Fourdrinier \ 1 for-dr3-'nir\ machine Machine for producing paper, paperboard, and other fibreboards, consisting of a moving endless belt of wire or plastic screen that receives a mixture of pulp and water and allows excess water to drain off, forming a continuous sheet for further drying by suction, pressure, and heat. Calendering smooths the paper or board and imparts gloss or other desired finish to the surface. The first machine to produce a continuous web (roll), the Fourdrinier machine was patented in France in 1799 by Louis Robert and later improved in England by Henry (1766-1854) and Sealy (died 1847) Fourdrinier. With further improvements over the years, it is still in use today.
Fourier \f\ir-ya.,\English\ , fur-e-,a\, (Francois-Marie-) Charles (b.
April 7, 1772, Besangon, France—d.
Oct. 10, 1837, Paris) French social theorist. He advocated a reconstruc¬ tion of society based on communal associations of producers known as phalanges (phalanxes). His system became known as Fourierism. He felt that phalanges would distribute wealth more equitably than would capitalism and that they would con¬ tribute both to a cooperative lifestyle and to individual self-fulfillment.
After inheriting his mother’s estate in 1812 , he devoted himself to writ¬ ing and refining his theories. Coop¬ erative settlements based on Fourierism were started in France and the U.S., including Brook Farm.
Fourier \'fur-e-,a\ / (Jean- Baptiste-) Joseph, Baron (b.
March 21, 1768, Auxerre,
France—d. May 16, 1830, Paris)
French mathematician and Egyptol¬ ogist. While an engineer on Napoleon’s Egyptian expedition, he con¬ ducted (1798-1801) anthropological investigations and wrote the preface to the monumental Description de I’Egypte, whose publication he over¬ saw (1809-28). In 1808 he was created a baron by Napoleon. In math¬ ematics he is primarily known for his work in heat conduction (1807-22), for his use of the Fourier series to solve differential equations, and for the
related concept of the Fourier trans¬ form. As a scientist and humanist, he epitomized the spirit of French intel- lectualism of the Revolutionary era.
Fourier series In mathematics, an infinite series used to solve special types of differential equations. It con¬ sists of an infinite sum of sines and cosines, and because it is periodic (i.e., its values repeat over fixed intervals), it is a useful tool in ana¬ lyzing periodic functions. Though investigated by Leonhard Euler, among others, the idea was named for Joseph Fourier, who fully explored its consequences, including impor¬ tant applications in engineering, par¬ ticularly in heat conduction.
Fourier transform In math¬ ematical analysis, an integral transform useful in solving certain types of partial differential equations. A function’s Fourier transform is derived by integrating the product of the function and a kernel function (an expo¬ nential function raised to a negative complex power) over the interval from —oo to +oo. The Fourier transform of a function g is given by
t kfy***
Such transforms, discovered by Joseph Fourier, are particularly useful in studying problems concerning electrical potential.
Fourneyron \fur-ne-'ro n \, BenoTt (b. Oct. 31, 1802, Saint-Etienne, France—d. July 31, 1867, Paris) French inventor of the water turbine. He first built a small, 6-horsepower unit in which water was directed outward from a central source onto blades or vanes set at angles in a rotor, and he eventually produced a turbine capable of 2,300 revolutions per minute, 80% efficiency, and 60 horsepower, with a wheel 1 ft (30 cm) in diameter weighing 40 lbs (18 kg). Besides its more obvious advantages over the waterwheel, Fourneyron’s turbine could be installed horizontally with a vertical shaft. Immediately successful, it powered industry in continental Europe and the U.S., notably the New England textile industry. In 1895 Fourneyron turbines were installed on the U.S. side of Niagara Falls to generate electric power.
four-o'clock Ornamental perennial plant (Mirabilis jalapa\ family Nyctaginaceae), also called marvel-of-Peru or beauty-of-the-night, native to the tropical New World. It is a quick-growing species up to 3 ft (1 m) tall, with oval leaves on short leafstalks. The stems are swollen at the joints. The plant is called four-o’clock because its flowers, which vary from white and yellow to shades of pink and red, sometimes streaked and mottled, open in late afternoon (and close by morning).
Fourteen Points Outline of proposals by Pres. Woodrow Wilson for a post-World War I peace settlement, given in an address in January 1918. The emphasis on “open covenants of peace, openly arrived at” was pro¬ posed to change the usual method of secret diplomacy practiced in Europe. Other points outlined territorial adjustments following the war. The last point called for “a general association of nations,” which pre¬ saged the League of Nations.
fourth-generation language (4GL) Fourth-generation computer programming language. 4GLs are closer to human language than other high-level languages and are accessible to people without formal training as programmers. They allow multiple common operations to be performed with a single programmer-entered command. They are intended to be easier for users than machine languages (first-generation), assembly lan¬ guages (second-generation), and older high-level languages (third- generation).
Fourth of July See Independence Day
Fourth Republic Government of the French Republic from 1946 to 1958. The postwar provisional president Charles de Gaulle resigned in 1946, expecting that public support would bring him back to power with a mandate to impose his constitutional ideas. Instead, the constituent assembly chose the Socialist Felix Gouin to replace him. The assembly
Charles Fourier, engraving by Samuel Sartain after a painting by Jean- Fran^ois Gigoux
CULVER PICTURES
Joseph Fourier, lithograph by Jules Boilly, 1823; in the Academy of Sci¬ ences, Paris.
GIRAUDON/ART RESOURCE, NEW YORK
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Fowler ► foxhound I 699
submitted two draft constitutions to a popular vote in 1946, and the revi¬ sion was narrowly approved. The structure of the Fourth Republic was remarkably like that of the Third Republic. The lower house of parliament, renamed the National Assembly, was the locus of power. Shaky coalition cabinets succeeded one another, and the lack of a clear-cut majority ham¬ pered coherent action. Political leaders included Georges Bidault, Pierre Mendes-France, Rene Pleven, and Robert Schuman.
Fowler, H(enry) W(atson) (b. March 10, 1858, Tonbridge, Kent, Eng.—d. Dec. 26, 1933, Hinton St. George, Somerset) English lexicog¬ rapher and philologist. With his brother, Francis George Fowler (d. 1918), he wrote The King’s English (1906) and The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English (1911). H.W. Fowler’s major work, planned with his brother, was A Dictionary of Modern English Usage (1926), an alpha¬ betical listing of points of grammar, syntax, style, pronunciation, and punctuation, whose depth, style, and humour have made it a classic.
Fowler, William A(lfred) (b. Aug. 9, 1911, Pittsburgh, Pa., U.S.—d. March 14, 1995, Pasadena, Calif.) U.S. nuclear astrophysicist. He received his Ph.D. from Caltech and became a professor there in 1939. His theory of element generation (nucleosynthesis) suggests that, as stars evolve, chemical elements are synthesized progressively (light to heavy) by means of nuclear fusion that also produces light and heat and that the heaviest elements are synthesized in supernovas. For his theory he shared a 1983 Nobel Prize with Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar. He is also known for his work in radio astronomy with Fred Hoyle.