MARC LECONTE
18 articles published in Tangente
N°71Jul 09, 2019The advent of a new physics
It took a great deal of questioning, rethinking and controversy for a new, "quantum" mechanics to prevail—one capable of explaining certain subatomic phenomena that classical physics could not then describe. Much ground remains to be explored.
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N°71Jul 09, 2019How the universe became a physical object
The history of our universe did not take shape overnight. It took centuries to emerge and prevail amid controversies, competing models and apparent inconsistencies. Casting cosmological phenomena into equations, together with observations, brought matters into focus.
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Math for everyoneN°69Jan 21, 2019A new definition of the International System of Units
The conference held in Versailles in November 2018 changed four units of measurement, including the kilo. These new units will no longer depend on specific experiments. Their definitions will take effect in May 2019. What better opportunity to look back at the origins and evolution of our units of measurement?
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History and CultureN°69Jan 18, 2019James Clerk Maxwell
In 1865, with four equations that have since become legendary, Maxwell unifies magnetism, electricity and optics—fields that had until then remained separate. The way is now open for wireless telegraphy, radio broadcasting and, later, the development of electronics.
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History and CultureN°69Jan 17, 2019Ludwig Boltzmann
Ludwig Boltzmann was one of the most important scientists of the 19th century. Boltzmann's interpretation of entropy inspired Max Planck and Albert Einstein in their work on the statistical theory of radiation and on the quantum and photon hypotheses.
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History and CultureN°69Jan 17, 2019Joseph Fourier
At a time when the nature of heat was still being debated in the 18th century, Joseph Fourier established an equation describing how heat propagates through a solid of arbitrary shape. His methods make the French scientist a founder of mathematical physics.
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