Cavendish, << KAV uhn dihsh, >> Henry (1731-1810), an English physicist and chemist, discovered many fundamental laws of electricity. He also conducted important experiments in chemistry and heat. In 1766, Cavendish discovered the properties of hydrogen and identified it as an element, calling it inflammable air. Later he showed that water is a compound of hydrogen and oxygen. In 1798, using a torsion-balance type of apparatus, Cavendish measured the density of Earth (see Torsion balance ). Much of his work in electricity remained unpublished until the late 1800’s, when another physicist, James Clerk Maxwell, edited his papers (see Maxwell, James Clerk ). Cavendish was born on Oct. 10, 1731, in Nice, France. He attended Cambridge University. He died on Feb. 24, 1810.
