In genius studies, SI unit geniuses refers to scientific geniuses behind the top 20+ main SI unit, either named in their honor, e.g. newton N as the unit of force in honor of Isaac Newton, or the main thinker behind a given unit, e.g. Clausius behind the unit if heat Q in J/K.
Rankings
The following is a work-in-progress ranking of thinkers who have international (SI) units, i.e. quantities or variables, named after them, and or the main person behind each unit, both base units and derived units, and main characteristic functions, each ranked according to IQ|# position in the top 1000 geniuses tables
IQ | Person | IQ estimates | Overview | ||
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1. | — 2 | F | Isaac Newton (1643-1727) Force: N Units: kg⋅m/s² Date: 1667 Mass: m Units: kg Date: 1667 | =250+ =250 =200 =195|#5 =193 =190|#7 =190|#14 =190 =188 =170 | (Cattell 1000:14) [RGM:3|1,500+] (Murray 4000:2|CS / 1|P / 2|M) (EPD:F0) (GR:1) (RE:84) (CR:595) English physicist, chemistry, mathematician, and philosopher; “Is it not for want of an attractive virtue between the parts of water (∇) and oil, of quick-silver (☿)(Hg) and antimony (♁)(Sb), of lead (♄)(Pb) and iron (♂)(Fe), that these substances do not mix; and by a weak attraction, that quick-silver (☿)(Hg) and copper (♀)(Cu) mix difficultly; and from a strong one, that quicksilver (☿)(Hg) and tin ( ♃)(Sn), antimony (♁)(Sb) and iron (♂)(Fe), water (∇) and salts, mix readily?” — Isaac Newton (1718), “Query 31” of Optics Noted for his 1686 Principia: Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, where he introduced the laws of motion, which he applied to both falling apples and falling planets; the #1 in genius meta-analysis rankings; triple scientific revolutions genius; blue sky problem theorist; [GPE] [GME]; known for: mechanics, gravitational theory; his Query 31 launched affinity chemistry (the key behind Goethe's 1809 Elective Affinities) and well as physical chemistry; known for: differential equations, optics, etc; IQ of 250+ (Azak, 2011). |
2. | — 7 | δQ | Rudolf Clausius (1822-1888) Heat: TdS Units: J/K Date: 1865 | =175|#84 | (Cattell 1000:N/A) [RGM:N/A|1,320+] (Murray 4000:N/A) (GS:5) (SIG:3) (CR:708) German mathematical physicist; “Before Clausius, truth and error were in a confusing state of mixture, and wrong answers were confidently urged by the highest authorities.” — Willard Gibbs (1889), “Rudolf Julius Emanuel Clausius” an Epicenter genius (IQavg:210); a dual scientific revolutions genius; blue sky problem theorist; [GTE]; known for: thermodynamics (founder and greatest), entropy, kinetic theory; intellectual mentor to Gibbs, Maxwell, and Einstein; see: Euler genealogy to discern the significance and density of his influence; his Clausius inequality (1856) determined the nature and measure of irreversible "change" in the universe, via the interaction of heat and work on ALL bodies, aka "working bodies", in the universe, as shown adjacent; first-slating: 195-210 (c.2014). |
3. | — 17 | T | Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) Magnetic flux density: tesla Units: Wb/m² Date: c.1882 | =230-310 =200 =140-160 | (Cattell 1000:N/A) [RGM:7|1,500+] (Murray 4000:N/A) (RE:87) (CR:94|37) Serbian-born American electrical engineer, inventor, and philosopher; “I am an automaton endowed with power of movement, which merely responds to external stimuli beating upon my sense organs.” — Nikola Tesla (1900), “The Problem of Increasing Human Energy” known for: defunct life theory, electricity, magnetism, human energy, radio technology, alternating current, electromagnetic motors; adhered to a Goethean philosophy, to the exclusion of all other philosophies. |
