William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin

1825–1907 · British physicist and engineer

Topics: physics, mathematics

• The beauty and clearness of the dynamical theory, which asserts heat and light to be modes of motion, is at present obscured by two clouds.

  — William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin

• Now I think hydrodynamics is to be the root of all physical science, and is at present second to none in the beauty of its mathematics.

  — William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin

• Quaternions came from Hamilton after his really good work had been done, and though beautifully ingenious, have been an unmixed evil to those who have touched them in any way.

  — William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin