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Gaspard-Gustave de Coriolis

MAY 21, 2015
Physics Today

It’s the birthday of Gaspard-Gustave de Coriolis, who was born in 1792 in Paris. Coriolis was educated at the École Polytechnique, which later hired him to teach mathematics and physics. Coriolis was among the first to recast Isaac Newton’s classical mechanics in ways that could be used to solve practical problems. He developed the physical concept of work and extended mechanics to rotating bodies. His most famous contribution to physics, the Coriolis force, made its debut in the 1835 paper “Sur les équations du mouvement relatif des systèmes de corps” (On the equations of relative motion of a system of bodies).

Date in History: 21 May 1792

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