4. | — 47 | P | Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) Pressure: Pa Units: N/m² Date: 1648 | =235 =195 =192 | (Cattell 1000:61) [RGM:42|1,500+] (Murray 4000:8|M) (GME:18) (CR:44) French mathematician, physicist, and philosopher; at age 19 (1642), made a counting machine, impressed Descartes, with toothed wheels and gears, moving drums carrying numbers, that could add, subtract, multiply and divide; built 50 in total; in 1646 repeated Evangelista Torricelli's vacuum experiments; from 1652-64, spent all his time on the mathematics of gambling; after his 1654 brush with death (age 31) he "found god" (downgrade ↓) and thereafter seems to have lost his ability to think objectively (see: Pascal’s wager) and productively (relating all his theories to the Bible); upgrade (↑) for his Thoughts dialogues (Einstein-Pascal dialogue on purpose); dereacted at 39; down-graded from 190|#49 to 185|#47 (Feb 2017). |
5. | — 59 | V | Otto Guericke (1602-1686) Volume: V Units: m³ Date: 1654 | [RGM:878|1,500+] (CR:112) German engineer, physicist, philosopher, diplomat; “Theories which are demonstrated by experiment and visual perception must be preferred to those derived from reasoning, however probable and plausible, for many things seem true in speculation and discussion, which in actual fact defy reality.” — Otto Guericke (1663), New Magdeburg Experiments on the Vacuum of Space (pg. xvii) In 1854, he experimentally disproved Aristotle's theories about space and and his view that nature abhors a vacuum; a characterized “neglected genius” (Coulson, 1943) (Ames, 1994) (Ѻ); the originality, variety, polymathly, and influence of his contributions are difficult to summarize in short; to say the least: he is the person behind the invention of the vacuum engine and the so-called: “first and greatest of the electrical discoverers”; first slated at 185|#61 (c.2017). | |
6. | — 52 | T | William Thomson (1824-1907) Temperature: K Units: kelvin Date: 1849 | (Cattell 1000:989) [RGM:726|1,500+] (Gottlieb 1000:111) [Kanowitz 50:19] [Cropper 30:5|T] (GPE:47) (SIG:6) (CR:384) Irish-born Scottish mathematical physicist; known for: absolute temperature (adjacent), thermodynamics; Glasgow University age 10; defended Joseph Fourier’s 1822 theory of heat over that of Philip Kelland’s 1837 heat theory (age 13); by age 15-16; published first scientific papers by age 17; in 1845 (age 21), after graduating second wrangler (Cambridge), simultaneous unearthed (↑↑) the then unknown and forgotten memoirs of Sadi Carnot’s 1824 thermodynamics memoir and George Green’s 1828 memoir on the mathematics of electricity and magnetism, now known as two of the most-original works in science; and gave the first mathematical development of Michael Faraday's idea that electric induction takes place through an intervening medium; downgrade (↓) for latter religious undertone based calculations, e.g. age of the sun, etc.; first-slating: 185-190 (c.2015). | |
7. | — 96 | F | Michael Faraday (1791-1867) Capacitance: farad Units: s⁴⋅A²⋅m⁻²⋅kg⁻¹ Date: c.1854 | =230 =180 =175 =170 | (Cattell 1000:330) [RGM:35|1,500+] (Murray 4000: 7|CS / 17|T) (CR:102) English physicist, chemist, and philosopher; known for his c.1837 experiments, with spherical capacitors (Ѻ), basically two concentric metal spheres in between which he could have air, glass, wax, shellac or other materials, with which he determined that the material in between the capacitor’s plates had an effect on the quantity of charge on the capacitor’s plates; specifically, using a Coulomb torsion balance, while keeping the potential difference constant, he effectively measured the charge on the capacitor when the gap between the spheres was filled with air, then measured the charge when the gap was filled with other materials, therein finding that the charge was greater with the other materials than it was with air; noted also for work in chemistry; largely self-taught through reading of books at a bindery he worked at as a child; intellectual giant to Einstein. |
