TiiK nisronr of oum's l.wv 



599 



THP] HISTORY OF OHM'S LAW 



By Professor JOHN C. SIIEDD, olivkt coli-kuk anu MAYO D. IIEUSIIBV, u. s. 



BUREAU OF STANDARDS 



Jidroduciion 



IN the historical development of any brancli of science three steps may 

 generally be traced. First, there is the growth, frequently in dis- 

 connected masses, of a body of data. A few of the more readily grasped 



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facts may find quantitative expression. These formnlfe, whether ex- 

 pressed in words or in mathematical terms, prepare the way for the 

 second stage, in whieli investigation is directed toward the discovery of 

 connecting links between otherwise isolated observations. This induc- 

 tive process of framing and testing hypotheses ends with that compre- 

 hensive generalization in concise mathematical form which constitutes 

 a "fundamental"' law. The third and final stage comprises the deduc- 



