Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 11.2 Kelvin's coat of
arms adopted in 1892 (from
Debrett's Peerage (1908)).
said and published whatever he liked without fear of what critical
response it might engender, and he loved the contrast between the
academic and maritime sides of his activities.
Following his death on 17 December 1907 Baron Kelvin, as he
was by then, was buried close to other scientific luminaries in
Westminster Abbey in London. He was commemorated in Glasgow,
his adopted city, with a statue and in Belfast with another. Later
still he was additionally honoured in the city of his birth with the
erection of a blue plaque on the site of his birthplace. Unfortunately
when ordering this plaque the Ulster History Circle fell into the trap
that besets many a reader of the adventures of Tintin: how can you tell
the bumbling detectives Thompson and Thomson apart? Sadly, they
picked the wrong detective and the plaque reads 'WilliamThompson';
'Thomson' is the Scottish variant of the name, while 'Thompson' is
the English version. His peerage name 'Lord Kelvin' adorned the bow
of a marine research vessel and the glossy cover of the novel Lord
Kelvin's Machine by James P. Blaylock. However wonderful all these
accolades may be, it is appropriate given his major studies on heat that
he be remembered across the globe for the temperature scale that bears
his name.
CONSIGNING THOMSON'S TEMPORAL TRIDENT TOHISTORY
Thomson's initial reasoning behind taking up research on the age of the
Earth was his difficulty with the Darwinian timescale, and Darwin
