William Hopkins

William Hopkins FRS ( born February 2, 1793 in Kingston-on - Soar, Nottinghamshire, † October 13, 1866 in Cambridge, England ) was an English mathematician and geologist. One of its main discoveries was the increase of the melting temperature with the pressure. During his time at the University of Cambridge he acquired among mathematics students the reputation of a successful tuition teacher.

An important contribution to geology was his assumption of a fixed place liquid interior of the earth and its on the foot and explanations in different geological phenomena. Even if his conclusions appear correctly today, so his mathematical and physical derivations were considered later as untenable.

At Hopkins students were Edward John Routh, Francis Galton, George Gabriel Stokes, Arthur Cayley, Lord Kelvin, Peter Guthrie Tait, James Clerk Maxwell, Isaac Todhunter and Philip Kelland ( 1808-1879 ).

Early life

Hopkins was born in Kingston -on- Soar, the only son of the gentleman - farmer William Hopkins. In his youth he studied practical agriculture in Norfolk before his father rented him a small farm in Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk. William Hopkins, however, was not successful as a farmer, and died when his first wife about 1821, he took the opportunity to mitigate its losses slightly and entered St Peter's College (now Peterhouse ) at the University of Cambridge in. His degree as B. A. he received in 1827 as seventh wrangler. A Wrangler is one of the third stage of the three -part math student career at the University of Cambridge, who has passed his third examination with distinction graduate. In 1830 he put his degree from a Master of Arts. In 1833 he published his book Elements of Trigonometry and started as a mathematician a name.

Wranglermacher

Even before reaching its conclusion Hopkins Caroline Frances Boys (1799-1881) had married and was thus no longer a bachelor. For this reason he could not be elected as a Fellow to the University of Cambridge, so he earned his living as a private tutor. He prepared an ambitious math students preparing to possible einzunehmenen the position of the top graduates of each cohort (Senior Wrangler ). In this specialized form of tutoring, he was exceptionally successful, earning 700 to 800 pounds a year, and received the honorary title of Senior Wrangler Maker. In 1849, he had nearly 200 students taught, of which 17 reached the coveted post of Senior Wranglers. Francis Galton praised his teaching style, in which he wove amusing episodes in the substance and by his lively presentation, the dry subject made ​​alive. In addition to Hopkins students also made Edward Routh from the first Senior Wrangler was, and later was also known as Wrangler maker.

Geology

Hopkins interested in geology awoke about 1833, after he met Adam Sedgwick in Barmouth and accompanied him on several excursions. Since then, he has published in the journals of the Cambridge Philosophical Society and the Geological Society of London Papers to the mathematical foundations of geology, so was the physical geology. He dealt with the impact that acting within the earth forces on the earth's crust and display it in the development of fractures and joints. In this context, he discussed the uplift and erosion of the Lake District, the area of the Weald and the Bas Boulonnais.

After his presentation of the substantially solid earth system was dynamic through caves that ran through him, and produced in which hot vapors or liquids in restricted zones increased pressure, and produced, among others, volcanoes and earthquakes. Such a dynamic model was contrary to the position taken by Charles Lyell, who accepted a calm state of liquid under a little more than 100 miles thick crust inside Earth's body.

In 1838 and in 1842 published a series of essays Hopkins at the Royal Society, in which he analyzed the rotation of the earth, including the precession and nutation, among other observations, and came to the conclusion that a liquid Erdinneres not agree with the observations. In 1847 he led his thoughts on volcanoes and earthquakes in a report to the British Association.

As part of its investigations Hopkins tried to estimate the impact of the enormous pressure on the melting point and the thermal conductivity of various substances. With the support of a grant from the Royal Society, he went with the help of Lord Kelvin, James Prescott Joule and William Fairbairn of measurements that should support his theories.

In his opinion, the cooling of the earth has no effect on the cooling of the climate. On this subject he held in 1851 at the Geological Society the lecture On the Causes Which june have produced changes in the Earth 's superficial temperature ( over the possible reasons for changes in the surface temperature of the Earth ). In his second presidential address to the Geological Society of London ( 1853), he criticized the theory of Elie de Beaumont on the collection of mountain ranges established as bad.

Finally, Lord Kelvin suggested tactfully that Hopkins views on the structure of the earth are indeed correct, its mathematical and physical evidence, however flawed.

Glaciology

Hopkins also wrote about the movement of glaciers and the transportation of boulders, but got so into the territory of JD Forbes, who was looking at this issue as his personal domain, and reproached him, he did not have enough experience as an observer in this area.

Private life

Hopkins enjoyed music, poetry and landscape painting. With his second wife, Hopkins had a son and three daughters, including the Moralpredigerin Ellice Hopkins.

The end of his life he spent in a mental hospital in Stoke Newington, where he died of chronic insanity and exhaustion.

Honors

• Fellow of the Royal Society, June 1, 1837
• Geological Society of London: Wollaston Medal, ( 1850)
• President of the Geological Society of London ( 1851)