Ten founding fathers of the electrical science: I. William Gilbert: On magnets and on electrics

This is the first of a series of short biographical sketches of ten founding fathers of the electrical science to appear serially in ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING. The selection is arbitrary and other men of equal or possibly greater competence necessarily must be omitted. The series should prove of particular interest to members and students, providing a better understanding of the founders of some of the fundamental electrical principles and units used in daily work. Dr. William Gilbert, royal physician and author of the first treatise on electricity, demonstrated almost all the properties of the magnet, identified the earth as a great magnet, and taught the distinction between electrical and magnetic attraction.