Coulomb's Memoirs on Torsion, Electricity, and Magnetism Translated into English

2023-05-08

This book contains complete and commented translations of the main works of Charles-Augustin de Coulomb (1736-1806) on torsion, electricity, and magnetism. They include the 1777 prize winning work on the best method of making magnetic needles, the 1784 paper with the law of torsion of metal wires and his 7 major Memoirs on electricity and magnetism. In these works he arrived experimentally at the law of force between electrified bodies varying with the  inverse of the square of their distance (known in textbooks as Coulomb's law), at the law of force between magnetic poles also varying with the  inverse square of their distance, at the exponential law of charge leakage, at the distribution of electricity over the surface of charged conducting bodies in various configurations of electrostatic equilibrium, at advanced methods of magnetization and the production of artificial magnets.

Printed copies can be ordered from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1987980336

Louis L. Bucciarelli is a Professor (Emeritus) of Engineering and Technology Studies at MIT, USA.

The Foreword was written by Prof. C. Stewart Gillmor, Coulomb's main biographer.