Editing Leyden jar (section)

== Previous work ==
The [[Ancient Greeks]] already knew that pieces of [[amber]] could attract lightweight particles after being rubbed. The amber becomes electrified by the [[triboelectric effect]], mechanical separation of charge in a [[dielectric]] material. The Greek word for amber is {{lang|grc|ἤλεκτρον}} ({{transliteration|grc|ēlektron}}) and is the origin of the word "electricity".<ref>{{cite web|title=electric|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/electric|website=Merriam-Webster|access-date=12 May 2017|quote=Origin and Etymology of ''electric'': New Latin ''electricus'' 'produced from amber by friction, electric', from Medieval Latin, 'of amber', from Latin ''electrum'' 'amber, electrum', from Greek ''ēlektron''; akin to Greek ''ēlektōr'' 'beaming sun'. First Known Use: 1722}}</ref> [[Thales of Miletus]], a [[Pre-Socratic philosophy|pre-Socratic philosopher]], is thought to have accidentally commented on the phenomenon of electrostatic charging, due to his belief that even lifeless things have a soul in them, hence the popular analogy of the spark.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Iversen |first1=Paul |last2=Lacks |first2=Daniel J. |date=2012 |title=A life of its own: The tenuous connection between Thales of Miletus and the study of electrostatic charging |url= https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304388612000216 |journal=Journal of Electrostatics |volume=70 |issue=3 |pages=309–311 |doi=10.1016/j.elstat.2012.03.002|s2cid=110739154 |issn=0304-3886}}</ref> Around 1650, [[Otto von Guericke]] built a crude [[electrostatic generator]]: a [[sulfur|sulphur]] ball that rotated on a shaft. When Guericke held his hand against the ball and turned the shaft quickly, a static [[electric charge]] built up. This experiment inspired the development of several forms of "friction machines", which greatly helped in the study of electricity.

[[Georg Matthias Bose]] (22 September 1710 – 17 September 1761) was a famous electrical experimenter in the early days of the development of electrostatics. He is credited with being the first to develop a way of temporarily storing static charges by using an insulated conductor (called a prime conductor). His demonstrations and experiments raised the interests of the German scientific community and the public in the development of electrical research.