John Canton
John Canton | |
|---|---|
 John Canton | |
| Born | 31 July 1718 Stroud,Gloucestershire,England |
| Died | 22 March 1772(aged 53) |
| Citizenship | British |
| Known for | Electrostatic induction Pith-ball electroscope Artificialmagnets Compressibility of liquids Canton’s phosphorus |
| Awards | Copley Medal(1751), (1764) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Physics |
John CantonFRS(31 July 1718 – 22 March 1772) was aBritishphysicist.He was born in Middle StreetStroud,Gloucestershire,to a weaver, John Canton (b. 1687) and Esther (née Davis). As a schoolboy, he became the first person to determine thelatitudeof Stroud, while making a sundial.[2]The sundial caught the attention of many, including DrHenry Miles,a Stroud-born Fellow of the Royal Society. Miles encouraged Canton to leave Gloucestershire to become a trainee teacher for Samuel Watkins, the headmaster of a Nonconformist school in Spital Square, London, with whom he ultimately entered into partnership.
In 1750 he read a paper before theRoyal Societyon a method of making artificialmagnets,and was subsequently elected a Fellow of the society (FRS). In 1751 he was a recipient of theCopley Medal"On account of his communicating to the Society, and exhibiting before them, his curious method of making Artificial Magnets without the use of Natural ones." He was the first in England to verifyBenjamin Franklin's hypothesis of the identity oflightningandelectricity,and he made several important electrical discoveries.[3]
In 1762 and 1764 he published experiments in refutation of the decision of theFlorentine Academy,at that time generally accepted, thatwateris incompressible.[4][5]In 1768 he described the preparation, by calcining oyster-shell withsulphur,of thephosphorescentmaterial known asCanton's phosphorus.[6]His investigations were carried on while he worked as a school teacher. He died in London aged 53 ofdropsy.[3]
He was the recipient of letters that formed the foundation for modern dayBayes' TheoremfromThomas Bayes,which were then published by the Royal Society. John Canton did not receive those letter directly from Bayes, but through an intermediary after the death of Thomas Bayes.Richard Priceinitially established the communication between Thomas Bayes and John Canton.[7]
Canton is now mainly remembered for his work inelectrostatics,[2]particularly the invention of the pith ball electroscope, and his studies inatmospheric electricity.[8]He is honoured with a blue plaque at the site of his old school in his hometown of Stroud.[9]
References
[edit]- ^"John Canton | British physicist".Encyclopedia Britannica.
- ^abHerbert, K B H (March 1998)."John Canton FRS (1718-72)".Physics Education.33(2): 126–131.doi:10.1088/0031-9120/33/2/019.ISSN0031-9120.S2CID250825856.
- ^abOne or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Canton, John".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 218.
- ^ Canton, John (1761–1762)."Experiments to Prove That Water is Not Incompressible".Philosophical Transactions.52:640–643.doi:10.1098/rstl.1761.0105.JSTOR105681.
- ^ Canton, John (1764)."Experiments and Observations on the Compressibility of Water and Some Other Fluids".Philosophical Transactions.54:261–262.doi:10.1098/rstl.1764.0045.JSTOR105560.
- ^ Canton, John (1768)."An Easy Method of Making a Phosphorus, That Will Imbibe and Emit Light, like the Bolognian Stone".Philosophical Transactions.58:337–344.doi:10.1098/rstl.1768.0045.JSTOR105793.
- ^Bayes, Thomas & Price, Richard (1763)."An Essay towards solving a Problem in the Doctrine of Chance. By the late Rev. Mr. Bayes, communicated by Mr. Price, in a letter to John Canton, A. M. F. R. S."Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London.53:370–418.doi:10.1098/rstl.1763.0053.
- ^Herbert, K. B. H. (1997)."John Canton — Pioneer investigator of atmospheric electricity".Weather.52(9): 286–290.Bibcode:1997Wthr...52..286H.doi:10.1002/j.1477-8696.1997.tb06326.x.ISSN1477-8696.S2CID122781999.
- ^"Canton – John | Stroud Local History Society".Retrieved6 February2022.
External links
[edit]
Media related toJohn Cantonat Wikimedia Commons- Works by John CantonatProject Gutenberg
- Works by or about John Cantonat theInternet Archive
