Michel Foucault of left-wing groups involved in campaigns against racism and human rights abuses and for penal reform. Foucault later published "Discipline and Punish" (1975) and "The History of Sexuality" (1976), in which he developed archaeological and genealogical methods which emphasized the role that power plays in society. Foucault died in Paris of neurological problems compounded by HIV/AIDS; he became the first public figure in France to die from the disease. His partner Daniel Defert founded the AIDES charity in his memory. Paul-Michel Foucault was born on 15 October 1926 in the city of Poitiers, west-central France, as the second of three
Foucault pendulum vector diagrams Earth in relation to the pendulum swing increases in time (decreases in effect) with decreasing latitude is related to the Coriolis Effect. As summarized in the Coriolis effect article, the effect is greatest in polar regions where the surface of the Earth is at right angles to the axis of rotation (the central axis of the pendulum aligns with the Earth's axis of rotation). The Coriolis effect decreases nearer the equator because the surface of the Earth is parallel to the axis of rotation (the central axis of the pendulum is perpendicular with the Earth's axis of rotation). Refer to