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IELTS reading passage – William Gilbert and Magnetism
William Gilbert and Magnetism
The sixteenth and seventeenth centuries saw 2 great pioneers of modern science: Gilbert and Galileo. Their eminent findings made a big impact. Gilbert was the accredited father of the science of electricity and magnetism, the first modern scientist, a physician at the court of Elizabeth and an Englishman of learning. Before him, the things known about electricity and magnetism was what the ancients knew, and nothing more than that. Lodestone had magnetic properties and when amber and jet were rubbed, it would attract bits of paper or other substances of small specific gravity. However, he wasn’t given the recognition he deserves.
Gilbert was born before Galileo. He was born on 24 May 1544 in an esteemed family in UK’s Colchester county. After going to grammar school, he went to study medicine at St. John’s College, Cambridge. He graduated in 1573 and then travelled to the continent and later settled down in London.
He was a very eminent and successful doctor and was elected as the president of the Royal Science Society. He was appointed to serve the Queen (Elizabeth I) as her personal physician, and was later knighted by the Queen. He served her faithfully until her death. But soon after the Queen’s death he died on 10th December, 1603. It was only a few months after his appointment as a personal physician to King James.
Although Gilbert was interested in chemistry first he later changed his work because of a large portion of the mysticism of alchemy involved (such as the transmutation of metal). Slowly he became interested in physics after the great minds of the ancient, particularly about the knowledge the ancient Greeks had about lodestones, strange minerals with the power to attract iron. Meanwhile, in 1588 when the Spanish Armada was defeated, Britain had become a major seafaring nation, paving the way to the British settlement of America. British ships relied on the magnetic compass, yet no one knew why it worked. Was there a magnetic mountain at the pole, as described in Odyssey’ which ships would never approach or as Columbus said, did the pole star attract it? William Gilbert conducted ingenious experiments from 1580 to understand magnetism for almost 20 years.
Gilbert’s discoveries were so important to modern physics. He investigated the nature of electricity and magnetism. He was the one who coined the word “electric”. Ultimately the beliefs of magnetism were also twisted with superstitions like rubbing garlic on lodestone can remove its magnetism. Even Sailors believed the smell of garlic would even interfere with the action of the compass, which is why the steerers were forbidden to eat it near a ship’s compass. Gilbert also found that metals can be magnetised by rubbing materials such as plastic, fur, etc. on them. He named the magnets “north and south pole”. Depending on its polarity magnets can attract or repel. In addition, however, a magnet always attracts an ordinary iron. Though he started to study the relationship between electricity and magnetism, he did not finish it. His research of static electricity using jet and amber only showed that objects with electrical charges can work like magnets that attract small pieces of paper and stuff. du Fay, a French guy discovered that there are actually two electrical charges, negative and positive.
He also questioned the traditional astronomical beliefs. He didn’t express in his quintessential beliefs whether the earth is at the centre of the universe or in orbit around the sun though he was a Copernican. He believed that stars have their own earth-like planets orbiting around them and are not equidistant from the earth. Compasses always point north because the earth is like a giant magnet. The earth’s polarity and the axis they spin on is aligned. He built an entire magnetic philosophy on this analogy. He even equated the polarity of the earth to that of magnets. He explained that magnetism was the soul of the earth and a perfectly spherical lodestone, when aligned with the earth’s poles, would keep moving by itself in 24 hours. He further believed that suns and other stars wobble just like the earth does around a crystal core, and theorised that the moon might also be a magnet that orbits due to its attraction towards earth. Maybe this was the first proposal saying that a force might cause a heavenly orbit.
In his revolutionary research methods he used experiments instead of reasoning and pure logic like the ancient Greek philosophers did. It was new in the scientific investigation. Scientific experiments were not in fashion till then. Because of this scientific attitude and his contribution to the field of magnetism, the unit of magnetomotive force, also known as magnetic potential, was named Gilbert in his honour. He carefully approached it, observed and experimented it rather than the authoritative or deductive philosophy of others that had laid the very foundation for modern science.
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Questions 1-5
Complete the table below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the reading passage for each answer.
| Year | Event |
| 1 ________ | Gilbert was born |
| 2 ________ | Queen Elizabeth died |
| 3 ________ | Spanish Armada was defeated |
| 4 ________ | Gilbert graduated from St. John’s College |
| 1580 | William Gilbert conducted 5________. ingenious experiments |
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Questions 6-10
This reading passage has eight paragraphs, A–G.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A – G, as your answer to each question.
6. Gilbert was the accredited father of the science of electricity and magnetism.
7. He used experiments instead of reasoning and pure logic.
8. Gilbert coined the word “electric”.
9. He believed that stars have their own earth-like planets.
10. Gilbert was interested in chemistry first.
Questions 11-14
Complete the summary below.
Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
The eminent findings of Gilbert made a big impact. He was born on 24 May 1544 in an esteemed family in UK’s 11_____ county.
He investigated the nature of electricity and 12____.
Because of his scientific attitude and contribution to the field of magnetism, the unit of magnetomotive force, also known as 13________, was named Gilbert in his honour.
He died on 10th December, 1603 after a few months of his appointment as a personal physician to 14______.
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Unlock your full potential in the IELTS Reading section – Visit our IELTS Reading Practice Question Answer page now!
Recommended Questions:
Renewable Energy IELTS Reading Question with Answer
William Gilbert and Magnetism IELTS Reading Answers
1. 1544
2. 1603
3. 1588
4. 1573
5. ingenious experiments
6. Paragraph A
7. Paragraph G
8. Paragraph E
9. Paragraph F
10. Paragraph D
11. Colchester
12. Magnetism
13. magnetomotive force
14. King James
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