Thomson, William, 1824-1907 (Baron Kelvin of Largs, mathematician and physicist)

Person

Staff Only

Dates

Existence: 1824 - 1907

Biography

William Thomson, Lord Kelvin (1824-1907), scientist and inventor, studied at Glasgow University from 1834, before entering Peterhouse, Cambridge, in 1841, where he was a fellow, 1846-1856 and 1872-1907. He was professor of natural philosophy in Glasgow, 1846-1899; president of the mathematical and physical section of the British Association at Glasgow, 1876; and chancellor of Glasgow University, 1904. He also helped to found the the firm Kelvin&White, Ltd., Glasgow, which he used to manufacture his inventions. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1851, and served as president from 1890 to1894. He was knighted in 1866 and created baron in 1892. Between 1851 and 1854 Thomson formulated the two great laws of thermodynamics, equivalence and transformation. In 1853 he developed the theory of electric oscillations, which was to form the basis of wireless telegraphy, and he superintended the laying of a cable across the Atlantic in 1866.

Found in 1 Collection or Record:

Fonds

Papers of Frank McClean

Fonds

Reference Code: GBR/0012/MS Add.10348

Scope and Contents Letters, photographs and notebooks of Frank McClean and family. Comprises: student notebook, University of Glasgow, on William Thomson's [Lord Kelvin's] classes in Natural Philosophy, 1854-5; student notebook, Trinity College, Cambridge; letters from Frank McClean to his father, John Robinson McClean, and to his son, William Newsome McClean, serving in South Africa; letters from Ellen McClean to her son, William Newsome McClean, serving in South Africa; pocket diaries; correspondence from...

Dates: 1847 - 1942

Conditions Governing Access: Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).

Found in: Cambridge University Library

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Subject: Astronomy X