Irish mathematician and physicist who made many contributions in the physical sciences. He studied fluorescence and the luminiferous ether, questioning Young and Fresnel's ether drag theory. He conceived ether as a viscous elastic solid, and concluded that there must be friction as the Earth moves through it. Thus, a thin layer of ether would be dragged along by the Earth, explaining the apparent lack of motion of the Earth with respect to the ether.

Stokes systematically studied fluid mechanics, elastic solids, waves in elastic media, and diffraction. In fact, the basic equations of fluid mechanics are called the Navier-Stokes equations in his honor. He also formulated the three-dimensional analog of Green's theorem known as Stokes' theorem, and was a pioneer in the use of divergent series.

Navier

Additional biographies: MacTutor (St. Andrews), Bonn