James Clerk Maxwell was a truly great scientist who first proposed a unified theory of electro-magnetism and helped shape the future of physics for several generations.
He grew up and studied in a wealthy environment in Edinburgh, moving to Aberdeen to become a professor of physics in 1856, aged only 25. His career really took off at King's College in London (1860) and was crowned at Cambridge (1871), where he directed the world-leading Cavendish Laboratory.
Maxwell was the first to propose that electromagnetic radiation travelled at the speed of light, and his theories inspired countless scientists (including Einstein, Hertz and Heaviside), underpinning the way radio, television, radar and microwaves work.
But physics was just part of the story; Maxwell could also turn his hand to mathematics, astronomy and engineering.His work included the measurement of the stresses on bridges and arches, an explanation of the formation of Saturn's rings, and the development of the first colour photography process.
