The Emergence of Conservation of Energy in the Nineteenth Century
Description
This book examines the factors that lay behind the emergence of the principle of conservation of energy and of a new fundamental concept, energy, from a science marked by rough notions concerning the various forces and powers of nature. These conjoined developments constituted arguably the most important innovation in physics during the nineteenth century: they unified and defined the field as never before while for the first time bringing mechanics-previously belonging to mathematics-within the purview of physics. As shown in abundant detail, no one but Friedrich Mohr and Robert Mayer - both marginal figures in the science of the day - exemplified both aspects of this development, i.e. the concept of energy and the principle of its conservation. What it shows, likewise in abundant detail, is how those concepts achieved clarification through the exchanges and interactions of scientists-from Britain, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Denmark-who addressed cognate issues. Any notion of "discovery" as an essentially individualistic aspect of science is thus rendered moot. Based on an in-depth study of the work of twenty scientists, this book is of great interest primarily to professional historians of science and graduate students.
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Person
Kenneth L. Caneva retired in 2010 as professor of history, University of North Carolina at Greensboro. After graduating from MIT with a degree in Humanities and Science-specifically in physics and philosophy-he spent a year in Munich studying the history of science. He then entered the program in the history of science at Princeton, where he earned his PhD under the supervision of Thomas Kuhn. His dissertation, titled "Conceptual and Generational Change in German Physics: The Case of Electricity, 1800-1846," sought to apply the sociology of knowledge to a significant period of rapid transformation in German science. Throughout his career, he has consistently centered his work on the science itself-the nature and evolution of which he aims to understand. He refers to himself as a contextualist, believing that such understanding must be situated within the scientific, social, institutional, and personal contexts of the individuals involved. This perspective is reflected in the title of his book Helmholtz and the Conservation of Energy: Contexts of Creation and Reception , as well as in the 181-page section of the book "Robert Mayer and the Conservation of Energy," titled "Establishing the Relevant Context." His current work on the reception of conservation of energy by Italian scientists continues to reflect these concerns. The scientists he has studied have all been European, primarily from the 19th century, though his research also extends to earlier figures such as Leibniz, the Bernoullis, Lazare Carnot, and Lagrange. He has published shorter pieces on Ohm and Ampère, more extensive studies on Ørsted, and definitive works on Mayer, Helmholtz, and Colding in relation to the conservation of energy-the first two in book form, the third in a lengthy article. In addition to these historical studies, he has also contributed to philosophical and methodological discussions, including a major study on the role of Naturphilosophie in German science.
Content
Acknowledgements.- Conventions.- Chapter 1. Introduction.- Chapter 2. Dramatis Personae.- Chapter 3. Assessment and Conclusions.