Ritter, the inventor of the dry-cell battery and discoverer of ultraviolet light, was an important contributor to the annals of science. However, during his lifetime he earned little respect from his peers in the European scientific community--chiefly due to his questionable philosophical opinions, which he incorporated into his experimental findings. Today he is considered an influential, if eccentric, researcher.

Ritter was born in Samitz (now a part of Chojnow, Poland) in 1776. At the age of fourteen he was sent to Liegnitz to serve as apprentice to an apothecary. While his apprenticeship allowed him to learn a trade, it also fostered in Ritter a profound interest in chemistry. During his nineteenth year he inherited a sum of money, enough to leave the apothecary and devote himself to academia. He enrolled at the University of Jena in April, 1796; he remained there as an instructor after receiving his degree.

Ritter's early...