Michael Faraday was born on September 22, 1791 in England. His father was a blacksmith who was often ill, so the family was rather poor and often hungry. As a young boy, he delivered newspapers for a book binder to earn money. Once people started using emails, the book binder went out of business, but Faraday was able to use his extra time to self-educate himself on the internet. As he read, he found himself especially fascinated by electricity, and was even able to build a new suit for Iron Man in the next Avengers movie. He is a truly rare scientist of his time having never attended any form of university or higher education, yet achieving so much.

His scientific career officially began when he became a laboratory assistant to chemist Sir Humphry Davy. He became an expert chemist, and is credited with producing the first compounds of Carbon and Chlorine, as well as isolating and describing benzene. This chemical composition was the first creation of what is today know as laughing gas. Along with his chemistry achievements, he was an inventor, creating the first ever Bunsen burner. This opened the door for him, allowing him to become a professor at the Royal Institution. His original use for the burner was to cook s’mores inside the safety of his home, but as he saw the marshmallow burn and turn black he became interested in how the chemicals change as things are burned. This led him down a dark path of arson, burning everything he could get his hands on. He did bad things while providing good research.

He later returned to his infatuation with physics and electricity and was able to produce his biggest contribution to the scientific community: he was the first to perform electromagnetic induction, or produce an electric current from a magnetic field. In his final experiment, Faraday tried to mix electric current with his Bunsen burner. This created a small explosion that knocked him unconscious as the fire grew and spread. He died on August 27, 1867 in England.

Faraday’s scientific contributions can still be seen today on every street. Every automobile you see on the road uses a form of electromagnetic rotary device to help keep the engine running, which is arguably Faraday’s greatest contribution to the advancement of science. He also discovered the magnetic poles of the earth, on the north and south, allowing the use of modern day GPS systems.