lesser known figures

[qwpoi]

Hey all, I'm trying to get some general background history/refresh my memory. Now everyone and their mother knows the names of Copernicus, Einstein, Galileo, Newton, etc. But can you guys think of some lesser known figures such as Gauss who have made very important discoveries within physics? Names that aren't household names, but without whom certain developments would have taken longer. And if it's really esoteric, please write a little blurb on what that person did. Thanks!

-betsy

[ShawnD]

bohr, milikan, einstein, tesla, plank, faraday, avogadro, joule, coulomb, ohm


look at constant names and units.

[J/Psi]

young (from young's double slit), dirac (dirac delta function), maxwell (maxwell equations)