Gay-Lussac: Scientist and BourgeoisGay-Lussac is best known for his chemical work but also made important contributions to other physical sciences and technology. This is the first work to examine critically both the scientific work and the man behind it. Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac (1778-1850) lived through three revolutions in France and his life reflected the social transformations taking place around him. His education and early progress in science depended on the Revolution of 1789 and on the patronage of the chemist Berthollet, a close associate of Napoleon Bonaparte. Gay-Lussac may be seen as the first 'professional' scientist and indeed, throughout the book, Professor Crosland emphasises that he knew how to use his science to solve practical problems and was able to profit considerably from this application. |
Contents
A young provincial in Paris | 1 |
Early education | 4 |
The Ecole Polytechnique | 9 |
The Ecole des Fonts el Chaussees | 17 |
The apprentice of Arcueil | 21 |
The thermal expansion of gases as studied by GayLussac and Dalton | 25 |
Balloon ascents | 28 |
Election to the Institute | 31 |
Fermentation | 140 |
Professor Academician and editor | 143 |
The Faculty of Science | 144 |
The Ecole Polytechnique | 151 |
The Museum dHistoire Naturelle | 156 |
The Academician | 159 |
The Annales de chimie et de physique | 166 |
GayLussac under attack | 175 |
The Arcueil group | 32 |
On the staff of the Ecole Poly technique and a European tour | 34 |
Marriage | 40 |
Personal influences and the search for laws | 43 |
Lavoisiers influence | 44 |
Berthollets influence | 47 |
Laplaces programme and influence | 49 |
The influence of the Arcueil circle on the formulation of the law of combining volumes of gases | 53 |
The search for laws | 54 |
The law of combining volumes of gases | 59 |
Scientific laws | 62 |
Tables and graphs | 63 |
Analogical argument and classification | 67 |
Scientific method | 68 |
Collaboration and rivalry | 71 |
Rivalry with Davy | 73 |
The discovery of iodine | 80 |
Differences of style and character | 87 |
The volumetric approach | 92 |
Reacting volumes and chemical composition | 100 |
Vapour densities | 104 |
Organic chemistry and the practical determination of vapour densities | 107 |
The influence of the volumetric approach | 109 |
Scientific research | 115 |
Work in physics | 117 |
The physical chemist | 128 |
Prussic acid and cyanogen | 129 |
The problem of acidity | 131 |
Isomerism | 134 |
Atomic weights and equivalents | 136 |
A scientist in the service of government and industry | 178 |
The Gunpowder Service | 181 |
The Mint | 188 |
Alcoholometry | 190 |
Stearic candles | 193 |
The SaintGobain Company | 195 |
The GayLussac tower | 199 |
A new technique and the dissemination of technical information | 205 |
Apparatus | 211 |
Instructions | 214 |
Estimation of saltpetre | 216 |
Estimation of bleaching powder | 218 |
Estimation of silver | 219 |
Lightning conductors | 222 |
Scientist and bourgeois in the political arena | 226 |
Salaries and sympathies | 228 |
The political arena | 234 |
The Chamber of Deputies | 236 |
Protectionism | 239 |
Applied science and industry | 242 |
The legacy | 248 |
Students and research associates | 249 |
The family | 253 |
Conclusion | 255 |
select correspondence | 263 |
Notes | 280 |
Select bibliography | 312 |
| 325 | |
| 330 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Academy Annales de chimie Arago Arcueil atomic theory Berthollet Berzelius bien Biot burette carbon career Chamber Chambre des Pairs Chauny chemical chemistry chimique chlorine Clément combining volumes commission composition compounds course cyanogen Dalton Davy Davy's Dulong Dumas Ecole Polytechnique elected elements expansion of gases experimental experiments Faculty of Science France French chemists gaseous Gay-Lussac and Thenard Gay-Lussac's law gunpowder heat Humboldt Humphry Davy hydrogen Ibid important industry Institute Instruction interest iodine j'ai Laplace later Lavoisier Lavoisier's law of combining lectures letter Liebig liquid Lussac manufacture memoir mercury method Moniteur Muséum Napoleonic nineteenth century nitrate nitrogen oxides oxygen Paris Pelouze physics physique potassium problem professor proportions prussic acid published ratio reaction répétiteur Revolution Saint Léonard Saint-Gobain salary salt saltpetre scientific scientist Society of Arcueil sodium solution substance sulphuric acid temperature tion tube vapour density volumes of gases volumetric analysis volumetric approach weight