James Maxwell, a Scottish physicist and mathematician, was a remarkable scientist. He brought together a large number of equations, experiments, and observations related to electricity and magnetism, and showed them to be different manifestations of the same phenomenon.
Maxwell produced a set of equations that explain the properties of magnetic and electric fields, and help show that light is an electromagnetic wave. He also described the nature of Saturn’s rings as numerous small particles, rather than a solid or fluid ring.
Maxwell’s contributions in the fields of kinetic theory and thermodynamics are many. He is even believed to have created the first true colour photograph. His contributions played an important role in the advances made in 20th century physics.