Cosmos Episode 10 Thoughts

I didn't get a chance to watch this week's episode when it was new, but I have finally gotten around to it, and it was a good one.  This episode was all about one person, and this series has been at its best whenever it's done that.  Michael Faraday isn't exactly an obscure figure, but considering his contributions to science, he really doesn't get the attention he deserves.

Faraday was a major figure in 19th century science, but unlike most of the other scientists in England during the time, he did not come from privileged means.  Faraday never even made it past elementary school.  He started working when he was 13, and in one of life's moments of luck, he started working in a bookstore.  Here, he read all about electricity, a curiosity at this time, and became absolutely fascinated with it.  He began attending lectures by Humphrey Davy, a scientific superstar of the day, and took diligent notes on these lectures.  He sent these notes to Davy, who remembered them when he temporarily lost his eyesight in a failed experiment.  He hired Faraday as a secretary for his experiments, but more importantly, he allowed Faraday to tinker with the equipment himself.  Davy probably didn't expect anything from Faraday, but this does serve a valuable lesson.  It doesn't matter if you believe if someone can change the world, but if you give them the means to do so, they just might surprise you.

Faraday's efforts are all the more impressive when you consider the fact that he dealt with memory loss and depression for most of his life.  When presented with such adversity, there are a select few who take it as a challenge, and bring their minds to new heights.  Faraday was one of these people, and even as his mind betrayed him, he accomplished more and more.  Despite all of this, Faraday still had limitations, and he knew it.  He was no mathematician, he had barely any formal education.  But when James Clerk Maxwell delivered a book to Faraday's desk, providing him with all the equations he needed to prove his theories, he embraced Maxwell and his work, providing Maxwell with a huge boost.  Maxwell would become an enormously influential scientist, and another man who perhaps does not get as much credit in the history books as he should.  Newton and Einstein are justly famous for their work on gravity, but compared to Faraday and Maxwell's work with electromagnetism, there is no practical comparison.  Electromagnetism runs the modern world, it unites us all.  Sure, we can see gravity acting every day, but outside of a classroom, how often do we apply Einstein's laws, or even Newton's.  But, as Tyson made clear, without Faraday, the very devices you're reading this on and that we all depend on would not be possible.

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