Edmond Bouty

Edmond Marie Léopold Bouty (12 January 1846 – 5 November 1922) was a French physicist and professor at the Paris Faculty of Sciences for 37 years.

Biography

Edmond Bouty was born in Nant, Aveyron, the son of Léopold Bouty, a land surveyor, Edmond Bouty received his secondary education at the College of Millau, then at the Lyceum of Rodez. He passed his baccalauréat in 1864. He then studied special mathematics for two years at the Collège Rollin, then from 1866 to 1869 at the École normale supérieure (ENS), where he took part in Bertin-Mourot's lectures on physics, and the Paris Faculty of Science, where he studied under Paul Desains and Jules Jamin, obtaining his bachelor's degrees in physics and mathematics in 1868.

After a first unsuccessful attempt at the agrégation in physical and natural sciences, he was appointed lecturer in physics in the elementary mathematics class at the Lyceum of Montauban (1869–1871). Having passed his second attempt in 1871, he was appointed to the second physics chair at the Lyceum of Reims (1871–1876). He then joined the Lycée Saint-Louis, first as a substitute physics teacher in the special mathematics class (1876–1880), then as a full professor (1880–1883), and finally the Lycée Fénelon (1883–1884).

Parallel to his work as a secondary school teacher, from 1873 he carried out research at the physical research laboratory of the Paris Faculty of Science, directed by Jules Jamin. On December 8, 1874, he defended his thesis for the doctorate in science at the Paris Faculty of Science, and was appointed to the physical research laboratory for the year 1875–1876. After completing his doctorate, he continued his research activities alongside his teaching at the lyceum. He became deputy director of the physical research laboratory (1879–1885), reducing his teaching hours at the Lycée Saint-Louis by half.

He was appointed lecturer in physics at the Paris Faculty of Science on April 16, 1883, replacing Gabriel Lippmann. In 1884, he left secondary education to take up a position as lecturer in physics (3rd year) at the ENS. In 1885, he succeeded Paul Desains as chair of general physics at the Paris Faculty of Science and director of the faculty's physics teaching laboratory. Henri Pellat succeeded him as lecturer.

At this time, the laboratory had three preparator positions, held by Émile Mathias (November 1, 1885–December 30, 1889), Lucien Poincaré (1887–1890), Edgard Haudié (October 11, 1888–October 2, 1893), Daniel Berthelot (course preparator 1888–1892), Bernard Brunhes (1889–1893), Camille Raveau (then head of works, October 1891–March 1902), Raphaël Dongier (1893–1898, then deputy director), Georges Sagnac (October 1893–1900), Louis-Philibert Décombe (then deputy director), Edmond Rothé (1898–), Paul Langevin (1900–1902) and Henri Labrouste (1905–1914).

In 1893–94, the laboratory welcomed 112 undergraduate students. Assistant director and lecturer Jean-Louis Mouton was replaced by Georges Foussereau (November 6, 1891–October 25, 1892), who later became secretary of the faculty, and then by Anatole Leduc, with whom Bouty moved the laboratory into the new Sorbonne buildings. Raphaël Dongier was appointed assistant director in 1898, followed by Décombe.

His scientific work focused mainly on magnetism and electricity.

He was elected member of the Academy of Sciences on November 23, 1908, in the general physics section. He was president of the French Physical Society and the Société internationale des électriciens.

Edmond Bouty died in the 14th arrondissement of Paris.

Works

• Notice sur Jules-Célestin Jamin (1887)
• Notice sur Jean-Louis Mouton (1895)
• La pile - phénomènes électrothermiques et électrochimiques. Les aimants. Applications de l'électricité (1883; with Jules Jamin)
• Études sur le magnétisme (1874)
• Théorie des phénomènes électriques (1878)
• La Vérité scientifique: sa poursuite (1908)
• Indications thérapeutiques et travaux originaux sur les methylarsinates de soude et de fer (1909)
• Rapport sur un Mémoire de Émile Schwerer intitulé « Les Phénomènes thermiques de l'Atmosphère » (1910)
• La Physique (1915)

Bibliography

• Notice sur les travaux et titres scientifiques de M. E. Bouty. Tours: Impr. de Deslis frères (1908).

External links

• Works by Edmond Bouty at Gallica