Around 1600, a pioneering English physician and natural philosopher invented versorium, the first electroscope, and detected the presence of static electric charges

Around 1600, William Gilbert invented the versorium, the first electroscope, to detect static electric charges. The English physician and natural philosopher studied electricity and magnetism through experiments. His work helped separate magnetism from static electricity. He also argued that Earth is a giant magnet and used a terrella to demonstrate how magnetic behavior works.