Julius von Mayer

Julius Robert von Mayer
Born	Julius Robert Mayer[a] 25 November 1814 Heilbronn, Kingdom of Württemberg
Died	20 March 1878(1878-03-20) (aged 63) Heilbronn, Kingdom of Württemberg, German Empire
Alma mater	University of Tübingen
Known for	First law of thermodynamics Mechanical equivalent of heat Mayer's reagent Mayer's relation
Awards	Copley Medal (1871) Poncelet Prize (1869)
Scientific career
Fields	Physics

Julius Robert von Mayer (25 November 1814 – 20 March 1878) was a German physician, chemist, and physicist and one of the founders of thermodynamics. He is best known for enunciating in 1841 one of the original statements of the conservation of energy or what is now known as one of the first versions of the first law of thermodynamics, namely that "energy can be neither created nor destroyed".^[1][2] In 1842, Mayer described the vital chemical process now referred to as oxidation as the primary source of energy for any living creature. He also proposed that plants convert light into chemical energy.

His achievements were overlooked and priority for the discovery in 1842 of the mechanical equivalent of heat was attributed to James Joule in the following year.

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