Niccolò Cabeo May have been the first to notice that object with the same charged are repelled from each other. He wrote a book on magnetic philosophy (“Philosophia magnetica”). Where he descibe metal filing being attracted to a charged object, but once they touched the charged object they are repelled by it.
In 1600 William Gilbert, the queen physician, published a book called De Magnete (Latin for “On the Magnet”) . It became the standard for magnetism and electricity. He developed a tool to detect electric charges (electroscope), which he called a versorium. It consisted of a needle on a pivot. He was also to use the term, in Latin, for electric force. He was also the first to realize that the earth was a giant magnet.
In 1748 Jean-Antoine Nollet built an early electroscope, an electrometer comprised of a suspended pith ball that moves in response to the electrostatic attraction and repulsion of a charged body.
It was a metal box with isolated wire hung down and a piece of metal foil hanging down. With a special lense they amount of movement of the foil could be measured.
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About 1742 Andrew Gordon, a Professor of Natural Philosophy at the University at Erfurt in Germany, invented the Electrostatic Bells. It was the first invention to convert electrical energy into mechanical energy. Benjamin Franklin later used this invention to detect lighting storms and they became more commonly known as “Franklin Bells”.
In the Chinese book “Book of the Devil Valley Master” (鬼谷子) is mentioned a “south pointing device” or compass. It was used at the time for fortune telling1.
The first reference to using a magnetized need a magnetized needle happens around around 1088, in the Dream Pool Essays by Shen Kuo. It isn’t until 1119 that the use of a magnetized needle compass was used for navigational purposes in Zhu Yu‘s book Pingzhou Table Talks (萍洲可談).
A magnetized needle compass was first mentioned in western literature written about 1180 by Alexander Neckam in De Utensilibus (On Instruments).
600 BC – Attraction of static electricity – Thales of Miletos
Thales also observed that after rubbing amber with certain items it attracts small objects.
Amber is fossilized tree resin. It is hard transparent yellowish (amber) colored substance that was used for jewelery and buttons. We can reproduce Thales observations with other objects too.
The word electricity came from the latin word electrious which means to “produce from amber by friction”. Electrious has is root in the greek word for amberηλεκτρονelectron)ew,monospace;”>
Thales of Miletos was greek philosopher, mathematician and natural scientist in the 6th century BC. He observed that loadstones attracted iron.
A loadstone is a naturally occurring magnet. It is a form of iron ore that keeps it’s magnetic properties, perhaps after being struck by lighting. If iron is struck by lighting it will become magnetic for a short time. We can simulate Thales observations.
Exploring Magnetism and Electricity Through Time
Through experiments you can do at home.
This section take you through the discoveries in magnetism and electicity through time, in the order they where discovered. With experiments you can do at home to replicate the discoveries.
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