Jeans, Sir James

Jeans, Sir James

▪ British physicist and mathematician
in full  Sir James Hopwood Jeans  
born Sept. 11, 1877, London, Eng.
died Sept. 16, 1946, Dorking, Surrey
 English physicist and mathematician who was the first to propose that matter is continuously created throughout the universe. He made other innovations in astronomical theory but is perhaps best known as a writer of popular books about astronomy.

      Jeans taught at the University of Cambridge (1904–05, 1910–12) and at Princeton University (1905–09). In 1923 he became a research associate at Mt. Wilson Observatory, Pasadena, Calif., where he remained until 1944. In 1928, the year he was knighted, he proposed his continuous-creation theory.

      His work included investigations of spiral nebulae, the source of stellar energy, binary and multiple star systems, and giant and dwarf stars. He also analyzed the breakup of rapidly spinning bodies under the stress of centrifugal force and concluded that the nebular hypothesis of Laplace, which stated that the planets and Sun condensed from a single gaseous cloud, was invalid. He proposed instead the catastrophic or tidal theory, first suggested by the American geologist Thomas C. Chamberlin. According to this theory, a star narrowly missed colliding with the Sun and, in its passing, drew away from the Sun stellar debris that condensed to form the planets.

      Jeans applied mathematics to problems in thermodynamics and radiant heat and wrote on other aspects of radiation. Among his many popular books, perhaps his best were The Universe Around Us (1929) and Through Space and Time (1934). His important technical works include The Dynamical Theory of Gases (1904), Theoretical Mechanics (1906), The Mathematical Theory of Electricity and Magnetism (1908), and Introduction to the Kinetic Theory of Gases (1940).

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Sir James Jeans — James Jeans Sir James Hopwood Jeans (11 septembre 1877 à Ormskirk – 16 septembre 1946 à Dorking) était un physicien, astronome, et mathématicien britannique. Sommaire 1 Biographie 2 Citations 3 Distinctions honori …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Jeans, Sir James (Hopwood) — born Sept. 11, 1877, London, Eng. died Sept. 16, 1946, Dorking, Surrey British physicist and mathematician. After teaching at Cambridge and Princeton, he worked as a research associate at the Mount Wilson Observatory (1923–44). He proposed that… …   Universalium

  • Jeans, Sir James (Hopwood) — (11 sep. 1877, Londres, Inglaterra–16 sep. 1946, Dorking, Surrey). Físico y matemático británico. Después de enseñar en Cambridge y Princeton, trabajó como investigador asociado en el Observatorio de Monte Wilson (1923–44). Propuso que la materia …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • James Hopwood Jeans — James Jeans Sir James Hopwood Jeans (11 septembre 1877 à Ormskirk – 16 septembre 1946 à Dorking) était un physicien, astronome, et mathématicien britannique. Sommaire 1 Biographie 2 Citations 3 Distinctions honori …   Wikipédia en Français

  • James Hopwood Jeans — Sir James Hopwood Jeans (11 de septiembre de 1877, Ormskirk, Lancashire – 16 de septiembre de 1946, Dorking, Surrey) fue un físico, astrónomo y matemático británico …   Wikipedia Español

  • James Jeans — James Hopwood Jeans. Sir James Hopwood Jeans (* 11. September 1877 in Ormskirk, Lancashire; † 16. September 1946 in Dorking, Surrey) war ein englischer Physiker, Astronom und Mathematiker …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • James — James, Henry James, Henry James, William * * * (as used in expressions) Agee, James Anderson, (James) Maxwell Audubon, John James Baldwin, James (Arthur) Balfour (de Whittingehame), Arthur James, 1 conde Ballard, J(ames) G(raham) Barrie, Sir… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • sir — /serr/, n. 1. a respectful or formal term of address used to a man: No, sir. 2. (cap.) the distinctive title of a knight or baronet: Sir Walter Scott. 3. (cap.) a title of respect for some notable personage of ancient times: Sir Pandarus of Troy …   Universalium

  • James — /jaymz/, n. 1. Also called James the Great. one of the 12 apostles, the son of Zebedee and brother of the apostle John. Matt. 4:21. 2. the person identified in Gal. 1:19 as a brother of Jesus: probably the author of the Epistle of St. James. 3.… …   Universalium

  • sir — (Voz inglesa.) ► sustantivo masculino Tratamiento honorífico empleado por los británicos. * * * sir (ingl.; pronunc. [ser]) m. *Tratamiento de respeto usado en Inglaterra delante de un nombre de hombre o para dirigirse a la persona de que se… …   Enciclopedia Universal

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