8. | — 144 | A | Andre Ampere (1775-1836) Current: amp Units: C/s Date: 1827 | (Cattell 1000:557) [RGM:558|1,500+] (GPE:43) (Eells 100:93) (CR:15) French physicist and mathematician; “The experimental investigations by which Ampere established the laws of mechanical action between electric currents is one of the most brilliant achievements in science. The whole, theory and experiment, seems as if it had leaped, full grown and full armed, from the brain of the ‘Newton of electricity’. It is perfect in form, and unassailable in accuracy, and it is summed up in a formula from which all the phenomena may be deduced, and which must always remain the cardinal formula of electro-dynamics.” — James Maxwell (1873), Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism, Volume 2 Dubbed the “father of electrodynamics” (Heaviside, 1888); coiner of electrodynamics, the study of currents and dynamical movements; a “tortured genius” who had the phrase “Tandem felix” (“Happy, at last”) engraved on his tombstone; gauged at 180-190 (c.2015). | |
9. | — 150 | δW | Gustave Coriolis (1772-1843) Work: W Units: N⋅m (joule) Date: 1824 | (CR:35) French physicist; noted for his 1829 Calculation of the Effect of Machines, wherein he introduced the modern formulaic definition of work as force times distance; some references assert, of note, that also in this book he introduced the introduced the factor ½ in German mathematician Gottfried Leibniz’s 1686 vis viva for the sake of mathematical convenience (others say it was Joseph Lagrange who did this in 1811); also noted for his 1835 paper, wherein he stated that “any particle moving in the northern hemisphere is deflected to the right, and any particle moving in the southern hemisphere is deflected to the left”, aka the Coriolis effect, according to which explains why toilets drain clockwise in the northern hemisphere and counterclockwise in the southern hemisphere. | |
10. | — 166 | E | James Joule (1818-1889) Energy: J Units: N⋅m (joule) Date: 1845 | (CR:138|#30) English physicist and engineer; “The height of the pulleys from the ground was twelve yards, and consequently, when the weights had descended through that distance, they had to be wound up again in order to renew the motion of the paddle. After this operation had been repeated sixteen times, the increase of the temperature of the water was ascertained by means of a very sensible and accurate thermometer.” — James Joule (1845), “On the Existence of an Equivalent Relation between Heat and the Ordinary Forms of Mechanical Power” (Ѻ)(Ѻ) together with Hermann Helmholtz and Robert Mayer, are the three main derivers of the mechanical equivalent of heat (aka the conservation of energy) the big three thinkers of Thomas Kuhn’s group of 12 independent formulators of the conservation of energy paradigm change theory; gauged at IQ 175-190 (c.2015). | |
11. | — 202 | Hz | Heinrich Hertz (1857-1894) Frequency: hertz Units: 1/s Date: c.1888 | [RGM:151|1,500+] (Murray 4000:N/A) (Kanowitz 50:24) (SIG:11) (Ѻ) German physicist; “It's of no use whatsoever. This is just an experiment that proves Maestro Maxwell was right—we just have these mysterious electromagnetic waves that we cannot see with the naked eye. But they are there.” — Heinrich Hertz (1887) (Ѻ) noted for his 1886 experimental proof, via detection of radiowaves, of Maxwell's electromagnetic theory, via experimental setup as shown adjacent; first-slating: 180|#185 (Dec 2017). | |
12. | — 218 | P | James Watt (1736-1819) Power: P or hp Units: J/s Date: 1783 | =165 | (Cattell 1000:225) [RGM:130|1,500+] (Murray 4000:1|T) (CR:79) Scottish instrument maker, natural philosopher, chemist, and engineer; “James Watt was equally distinguished as a natural philosopher and chemist; his inventions demonstrate his profound knowledge of those sciences, and that peculiar characteristic of genius, the union of them for practical application.” — Humphry Davy (1824), “Address to Royal Society” (Ѻ)(Ѻ) noted for number of inventions and design improvements to the functionality of the steam engine, including: separate condenser (1765), the fly-ball governor (1788), the definition of "pony power" (or horse power), all embodied in what came to be known as the Watt engine (adjacent). |
