Abstract

Weber's equation for the force between moving charges was published in 1846. In 1848 Weber published a second paper in which he claimed to have derived his equation for the force between moving charges from the gradient of a scalar potential which was a function of position and relative velocity. I n this paper we prove that Weber's mathematical derivation does not employ the correct tensor definition of the gradient. Weber's formulation for the derivation of his force equation from his scalar potential is flawed from the point of view of modern holor theory. However, this does not invalidate Weber's force equation. It may be useful even though it cannot be derived from the gradient of Weber's scalar potential.