Early Life
Born in 1791 in Newington Butts, south London, to a poor blacksmith's family, Faraday received only basic schooling. At 14 he became apprenticed to a bookbinder, where he read the books he bound — especially the Encyclopaedia Britannica's article on electricity. In 1812 he attended lectures by Humphry Davy, sent Davy his 300-page bound notes, and in 1813 became his laboratory assistant at the Royal Institution. He then toured Europe with Davy, meeting leading scientists of the day.
Major Discoveries
- 01Electromagnetic rotation — the first electric motor (1821)
- 02Electromagnetic induction (1831), the basis of generators and transformers
- 03Laws of electrolysis; coined 'electrode', 'anode', 'cathode', 'ion'
- 04Discovered benzene (1825)
- 05First to liquefy chlorine and other gases
- 06Faraday effect linking light and magnetism, and diamagnetism
Famous Experiments
- 01Wire rotating around a magnet in a bowl of mercury (1821)
- 02Induction ring: two coils on an iron ring producing current when switched
- 03Faraday cage showing charge stays on the outside of a conductor
- 04Christmas Lectures demonstrating 'The Chemical History of a Candle'
Awards & Honors
- 01Copley Medal (twice, 1832 and 1838)
- 02Royal Medal (1835 and 1846)
- 03Rumford Medal (1846)
- 04Fellow of the Royal Society (1824)
Legacy
Faraday's discoveries power the modern electrical world. The unit of capacitance, the farad, and the Faraday constant are named after him. Einstein kept a picture of Faraday on his study wall, and the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures he started continue today.
Fun Facts
- 01He had almost no mathematics — Maxwell later expressed his ideas as equations
- 02He refused a knighthood and presidency of the Royal Society
- 03When asked the use of electricity, he reportedly said 'One day, sir, you may tax it'
- 04He declined to help make chemical weapons for the Crimean War on ethical grounds