The Scientific Letters and Papers of James Clerk Maxwell

Book excerpt: This is the first comprehensive edition of Maxwell's manuscript papers, published virtually complete and largely for the first time. Maxwell's work was of central importance in establishing and developing the major themes of the physics of the nineteenth century. His theory of the electromagnetic field and the electromagnetic theory of light, and his development of statistical molecular theory, have established his special place in the history of physics. His fecundity of imagination and the sophistication of his examination of the foundation of physics give particular interest and importance to his writings.