foucault

Thân thiện

A Foucault pendulum swings slowly in a museum hall.

Definition

Proper noun 1. A French physicist: Refers to Jean Bernard Léon Foucault, a 19th-century scientist known for his experimental demonstrations and inventions that provided evidence for the rotation of the Earth and measured the speed of light.

Examples of Usage

• Proper noun:
  • Foucault demonstrated the rotation of the Earth using a pendulum.
  • The Foucault pendulum is a classic experiment in physics.
  • The speed of light was accurately measured by Foucault.

Advanced Usage

• Foucault current: Also known as an eddy current, it is an electrical current induced within a conductor by a changing magnetic field. While named for him, this phenomenon was discovered by others; Foucault investigated and explained its effects.
  • Foucault currents in the metal plate cause it to heat up.

Variants and Related Words

• Foucaultian (adjective): Pertaining to or characteristic of the ideas of Michel Foucault, a distinct 20th-century French philosopher and social theorist. It is critical to distinguish this from the physicist.
  • Foucaultian analysis often examines the relationship between power and knowledge.
• Foucault pendulum (noun phrase): A long pendulum with a heavy bob, free to swing in any vertical plane, used to demonstrate the Earth's rotation. The plane of the pendulum's swing appears to rotate slowly over time.
  • Many science museums have a Foucault pendulum on display.

Synonyms

• Jean Bernard Léon Foucault (full name).

Học thuật

Noun

1. French physicist who determined the speed of light and showed that it travels slower in water than in air; invented the Foucault pendulum and the gyroscope (1819-1868)

Từ đồng nghĩa

• Foucault
• Jean Bernard Leon Foucault