13. | — 245 | V | Alessandro Volta (1745-1827) Potential EMF: volt Units: W/A Date: add | (Cattell 1000:684) [RGM:140|1,500+] (SIG:13) (CR:18) Italian physicist; “What is possible to do well, in physics in particular, are those things that can be reduced to degrees and measures.” — Alessandro Volta (c.1800) (Ѻ) noted for his famous 1776 “animal electricity” debated with his friend Luigi Galvani on the topic of the mechanism of the twitching of dead frog legs in an electric circuit, in respect to what separates a “living thing” from a “dead thing”, moved by purely electro-physico-chemical means; which resulted in Volta inventing the battery, or “Voltaic pile”, in 1800, so to prove Galvani wrong about his animal electricity theory; first-slated 175±|#156 (c.2015). | |
14. | — 285 | NA | Amedeo Avogadro (1776-1856) Substance: mol Units: Date: 1811/1909 | (GCE:21) (CR:11) Italian physical chemist; “The invariable number N is a universal constant, which may appropriately be designated Avogadro’s constant.” — Jean Perrin (1909), “Brownian Motion and Molecular Reality” noted for his 1811 hypothesis, based on the earlier work of Joseph Gay-Lussac (1809), that equal volumes of all gases under the same conditions of temperature and pressure, have the same number of molecules; in 1858, two years after his dereaction (death), Stanislao Cannizzaro (1826-1910) showed how the use of Avogadro's number could solve many of the problems in chemistry (Ѻ); in 1909, Jean Perrin calculate the “mol” to be 7.05x10E23 (modern value: 6.022x10E23). | |
15. | — 317 | C | Charles Coulomb (1736-1806) Charge: coulomb Units: A⋅s Date: 1717 | (Cattell 1000:N/A) [RGM:N/A|1,350+] (Murray 4000:N/A) (SIG:15) French physicist and military engineer; noted for his 1785 construction of a built a torsion balance (Ѻ), as shown, wherein, in an effort to prove Joseph Priestley 1766 inference that the force of attraction or repulsion between two small charged spheres would be inversely proportional to the square of the separating distance, using Hooke’s spring law, and showed quantitatively that charged spheres haven an inverse proportionality relationship, which he explained formulaically (see: Coulomb’s law); first-slating: 170|#291 (Mar 2018). | |
16. | Wb & c | Wilhelm Weber (1804-1891) Magnetic Flux: weber Units: V⋅s Date: date Speed of light: c Units: m/s Date: 1856 | |||
17. | Bq | Henri Becquerel (1852-1908) Radioactivity: bacquerel Units: 1/s Date: 1896 | |||
18. | — 453 | Ω | Georg Ohm (1789-1854) Resistance: ohms Units: kg⋅m³⋅s⁻³⋅m⁻² Date: 1827 | (Cattell 1000:N/A) (Gottlieb 1000:N/A) [RGM:154|1,500+] (Murray 4000:N/A) [Kanowitz 50:27] (GPE:93) (SIG:18) (CR:5) German physicist and mathematician; noted for his 1826 discovery of the “Ohm's law”, shown below: which states that current is directly proportional to the voltage and inversely proportional to the resistance. | |
19. | — 534 | H | Joseph Henry (1791-1867) Inductance: henry Units: Wb/A Date: 1832 | (Gottlieb 1000:605) (SIG:19) (GPE:99) was an American physicist and electrical engineer; noted for his discovery of electromagnetic induction (1832), independent of Faraday (1831); his genius ability was ranked, by Alfred Mayer (1880), as “a little below that of Faraday”; first-slating: 160|#534 (Nov 2019). | |
20. | Elizabeth Fulhame (c.1750-c.1820) Catalysis: katal Units: mol/s Date: 1794 | Scottish chemist; first, historically (Ѻ), supposedly, to describe catalysis in detail; a top female genius candidate. (Ѻ) | |||
21. | S | Ernst Siemens (1816-1892) Conductance: siemens Units: 1/Ω Date: add |