History of electromagnetic theory used to create positively charged anodes and negatively charged cathodes. When a conductor was attached between these, the difference in the electrical potential (also known as voltage) drove a current between them through the conductor. The potential difference between two points is measured in units of volts in recognition of Volta's work. The first mention of voltaic electricity, although not recognized as such at the time, was probably made by Johann Georg Sulzer in 1767, who, upon placing a small disc of zinc under his tongue and a small disc of copper over it, observed a peculiar taste when the
Ohm 1881 the "Congrès internationale des électriciens" (international conference of electricians) defined a "practical" unit of Ohm for the resistance, based on CGS units, using a mercury column 1 sq. mm. in cross-section, approximately 104.9 cm in length at 0 °C, similar to the apparatus suggested by Siemens. A "legal" ohm, a reproducible standard, was defined by the international conference of electricians at Paris in 1884 as the resistance of a mercury column of specified weight and 106 cm long; this was a compromise value between the B. A. unit (equivalent to 104.7 cm), the Siemens unit (100 cm by definition),