The Society of Friends of André-Marie Ampère (“Société des Amis d’André-Marie Ampère” in French, SAAMA) is a scholarly society whose aim is to contribute to perpetuating the memory of

André-Marie Ampère André-Marie Ampère (, ; ; 20 January 177510 June 1836) was a French physicist and mathematician who was one of the founders of the science of classical electromagnetism, which he referred to as ''electrodynamics''. He is also the inventor of ...

through all means it deems appropriate, including conferences, publications, commemorations, collection of documents and apparatus, and the creation and development of a museum, the

Ampère Museum The Ampère Museum is a museum of the history of electricity dedicated to André-Marie Ampère (1775–1836). The museum is located in Poleymieux-au-Mont-d'Or at approximately from Lyon by road and is housed in the house where André-Marie Ampè ...

. Founded in 1930 at the initiative of Paul Janet, a member of the French Academy of Sciences and Director of the “École Supérieure d'Électricité”, the society has been recognized as a public utility by French administration since 1936. In particular, SAAMA is responsible for the management and development of an Electricity Museum, located in Ampère's house in

Poleymieux-au-Mont-d'Or Poleymieux-au-Mont-d'Or () is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon, located in the administrative region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, eastern France. The Ampère Museum, in the youth house of André-Marie Ampère is its main cultural attraction. Crea ...

, close to Lyon, known as the

. The French Society for Electricity, Electronics, and Information and Communication Technologies owns the premises and is a privileged partner of SAAMA. SAAMA also organizes exhibitions, workshops, and numerous events that contribute to raising awareness of André-Marie Ampère's contributions and disseminating scientific and technical knowledge about electromagnetism and its applications. It also takes care of the preservation and development of the Ampère House-Electricity Museum site. SAAMA also publishes an annual bulletin. The Society has been chaired by various personalities, including Louis Lumière, Georges Darrieus, Maurice Ponte, Paul Delouvrier, Maurice Jacob and Geneviève Comté-Bellot.

History

In 1928, thanks to an international subscription organized by Paul Janet, member of the French Academy of Sciences, it was acquired the former property of

, which had just been put up for sale . This subscription received support from companies, associations, and prominent individuals, with the largest contribution coming from the Behn brothers. Hernand and

Sosthenes Behn Sosthenes Behn (January 30, 1884 – June 6, 1957) was an American businessman, and the founder of ITT. He held the rank of lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. Biography Early years Sosthenes Behn was born in the island of St. Thomas, then pa ...

, American businessmen of French descent through their mother. The Behn brothers were the co-founders of the multinational company ITT, which was expanding its operations in France at that time. Although initially the house of André-Marie Ampère was intended to be donated to the French Academy of Sciences, it was eventually entrusted to the French Society of Electrical Engineers. On June 2, 1928, the Poleymieux house was inaugurated in the presence of numerous personalities. At the same initiative of Paul Janet, the Society of Friends of André-Marie Ampère (SAAMA) was founded on June 12, 1930, with the responsibility of managing the Ampère House and to create a museum. Among the founders of SAAMA were

Émile Picard Charles Émile Picard (; 24 July 1856 – 11 December 1941) was a French mathematician. He was elected the fifteenth member to occupy seat 1 of the Académie française in 1924. Life He was born in Paris on 24 July 1856 and educated there at th ...

(Perpetual Secretary of the Academy of Sciences), Alfred Lacroix (Perpetual Secretary of the Academy of Sciences),

André Blondel André-Eugène Blondel (28 August 1863 – 15 November 1938) was a French engineer and physicist. He is the inventor of the electromechanical oscillograph and a system of photometric units of measurement. Life Blondel was born in Chaumont, Ha ...

(Academy of Sciences), Gustave Ferrié (Academy of Sciences), Paul Janet (Academy of Sciences), Louis de Launay (Academy of Sciences), and

Vito Volterra Vito Volterra (, ; 3 May 1860 – 11 October 1940) was an Italian mathematician and physicist, known for his contributions to Mathematical and theoretical biology, mathematical biology and Integral equation, integral equations, being one of the ...

(Foreign Associate of the Academy of Sciences). The first president of SAAMA was Louis Lumière, with two honorary presidents, Raymond Poincaré (French Academy) and Edouard Herriot, Mayor of Lyon. The patronage committee established for the creation of SAAMA gathered numerous scientific personalities, including several Nobel laureates in physics such as

William Henry Bragg Sir William Henry Bragg (2 July 1862 – 12 March 1942) was an English physicist and X-ray crystallographer who uniquelyThis is still a unique accomplishment, because no other parent-child combination has yet shared a Nobel Prize (in any fiel ...

(1915),

Louis de Broglie Louis Victor Pierre Raymond, 7th Duc de Broglie (15 August 1892 – 19 March 1987) was a French theoretical physicist and aristocrat known for his contributions to quantum theory. In his 1924 PhD thesis, he postulated the wave nature of elec ...

(1929),

Jean Perrin Jean Baptiste Perrin (; 30 September 1870 – 17 April 1942) was a French atomic physicist who, in his studies of the Brownian motion of minute particles suspended in liquids (sedimentation equilibrium), verified Albert Einstein's explanation o ...

