in 1845. In that year he read George Green's work which had a major influence on Thomson's work. Thomson was appointed professor of natural philosophy at the University of Glasgow in 1846 and remained there for the rest of his career. In 1847-49 he collaborated with Stokes on hydrodynamical studies, which Thomson applied to electrical and atomic theory. The absolute scale he proposed in 1848 was based on a theory of heat by Sadi Carnot. Thomson also observed (1852) what is now called the Joule-Thomson effect, namely that the decrease in temperature of a gas when it expands in a vacuum. Greatly interested in the improvement of physical instrumentation, he designed and implemented many new devices, including the mirror-galvanometer that was used in the first successful sustained telegraph transmissions in transatlantic submarine cable. He was knighted in 1866 for his work on the transatlantic cable. Thomson's participation in the telegraph cable project led to a large personal fortune brought about by his cable patents and consulting. Thomson published more than 600 papers, was elected to the Royal Society in 1851 and served as its president from 1890 to 1895.
William Thomson, later Lord Kelvin, an outstanding Scottish physicist, engineer and mathematician, after whom the absolute scale of temperature is named. Kelvin made major contributions to the theories of thermodynamics and electromagnetism. He also invented the mariner's compass, the mirror galvanometer (for accurately measuring electric currents) and a host of other inventions on which the development of the electric telegraph depended. His work on the Atlantic cable earned him a knighthood. Kelvin founded his own company to exploit these inventions and made a fortune. He published more than 600 scientific papers and filed a total of 70 patents. He was Britain's first scientific peer and is buried near Isaac Newton in Westminster Abbey.
William Thomson was born in Belfast. This family background in Northern Ireland played a very important part in his outlook on life and his approach to science. He was no ivory tower theorist, but a man of remarkable intellect who resolved many challenges of industrial relevance. After moving to Glasgow, William became professor of natural philosophy (physics) at Glasgow University in 1846, a position he held for 53 years. He was one of the most outstanding physicists of the nineteenth century. In the process he was knighted in 1866, and created a peer, Baron Kelvin of Largs, in 1892. He carried out pioneering work on mechanical energy and heat, the basis of modern low-temperature engineering. To-day's "absolute" scale of temperature (degrees Kelvin), is named after him. He was actually aboard the Great Eastern when it laid the cable in 1866, but he has another nautical claim to fame. He improved compasses for navigation, and his new compass was adopted by all British Navy vessels.
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