Preface; Acknowledgements; Figure credits; Part I. To 1874: 1. Physics in the nineteenth century; 2. Mathematics and physics in Cambridge in the nineteenth century; Part II. 1874 to 1879: 3. The Maxwell era; Part III. 1879 to 1884: 4. Rayleigh's Quinquennium; Part IV. 1884 to 1919: 5. The challenges facing J. J. Thomson; 6. The J. J. Thomson era, 1884–1900 - the electron; 7. The Thomson era, 1900–19 - atomic structure; Part V. 1919 to 1937: 8. Rutherford at McGill and Manchester Universities - new challenges in Cambridge; 9. The Rutherford era - the radioactivists; 10. Rutherford era - the seeds of the new physics; Part VI. 1938 to 1953: 11. Bragg and the war years; 12. Bragg and the post-war years; Part VII. 1953 to 1971: 13. The Mott era - an epoch of expansion; 14. The Mott era - radio astronomy and high energy physics; 15. The Mott era - the growth of condensed matter physics; Part VIII. 1971 to 1982: 16. The Pippard era - a new laboratory and a new vision; 17. The Pippard era - radio astronomy, high energy physics and laboratory astrophysics; 18. The Pippard era - condensed matter physics; Part IX. 1984 to 1995: 19. The Edwards era - a new epoch of expansion; 20. The Edwards era - new directions in condensed matter physics; 21. The Edwards era - high energy physics and radio astronomy; Part X. 1995 to present: 22. Towards the new millennium and beyond; 23. The evolution of the New Museums site; Notes; Bibliography; Author index; Index.
An authoritative scientific history of a world-leading physics laboratory from its origins in the late nineteenth century to the present day.
Malcolm Longair is Emeritus Jacksonian Professor of Natural Philosophy and Director of Development at the Cavendish Laboratory. He was appointed the ninth Astronomer Royal of Scotland in 1980, as well as the Regius Professor of Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, and the director of the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh. He was head of the Cavendish Laboratory from 1997 to 2005 and he has served on and chaired many international committees, boards and panels, working with both NASA and the European Space Agency. He has received much recognition for his work over the years, including a CBE in the millennium honours list for his services to astronomy and cosmology.
'In what is patently a labour of love, the astronomer Malcolm
Longair now gives us a comprehensive scientific history of the
Cavendish in Maxwell's Enduring Legacy. Longair, who was the lab's
head from 1997 to 2005, describes its inception well … Longair's
history is in the form of a well-organized modern physics book,
most of its twenty-two sections replete with charts, tables and
lucid technical explanations presented neatly in boxes. Abundant
diagrams, photographs, line drawings, floor-plans and facsimiles of
historical documents give fascinating insights into the lab's
development.' Graham Farmelo, Nature
'… a wonderful exposition of the many contributions made by this
renowned institution … written by one of its recent leaders … The
author writes with great erudition on the incredible range of
essential research projects that were conducted at this famous
laboratory. There are helpful notes, indexes, and references.' N.
Sadanand, Choice
'… any physicist (from within or outside the Laboratory) will
surely find a wealth of information of interest.' Guy Pooley, The
Observatory
'One must say that the Cavendish is extremely fortunate that one of
its recent heads has had the vision, energy and talent to meet the
formidable challenge of chronicling the evolution of the Cavendish
into the world-leading institution … This magnificent book is a
fitting tribute to past and present staff and students at the
Cavendish. … The focus has naturally been on events in the
Cavendish itself. However, the author properly locates those events
in the wider international context. Moreover, he is not averse to
offering supporting physical explanations, as well as mathematical
expositions where appropriate … Having expertly traced the history
of the Cavendish - which has required much archival research - the
author closes with a survey of the highly diverse activities of
today's Cavendish and signals also the future of another
re-building of the Cavendish planned for completion in 2020. The
legacy of Maxwell would appear to be safe for another 140 years.'
K. Alan Shore, Contemporary Physics
'Besides the accuracy of the scientific descriptions and the
sharpness of the ideas, this book inaugurates a useful compromise
that might inspire future science historians … the history of the
Cavendish shows that lasting progress can come from diversity of
opinion, the inclusiveness of practices and mutual respect between
fundamental sciences. How can we sum up the secret of the
scientific successes described in this book? A tentative recipe
might be unity in necessary things, freedom in doubtful ones and
respect for every honest scientific endeavour.' Massimo Giovannini,
CERN Courier
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