Group Task of Three (3) members, Download and print if possible for your

own notes.
1ST Task: Read the texts on the development of the electromagnetic
theory.

A Timeline of Events in Electromagnetism

600 BCE: Sparking Amber in Ancient Greece
The earliest writings about electromagnetism were in 600 BCE, when the ancient
Greek philosopher, mathematician and scientist Thales of Miletus described his
experiments rubbing animal fur on various substances such as amber. Thales
discovered that amber rubbed with fur attracts bits of dust and hairs that create
static electricity, and if he rubbed the amber for long enough, he could even get an
electric spark to jump.
221–206 BCE: Chinese Lodestone Compass
The magnetic compass is an ancient Chinese invention, likely first made in China
during the Qin dynasty, from 221 to 206 BCE. The compass used a lodestone, a
magnetic oxide, to indicate true north. The underlying concept may not have been
understood, but the ability of the compass to point true north was clear.

1600: Gilbert and the Lodestone

Toward the late 16th century, the "founder of electrical science" English scientist
William Gilbert published "De Magnete" in Latin translated as "On the Magnet" or
"On the Lodestone." Gilbert was a contemporary of Galileo, who was impressed by
Gilbert's work. Gilbert undertook a number of careful electrical experiments, in the
course of which he discovered that many substances were capable of manifesting
electrical properties.
Gilbert also discovered that a heated body lost its electricity and that moisture
prevented the electrification of all bodies. He also noticed that electrified
substances attracted all other substances indiscriminately, whereas a magnet only
attracted iron.

1752: Franklin's Kite Experiments

American founding father Benjamin Franklin is famous for the extremely dangerous
experiment he ran, of having his son fly a kite through a storm-threatened sky. A
key attached to the kite string sparked and charged a Leyden jar, thus establishing
the link between lightning and electricity. Following these experiments, he invented
the lightning rod.
Franklin discovered there are two kinds of charges, positive and negative: objects
with like charges repel one another, and those with unlike charges attract one
another. Franklin also documented the conservation of charge, the theory that an
isolated system has a constant total charge.

1785: Coulomb's Law

In 1785, French physicist Charles-Augustin de Coulomb developed Coulomb's law,
the definition of the electrostatic force of attraction and repulsion. He found that the
force exerted between two small electrified bodies is directly proportional to the
product of the magnitude of charges and varies inversely to the square of the
distance between those charges

1789: Galvanic Electricity

In 1780, Italian professor Luigi Galvani (1737–1790) discovered that electricity from
two different metals causes frog legs to twitch. He observed that a frog's muscle,
suspended on an iron balustrade by a copper hook passing through its dorsal
column, underwent lively convulsions without any extraneous cause.
To account for this phenomenon, Galvani assumed that electricity of opposite kinds
existed in the nerves and muscles of the frog. Galvani published the results of his
discoveries in 1789, together with his hypothesis, which engrossed the attention of
the physicists of that time.
1790: Voltaic Electricity
Italian physicist, chemist and inventor Alessandro Volta (1745–1827) read of
Galvani's research and in his own work discovered that chemicals acting on two
dissimilar metals generate electricity without the benefit of a frog. He invented the
first electric battery, the voltaic pile battery in 1799. With the pile battery, Volta
proved that electricity could be generated chemically and debunked the prevalent
theory that electricity was generated solely by living beings. Volta's invention
sparked a great deal of scientific excitement, leading others to conduct similar
experiments which eventually led to the development of the field of
electrochemistry.
1820: Magnetic Fields
In 1820, Danish physicist and chemist Hans Christian Oersted (1777–1851)
discovered what would become known as Oersted's Law: that an electric current
affects a compass needle and creates magnetic fields. He was the first scientist to
find the connection between electricity and magnetism.
1821: Ampere's Electrodynamics
French physicist Andre Marie Ampere (1775–1836) found that wires carrying current
produce forces on each other, announcing his theory of electrodynamics in 1821.
Ampere's theory of electrodynamics states that two parallel portions of a circuit
attract one another if the currents in them are flowing in the same direction, and
repel one another if the currents flow in the opposite direction. Two portions of
circuits crossing one another obliquely attract one another if both the currents flow
either towards or from the point of crossing and repel one another if one flows to
and the other from that point. When an element of a circuit exerts a force on
another element of a circuit, that force always tends to urge the second one in a
direction at right angles to its own direction.

1831: Faraday and Electromagnetic Induction

English scientist Michael Faraday (1791–1867) at the Royal Society in London
developed the idea of an electric field and studied the effect of currents on
magnets. His research found that the magnetic field created around a conductor
carried a direct current, thereby establishing the basis for the concept of the
electromagnetic field in physics. Faraday also established that magnetism could
affect rays of light and that there was an underlying relationship between the two
phenomena. He similarly discovered the principles of electromagnetic induction and
diamagnetism and the laws of electrolysis.
1873: Maxwell and the Basis of Electromagnetic Theory
James Clerk Maxwell (1831–1879), a Scottish physicist and mathematician,
recognized that electromagnetism's processes could be established using
mathematics. Maxwell published "Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism" in 1873 in
which he summarizes and synthesizes the discoveries of Coloumb, Oersted,
Ampere, Faraday into four mathematical equations. Maxwell's equations are used
today as the basis of electromagnetic theory. Maxwell predicts the connections of
magnetism and electricity leading directly to the prediction of electromagnetic
waves.

1885: Hertz and Electric Waves

German physicist Heinrich Hertz proved Maxwell's electromagnetic wave theory was
correct, and in the process, generated and detected electromagnetic waves. Hertz
published his work in a book, "Electric Waves: Being Researches on the Propagation
of Electric Action With Finite Velocity Through Space." The discovery of
electromagnetic waves led to the development to the radio. The unit of frequency of
the waves measured in cycles per second was named the "hertz" in his honor.

1895: Marconi and the Radio

In 1895, Italian inventor and electrical engineer Guglielmo Marconi put the
discovery of electromagnetic waves to practical use by sending messages over long
distances using radio signals, also known as the "wireless." He was known for his
pioneering work on long-distance radio transmission and his development of
Marconi's law and a radio telegraph system. He is often credited as the inventor of
the radio, and he shared the 1909 Nobel Prize in Physics with Karl Ferdinand Braun
"in recognition of their contributions to the development of wireless telegraphy."

2ND Task: Construct a timeline of the development of the electromagnetic

theory. (It can be a graphic organizer, Concept map, Flow Chat or Table
form)
Sample flow chart:

3rd Task: Answer the following Question

Questions:
1. What observation or phenomenon first sparked human curiosity about electricity
and magnetism?
2. How did Benjamin Franklin's experiments contribute to our understanding of
electricity?
3. Explain the importance of Coulomb’s Law in the study of electricity.
4. Compare the contributions of Luigi Galvani and Alessandro Volta to the field of
electromagnetism.
5. What is the significance of Michael Faraday’s discovery of electromagnetic
induction?
6. How did James Clerk Maxwell's equations revolutionize our understanding of
electromagnetism?
7. Heinrich Hertz and Guglielmo Marconi were crucial to the development of what
modern technology?
8. How did the discovery of electromagnetism revolutionize modern technology?