Adam Anderson AM LLD (27 June 1783 – 5 December 1846)Information from gravestone was a Scottish physicist and encyclopedist. He was the rector of

Perth Academy Perth Academy is a state comprehensive secondary school in Perth, Scotland. It was founded in 1696. The institution is a non-denominational one. The school occupies ground on the side of a hill in the Viewlands area of Perth, and is within the Pe ...

from 1811 to 1839, and Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy 1839 to 1846 at

St Andrews University (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

. Anderson designed and supervised the construction of

Perth Water Works Perth Water Works (also known as Corporation Water Works)''Official Guide to Perth and Its Neighbourhood by the Tramway Car Routes'' – Perth Town Council (1907), p. 19 is an historic building in Perth, Scotland, Perth, Scotland, dating to 1832. ...

, and supervised the construction of the royal burgh's gasworks. He contributed original papers on the measurement of the heights of mountains by the

barometer A barometer is a scientific instrument that is used to measure air pressure in a certain environment. Pressure tendency can forecast short term changes in the weather. Many measurements of air pressure are used within surface weather analysis ...

, the hygrometric state of the atmosphere, the

dew point The dew point is the temperature to which air must be cooled to become saturated with water vapor, assuming constant air pressure and water content. When cooled below the dew point, moisture capacity is reduced and airborne water vapor will cond ...

, and the illuminating power of coal gas, to ''

Nicholson's Journal ''A Journal of Natural Philosophy, Chemistry, and the Arts'', generally known as ''Nicholson's Journal'', was the first monthly scientific journal in Great Britain. William Nicholson began it in 1797 and was the editor until it merged with anoth ...

'', vol. xxx. 1812, to Thomson's ''

Annals of Philosophy ''Annals of Philosophy; or, Magazine of Chemistry, Mineralology, Mechanics, Natural History, Agriculture and the Arts'' was a learned journal founded in 1813 by the Scottish chemist Thomas Thomson. It shortly became a leader in its field of comme ...

'', vol. ix. 1817, and to the ''

Edinburgh Philosophical Journal The ''Edinburgh Philosophical Journal'' was founded by its editors Robert Jameson and David Brewster in 1819 as a scientific journal to publish articles on the latest science of the day. In 1826 the two editors fell out, and Jameson continued pu ...

'', vols. ii, iv, xi, xii, xiii, &c. The Perth gasworks were originally constructed under his superintendence, and he introduced many improvements leading to the economical production of gas. He wrote the articles "Barometer", "Cold", "Dyeing", "Fermentation", "Evaporation", "Hygrometry", "Navigation", and "Physical Geography" in Brewster's ''

Edinburgh Encyclopædia The ''Edinburgh Encyclopædia'' is an encyclopaedia in 18 volumes, printed and published by William Blackwood and edited by David Brewster between 1808 and 1830. In competition with the Edinburgh-published ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', the ''Edin ...

'' (completed 1830), and the article "Gaslight" in the ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various time ...

''. He died on 5 December 1846, aged 63, and is buried in the south-east section of

Greyfriars Burial Ground Greyfriars Burial Ground is an historic cemetery in Perth, Scotland, dating to 1580. It is now Category A listed. It occupies the former location of the Greyfriars Monastery, founded by Laurence Oliphant, 1st Lord Oliphant, in 1496 and destroy ...

in Perth.

References

;Specific ;General *
Adam Anderson
–

Dictionary of Scottish Architects The Dictionary of Scottish Architects is a publicly available online database that provides biographical information about all architects known to have worked in Scotland between 1660 and 1980, and lists their works. Launched in 2006, it was comp ...

;Attribution Scottish science writers Scottish physicists Scottish meteorologists Scottish encyclopedists 1846 deaths 19th-century Scottish people Academics of the University of St Andrews 1783 births Scottish schoolteachers Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Alumni of the University of St Andrews People from Perth, Scotland 19th-century British physicists 19th-century Scottish scientists 19th-century Scottish educators {{UK-physicist-stub