Science Spin July 2008

The letters of famous scientists

George Francis FitzGerald (1851-1901), Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy at Trinity College Dublin and Secretary of the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) from 1881 to 1889, is one of the great under-appreciated physicists in the history of science.

He died prematurely at the age of 49 and left remarkably few publications. Upon his death, messages poured in from around the world praising his important contributions to science, particularly in the field of electromagnetism. Yet because his greatest ideas often appeared in the form of useful suggestions contained within letters sent to other scientists rather than through his own publications, scientists and historians have been slow to recognize the crucial role he played in late nineteenth-century physics.

FitzGerald's best known contribution is the FitzGerald-Lorentz contraction, which later became an essential part of Einstein's theory of Special Relativity. FitzGerald, however, considered this only a minor piece of work. Recent research has shown the crucial role that FitzGerald played in the development of Clerk Maxwell's theory of electromagnetism and Joseph Larmor's electronic theory of matter. Bruce Hunt describes FitzGerald as one of the 'Maxwellians' who transformed Maxwell's ill-understood and partially complete Treatise into the now standard theory of electromagnetism. FitzGerald was a central figure in this process, though his greatest contributions came through advice shared in correspondence with men such as Oliver Lodge, Oliver Heaviside, William Thomson (later Lord Kelvin) and Heinrich Hertz. FitzGerald's crucial role in Larmor's development of an electronic theory of matter is highlighted by Jed Buchwald who writes, "The electron was not so much a new theoretical discovery for Larmor as it was his adoption of the ideas FitzGerald had frequently suggested during their correspondence..."

FitzGerald's correspondence, however, is not only essential for understanding the development of electromagnetic theory and other areas of physical science; it also opens a window on science and technology in fin-de-siècle Dublin. FitzGerald's life saw the introduction of electricity to Trinity College Dublin, the first automobiles to arrive in Ireland, the first X-ray photographs, early experiments on flight and wireless telegraphy (in which he participated), the rise of technical education, the professionalisation of physics and the attempt to reconcile the new sciences with religion. As Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy at Trinity College Dublin and head of the Engineering School, commissioner for education in Ireland and an examiner for the University of London, FitzGerald was active in all of these areas. His letters will therefore undoubtedly be of great value to scientists and historians with a wide variety of interests.

The RDS Library in Ballsbridge holds over 2,000 of FitzGerald's letters the majority of which he received from leading scientific thinkers of the period. The letters were sent to FitzGerald during his lifetime and shortly after his death. These letters are currently being digitized by the RDS and will be made available on the web through the RDS Library catalogue by October 2008 (www.rds.ie/library).

For further details of this project, please contact
Dr Claire Mulhall, RDS Science Department, email:science@rds.ie.