Alhazen
In medieval Europe, he was honored as Ptolemaeus Secundus ("Ptolemy the Second")[10] or simply called "The Physicist".[11] He is also sometimes called al-Basri (Arabic: البصري) after Basra, his birthplace.[12] He spent most of his life close to the court of the Caliphate in Cairo and earned his living authoring various treatises and tutoring members of the nobilities.[13] Overview[edit] Biography[edit] Born c. 965 in Basra, which was then part of the Buyid emirate,[1] to an Arab family.[14][15] Legacy[edit] Front page of the Opticae Thesaurus, which included the first printed Latin translation of Alhazen's Book of Optics. Alhazen made significant contributions to optics, number theory, geometry, astronomy and natural philosophy. One of the major scientific anniversaries that will be celebrated during the 2015 International Year of Light is: the works on optics by Ibn Al-Haytham (1015). Book of Optics[edit] Main article: Book of Optics Theory of vision[edit] Alhazen on Iraqi 10 dinars G. A.
Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton PRS MP (/ˈnjuːtən/;[8] 25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/7[1]) was an English physicist and mathematician (described in his own day as a "natural philosopher") who is widely recognised as one of the most influential scientists of all time and as a key figure in the scientific revolution. His book Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica ("Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy"), first published in 1687, laid the foundations for classical mechanics. Newton made seminal contributions to optics, and he shares credit with Gottfried Leibniz for the development of calculus. Newton built the first practical reflecting telescope and developed a theory of colour based on the observation that a prism decomposes white light into the many colours of the visible spectrum. Newton was a fellow of Trinity College and the second Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge. Life Early life Isaac Newton (Bolton, Sarah K. Middle years Mathematics Optics
James Clerk Maxwell
James Clerk Maxwell FRS FRSE (13 June 1831 – 5 November 1879) was a Scottish[2][3] mathematical physicist.[4] His most notable achievement was to formulate the classical theory of electromagnetic radiation, bringing together for the first time electricity, magnetism, and light as manifestations of the same phenomenon. Maxwell's equations for electromagnetism have been called the "second great unification in physics"[5] after the first one realised by Isaac Newton. With the publication of A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field in 1865, Maxwell demonstrated that electric and magnetic fields travel through space as waves moving at the speed of light. Maxwell helped develop the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution, a statistical means of describing aspects of the kinetic theory of gases. His discoveries helped usher in the era of modern physics, laying the foundation for such fields as special relativity and quantum mechanics. Life[edit] Early life, 1831–39[edit] Education, 1839–47[edit]
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo is revered for his technological ingenuity. He conceptualised flying machines, an armoured vehicle, concentrated solar power, an adding machine,[7] and the double hull, also outlining a rudimentary theory of plate tectonics. Relatively few of his designs were constructed or were even feasible during his lifetime,[nb 2] but some of his smaller inventions, such as an automated bobbin winder and a machine for testing the tensile strength of wire, entered the world of manufacturing unheralded. Life Childhood, 1452–1466 Leonardo's earliest known drawing, the Arno Valley (1473), Uffizi Leonardo's early life has been the subject of historical conjecture.[15] Vasari, the 16th-century biographer of Renaissance painters, tells of how a local peasant made himself a round shield and requested that Ser Piero have it painted for him. Verrocchio's workshop, 1466–1476 Professional life, 1476–1513 Leonardo da Vinci's very accurate map of Imola, created for Cesare Borgia Old age, 1513–1519 Painting
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein (/ˈælbərt ˈaɪnʃtaɪn/; German: [ˈalbɐrt ˈaɪnʃtaɪn]; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist. Einstein's work is also known for its influence on the philosophy of science.[4][5] He developed the general theory of relativity, one of the two pillars of modern physics (alongside quantum mechanics).[3][6]:274 Einstein is best known in popular culture for his mass–energy equivalence formula E = mc2 (which has been dubbed "the world's most famous equation").[7] He received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics for his "services to theoretical physics", in particular his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect, a pivotal step in the evolution of quantum theory.[8] Near the beginning of his career, Einstein thought that Newtonian mechanics was no longer enough to reconcile the laws of classical mechanics with the laws of the electromagnetic field. This led to the development of his special theory of relativity. Life Early life and education Death
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin, FRS (/ˈdɑrwɪn/;[1] 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist and geologist,[2] best known for his contributions to evolutionary theory.[I] He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestors,[3] and in a joint publication with Alfred Russel Wallace introduced his scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection, in which the struggle for existence has a similar effect to the artificial selection involved in selective breeding.[4] Darwin published his theory of evolution with compelling evidence in his 1859 book On the Origin of Species, overcoming scientific rejection of earlier concepts of transmutation of species.[5][6] By the 1870s the scientific community and much of the general public had accepted evolution as a fact. Biography Early life and education Painting of seven-year-old Charles Darwin in 1816. Voyage of the Beagle Death and funeral Works
Edward Witten
Edward Witten (/ˈwɪtən/; born August 26, 1951) is an American theoretical physicist and professor of mathematical physics at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. Witten is a researcher in string theory, quantum gravity, supersymmetric quantum field theories, and other areas of mathematical physics. Birth and education[edit] Witten was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He is the son of Lorraine (Wollach) Witten and Louis Witten, a theoretical physicist specializing in gravitation and general relativity.[3] Witten attended the Park School of Baltimore (class of '68), and received his Bachelor of Arts with a major in history and minor in linguistics from Brandeis University in 1971. Research[edit] Fields medal work[edit] Witten was awarded the Fields Medal by the International Mathematical Union in 1990, becoming the first physicist to win the prize. In a written address to the ICM, Michael Atiyah said of Witten,[1] M-theory[edit] Other work[edit] Awards and honors[edit]
