James Maxwell (1831-1879)

Famous For: Work on the Theory of Electromagnetism and the Kinetic theory of gases

He is famous for numerous things, but the more prominent were proving the link between electricity, magnetism, and light for the first time and producing the first color photograph. His work on electromagnetism showed that electricity, magnetism, and light are all manifestations of the same phenomenon, the electromagnetic field. This resulted in the development of radio, TV, and radar. Hence he is acclaimed as the father of modern physics.

The concept of electromagnetic radiation was based on his and Michael Faraday’s observations of the electric and magnetic lines of force. His work paved the way for Einstein’s special theory of relativity, which established the equivalence of mass and energy.