Benjamin Franklin, Experiments and Observations on Electricity (1751)
In 1751, Peter Collinson, president of the Royal Society, arranged for the publication of a series of letters from Benjamin Franklin, written between 1747 and 1750, describing his experiments with electricity. Franklin demonstrated his new theory of the general electrical “action” of positive and negative charges, suggested the electrical nature of lightning, and proposed a grounded rod as a protection against lightning. Through the publication of these experiments, Franklin became the first American to gain an international reputation for his scientific work. In 1753 he received the Copley Medal of the Royal Society for his contributions to the knowledge of electricity and lightning.
In 1751, Peter Collinson, president of the Royal Society, arranged for the publication of a series of letters from Benjamin Franklin, written between 1747 and 1750, describing his experiments with electricity. Franklin demonstrated his new theory of the general electrical “action” of positive and negative charges, suggested the electrical nature of lightning, and proposed a grounded rod as a protection against lightning. Through the publication of these experiments, Franklin became the first American to gain an international reputation for his scientific work. In 1753 he received the Copley Medal of the Royal Society for his contributions to the knowledge of electricity and lightning.