(1926),

Pieter Zeeman Pieter Zeeman ( ; ; 25 May 1865 – 9 October 1943) was a Dutch physicist who shared the 1902 Nobel Prize in Physics with Hendrik Lorentz for their discovery and theoretical explanation of the Zeeman effect. Childhood and youth Pieter Zeeman was ...

(1902), and in chemistry,

Victor Grignard Francois Auguste Victor Grignard (6 May 1871 – 13 December 1935) was a French chemist who won the Nobel Prize for his discovery of the eponymously named Grignard reagent and Grignard reaction, both of which are important in the formation of ...

(1912) and

Paul Sabatier (chemist) Paul Sabatier (; 5 November 1854 – 14 August 1941) was a French chemist, born in Carcassonne. In 1912, Sabatier was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry along with Victor Grignard. Sabatier was honoured for his work improving the hydr ...

(1912), as well as other renowned physicists and chemists such as Blas Cabrera,

Aimé Cotton Aimé Auguste Cotton (9 October 1869 – 16 April 1951) was a French physicist known for his studies of the interaction of light with chiral molecules. In the absorption bands of these molecules, he discovered large values of optical rotato ...

Charles Fabry Marie Paul Auguste Charles Fabry (; 11 June 1867 – 11 December 1945) was a French physicist working on optics. Together with Alfred Pérot he invented the Fabry–Pérot interferometer. He is also one of the co-discoverers of the ozone l ...

Wander Johannes de Haas Wander Johannes de Haas (2 March 1878 – 26 April 1960) was a Dutch physicist and mathematician. He is best known for the Shubnikov–de Haas effect, the De Haas–Van Alphen effect and the Einstein–de Haas effect. Personal life Wander de Ha ...

, Martin Knudsen,

Paul Langevin Paul Langevin (23 January 1872 – 19 December 1946) was a French physicist who developed Langevin dynamics and the Langevin equation. He was one of the founders of the '' Comité de vigilance des intellectuels antifascistes'', an anti-fascist ...

and Henry Le Chatelier. The Ampère Museum was inaugurated on July 1, 1931, and SAAMA was recognized as a French public utility society by decree on April 4, 1936.

The SAAMA and the Ampère Museum

Since its foundation in 1930, the Society of Friends of André-Marie Ampère has been responsible for the management and development of an Electricity Museum, located in Ampère's house in Poleymieux-au-Mont-d'Or, known as the

or Ampère House-Electricity Museum. Throughout its history, SAAMA has undertaken numerous renovations and restorations of the building and its gardens, as well as the collection, acquisition, and development of objects and installations that make up the Ampère Museum collection, thanks to the contribution of numerous patrons and the dedication of the association's volunteers.

Publications

The Society of Friends of André-Marie Ampère publishes books, videos, and an annual bulletin. Publications by the society (non-exhaustive list): * "Correspondance du Grand Ampère" in 3 volumes from 1936 to 1943, Ampère, Author: André Marie (1775–1836). Scientific editors: Louis Auguste Alphonse and the Society of Friends of André-Marie Ampère. * "Guide du Musée Ampère" by Robert Moïse, 3rd revised and enlarged edition - 1985 (63 pages). * "Guide du Musée Ampère" by Robert Moïse, revised and expanded edition - 1996 (63 pages). * "Le génial Bonhomme Ampère - Le Romain de sa vie" by Pierre Marion, 1999. * "Bulletin de la Société des Amis d'André-Marie Ampère" from 1931. * "L'homme à l'aimant" Collective work with contributions from SAAMA. Published by EMMC, (ISBN 9782357401235) - 2011.

Distinctions

The Society of Friends of André Marie Ampère received the "2018 Medal of Honor" from the Academy of Sciences, Humanities and Arts of Lyon.

Presidents

Louis Lumière Louis Jean Lumière (; 5 October 1864 – 6 June 1948) was a French engineer and industrialist who played a key role in the development of photography and cinema. Early life and education Lumière was one of four children of Claude-Antoine ...

(1930–1941) * Frédéric Hellot (1942–1947) * Georges Darrieus (1948–1974) * Maurice Ponte (1974–1979) * Raymond Pelletier (1979–1985) *

Paul Delouvrier Paul Delouvrier (; 25 June 1914 – 16 January 1995) was a French administrator and economist. He was awarded the Erasmus Prize in 1985, a year when the theme for the award was Urban Development. Biography Paul Delouvrier was born in Remirem ...

(1985–1994) * Jean-Pierre Desgeorges (1994–1999) * Jacques Lion (2000–2001) * Maurice Jacob (2002–2005) * Geneviève Comté-Bellot (2005–2020) * Alfonso San Miguel (since 2021)

General Delegates

* Eugène Dumont (1930–1940) * Louis Domenach (1941–1967) * Robert Moise (1973–1975) * Louis Dupré-Latour (1967–1979) * Joseph Janin (1979–1999) * Georges Asch(2000–2010) * Georges Delorme (2010–2015) * Jean-Luc Rayon (2015–2020) * Philippe Ponchon (2021–2022)

Honorary Presidents

* Georges Darrieus * Geneviève Comte-Bellot

References

{{Reflist Physics societies Learned societies