Michael Faraday’s ‘Chemical Notes, Hints, Suggestions and Objects of Pursuit’ of 1822

Modern life now depends on the application of Faraday’s discoveries on the electric motor, transformer and the dynamo; modern physical theories reflect the field-conception of natural powers that he pioneered. Faraday’s chemical notebook of 1822 is one of the most significant of Faraday’s unpublished writings because it served as a place to explore possibilities and questions, rather than to record laboratory work. Transcribed and published here for the first time, the notebook shows that Faraday’s physical achievements emerged from the context of applied, laboratory chemistry. It foreshadows many of his most important discoveries, and offers a revealing glimpse into the mind and scientific aspirations of a master experimentalist.