retroelectro
magnetic field the coil generates travels around the wire and not through it, like everyone assumed. The problem now is that nobody knew how to describe this observation in practical mathematical terms. Ørsted
experimented for months and then published a short paper in Latin titled ‘Experiments on the Effect of a Current of Electricity on the Magnetic Needle.’ Papers like this took some time to travel and get translated through Europe.
Writer’s Note: While researching, the writer found numerous references to gossip and experiments concerning the connection between electricity and magnetism. It appears that the wire and compass experiment had been conducted
for decades before Ørsted’s discovery. The writer hasn’t found what made those experiments
unsuccessful. An Italian researcher named Gian Domenico Romagnosi published a study on the connection between static buildup and the movement of a compass needle in 1802, but it seems that his research didn’t disseminate widely across Europe.
In the spring of 1820, during a lecture, Ørsted discovered evidence linking magnetism to electricity.
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