Benjamin Thompson, Anglo-American Physicist

Benjamin Thompson, Anglo-American Physicist

Count Rumford (March 26, 1753 - August 21, 1814), born Benjamin Thompson, English-American physicist and reformer. Born in Massachusetts, he joined the army at 18, acting as a secret agent for the British. He fled to England in 1776 and studied projectiles. He was elected to the Royal Society in 1779. After a brief return to America, he was knighted, and appointed adviser to the Elector of Bavaria. There he reformed the army, set up welfare schemes for the poor, bred stronger horses and cattle and laid out the English Garden in Munich. He also showed, by studying the boring of cannons, that heat was due to the motion of particles in a body. His challenge to establish physical theory was part of the 19th century revolution in thermodynamics. The retention of heat was a recurring theme in his work, as he is also credited with the invention of thermal underwear. He was a prolific inventor, developing improvements for chimneys, fireplaces and industrial furnaces, as well as inventing the double boiler, a kitchen range, and a drip coffeepot. He invented a percolating coffee pot following his pioneering work with the Bavarian Army, where he improved the diet of the soldiers as well as their clothes. He died in 1814 at the age of 61.

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