Daniel Bernoulli (1700 - 1782)
Daniel Bernoulli was a Swiss physicist and mathematician
who made important discoveries in hydrodynamics. Born into a family of mathematicians on
February 8, 1700, he was the only member of his family to make a mark in physics. He was
educated and received his doctorate in Basel , Switzerland.
Bernoulli's most famous work, Hydrodynamica, was published
in 1738, it is both a theoretical and a practical study of equilibrium, pressure, and
velocity of fluids. He showed that as the velocity of fluid flow increases, its pressure
decreases. Referred to as "Bernoulli's principle," his work is used to produce a
vacuum in chemical laboratories by connecting a vessel to a tube through which water is
running rapidly.
Bernoulli's Hydrodynamica also attempted the first
explanation of the behavior of gases with changing pressure and temperature; this was the
beginning of the kinetic theory of gases.
One way you can visualize Bernoulli's principle is to imagine air flowing through a
tube which is narrower in the middle than at the ends. This type of device is usually
called a venturi.
