The Scientific Letters and Papers of James Clerk Maxwell: Volume 1, 1846-1862

This work is the first volume of a comprehensive edition of the scientific letters and manuscript papers of James Clerk Maxwell, covering the period from 1846 to 1862. It is edited and annotated with a full historical commentary by P.M. Harman. Based almost entirely on Maxwell's autograph manuscripts, many printed for the first time, it illuminates the development of his scientific work. Maxwell's contributions to many fields of physics rank with those of Newton and Einstein and are fundamental to much of modern physics and technology. In this volume, documents are reproduced which describe Maxwell's greatest period of scientific innovation. Early works on field theory, including his announcement of the electromagnetic theory of light, as well as work in geometry, Saturn's rings, color vision and the statistical theory of gases are among the most notable writings. This is an important book for physicists, mathematicians and historians of science. A fundamental source of reference for the study of Maxwell and his work, it will be especially relevant to university and physics departmental libraries.