Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac
Pioneering French chemist known for gas laws and water's composition.
Chronology: 1778-12-06 – 1850-05-09
Origins & Early Life
Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac (6 December 1778 – 9 May 1850) was a French chemist and physicist. He is known mostly for his discovery that water is made of two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen by volume (with Alexander von Humboldt), for two laws related to gases, and for his work on alcohol–water mixtures, which led to the degrees Gay-Lussac used to measure alcoholic beverages in many countries. == Biography == Gay-Lussac was born at Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat in the present-day department of Haute-Vienne. His father, Anthony Gay, son of a doctor, was a lawyer and prosecutor and worked as a judge in Noblat Bridge.
Pivotal Works & Achievements
Father of two sons and three daughters, he owned much of the Lussac village and began to add the name of this hamlet to his name, following a custom of the Ancien Régime. Towards the year 1803, father and son formally adopted the name Gay-Lussac. During the Revolution, under the Law of Suspects, his father, former king's attorney, was imprisoned in Saint Léonard from 1793 to 1794. Gay-Lussac received his early education at the hands of the Catholic Abbey of Bourdeix. In the care of the Abbot of Dumonteil, he began his education in Paris, finally entering the École Polytechnique...
Enduring Legacy & Impact
The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.
Source: Wikipedia