William Gilbert was an English physician and natural philosopher who wrote a six-volume treatise that compiled all of the information regarding magnetism and electricity known at the time. The work included descriptions of many of...

Although he is best known as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time, Carl Friedrich Gauss was also a pioneer in the study of magnetism and electricity. To facilitate an extensive survey of terrestrial magnetism, he invented an...

From the Stone Age to today, the search is constantly underway for better, more efficient ways to cook food. Reflecting many of the advances in science and technology, the electric range has become a popular choice for homes and businesses.

In this lesson, students learn how to identify and explain an electromagnet, describe the relationship between electricity and magnetism, and compare an electromagnet to a bar magnet.

If you put on clothes that were washed in a washing machine, rode in a car, ate food from a fridge, warmed up lunch in a microwave, or played a video game, you used an electric motor. Try this science fair project and you'll learn how to...

Luigi Galvani was a pioneer in the field of electrophysiology, the branch of science concerned with electrical phenomena in the body. His experiments with dissected frogs and electrical charges led him to suggest the existence of a...

This is a Java tutorial showing the simple voltaic (or galvanic) electrical cell, which is the most basic type of "wet" cell and demonstrates the fundamental chemistry behind batteries.

Theoretical physicist Richard Phillips Feynman greatly simplified the way in which the interactions of particles could be described through his introduction of the diagrams that now bear his name (Feynman diagrams) and was a co-recipient...

An interactive simulation that teaches about Faraday's Law, magnets, and magnetic fields by showing how a change in the magnetic flux can produce a flow of electricity. This simulation can either be downloaded or played online and...

Awarded more than 100 patents over the course of his lifetime, Nikola Tesla was a man of considerable genius and vision. He was reportedly born at exactly midnight during an electrical storm, an intriguing beginning for a man who would...

See how electricity and magnetism interact with this activity. Activity has students creating a current by swinging a copper coil through a magnetic field. The copper coil will start a second coil swinging as well.

In the 17th century, German scientist Otto von Guericke built and carried out experiments with a sulfur globe that produced static electricity.

Physicist Felix Bloch developed a non-destructive technique for precisely observing and measuring the magnetic properties of nuclear particles. He called his technique "nuclear induction," but nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) soon became...

Chemist Paul Lauterbur pioneered the use of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) for medical imaging. He developed a technique, now known as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), in the early 1970s that involves the introduction of gradients in...

Two scientists share the credit for discovering, and then interpreting, the phenomenon of electromagnetism.

This site explores the history of power lines and cancer associations, as well as dispelling the myth. The science is explored by citing known facts, studies and experts in the field.

Use this site to learn about the inventor of the electro-magnetic motor, Nikola Tesla. Find out why Tesla's experimentation with alternating current was so important to later inventions and use of electricity.

NASA provides a nice blending of the achievements of three scientists, Oersted, Ampere, and Maxwell. This done by NASA-sponsored International Solar-Terrestrial Physics group. Lots of pictures, diagrams, and scientific explanation. Good...

Learn about cause and effect relationships of electric or magnetic interactions between two objects not in contact with each other.

Alessandro Volta invents the first primitive battery, discovering that electricity can be generated through chemical processes; scientists quickly seize on the new tool to invent electric lighting. Meanwhile, a profound insight into the...

Scientists take important steps toward a fuller understanding of electricity, as well as some fruitful missteps, including an elaborate but incorrect theory on animal magnetism that sets the stage for a groundbreaking invention.

The telephone and first practical incandescent light bulb are invented while the word "electron" enters the scientific lexicon.

Computers evolve into PCs, researchers discover one new subatomic particle after another and the space age gives our psyches and science a new context.

Defense-related research leads to the computer, the world enters the atomic age and TV conquers America.