Hydrostatics, also known as fluid statics, is the study of fluids at rest. The characteristic of any fluid at rest is when a force is exerted on any particle of the fluid is the same in any direction. If the force is unequal the fluid will move in the direction of the resulting force. This concept was first formulated in a slightly extended form by the French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal in 1647 and would be later known as Pascal's Law. This law has many important applications in hydraulics.