Read The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment

The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment

Mary Terrall

4.9/5 (18816 ratings)

Description:Self-styled adventurer, literary wit, philosopher, and statesman of science, Pierre-Louis Moreau de Maupertuis (1698-1759) stood at the center of Enlightenment science and culture. Offering an elegant and accessible portrait of this remarkable man, Mary Terrall uses the story of Maupertuis's life, self-fashioning, and scientific works to explore what it meant to do science and to be a man of science in eighteenth-century Europe. Beginning his scientific career as a mathematician in Paris, Maupertuis entered the public eye with a much-discussed expedition to Lapland, which confirmed Newton's calculation that the earth was flattened at the poles. He also made significant, and often intentionally controversial, contributions to physics, life science, navigation, astronomy, and metaphysics. Called to Berlin by Frederick the Great, Maupertuis moved to Prussia to preside over the Academy of Sciences there. Equally at home in salons, caf(r)s, scientific academies, and royal courts, Maupertuis used his social connections and his printed works to enhance a carefully constructed reputation as both a man of letters and a man of science. His social and institutional affiliations, in turn, affected how Maupertuis formulated his ideas, how he presented them to his contemporaries, and the reactions they provoked. Terrall not only illuminates the life and work of a colorful and important Enlightenment figure, but also uses his story to delve into many wider issues, including the development of scientific institutions, the impact of print culture on science, and the interactions of science and government. Smart and highly readable, "Maupertuis" will appeal to anyone interested in eighteenth-century science and culture. OC TerrallOCOs work is scholarship in the best sense.aHer explanations of arcane 18th-century French physics, mathematics, astronomy, and biology are among the most lucid available in any language.OCOOCoVirginia Dawson," American Historical Review" Winner of the 2003 Pfizer Award from the History of Science Society"We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers with The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment. To get started finding The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed.
Our library is the biggest of these that have literally hundreds of thousands of different products represented.

Pages: 420

Format: PDF, EPUB & Kindle Edition

Publisher: Not Avail

Release: 2014

ISBN: 0226793621

Description: Self-styled adventurer, literary wit, philosopher, and statesman of science, Pierre-Louis Moreau de Maupertuis (1698-1759) stood at the center of Enlightenment science and culture. Offering an elegant and accessible portrait of this remarkable man, Mary Terrall uses the story of Maupertuis's life, self-fashioning, and scientific works to explore what it meant to do science and to be a man of science in eighteenth-century Europe. Beginning his scientific career as a mathematician in Paris, Maupertuis entered the public eye with a much-discussed expedition to Lapland, which confirmed Newton's calculation that the earth was flattened at the poles. He also made significant, and often intentionally controversial, contributions to physics, life science, navigation, astronomy, and metaphysics. Called to Berlin by Frederick the Great, Maupertuis moved to Prussia to preside over the Academy of Sciences there. Equally at home in salons, caf(r)s, scientific academies, and royal courts, Maupertuis used his social connections and his printed works to enhance a carefully constructed reputation as both a man of letters and a man of science. His social and institutional affiliations, in turn, affected how Maupertuis formulated his ideas, how he presented them to his contemporaries, and the reactions they provoked. Terrall not only illuminates the life and work of a colorful and important Enlightenment figure, but also uses his story to delve into many wider issues, including the development of scientific institutions, the impact of print culture on science, and the interactions of science and government. Smart and highly readable, "Maupertuis" will appeal to anyone interested in eighteenth-century science and culture. OC TerrallOCOs work is scholarship in the best sense.aHer explanations of arcane 18th-century French physics, mathematics, astronomy, and biology are among the most lucid available in any language.OCOOCoVirginia Dawson," American Historical Review" Winner of the 2003 Pfizer Award from the History of Science Society"We have made it easy for you to find a PDF Ebooks without any digging. And by having access to our ebooks online or by storing it on your computer, you have convenient answers with The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment. To get started finding The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment, you are right to find our website which has a comprehensive collection of manuals listed.
Our library is the biggest of these that have literally hundreds of thousands of different products represented.

Special Offer | $0.00

Special Offer! | $0.00

The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment

The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment

More Books

Catching Nature in the Act: Réaumur and the Practice of Natural History in the Eighteenth Century

Catching Nature in the Act: Réaumur and the Practice of Natural History in the Eighteenth Century

The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment by Mary Terrall (2002-12-15)

The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment by Mary Terrall (2002-12-15)

The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment 1st edition by Terrall, Mary (2002) Hardcover

The Man Who Flattened the Earth: Maupertuis and the Sciences in the Enlightenment 1st edition by Terrall, Mary (2002) Hardcover

[Catching Nature in the Act: Réaumur and the Practice of Natural History in the Eighteenth Century] [By: Terrall, Mary] [April, 2014]

[Catching Nature in the Act: Réaumur and the Practice of Natural History in the Eighteenth Century] [By: Terrall, Mary] [April, 2014]

Curious Encounters: Voyaging, Collecting, and Making Knowledge in the Long Eighteenth Century (Ucla Clark Memorial Library Series)

Curious Encounters: Voyaging, Collecting, and Making Knowledge in the Long Eighteenth Century (Ucla Clark Memorial Library Series)

Vital Matters: Eighteenth-Century Views of Conception, Life, and Death (Ucla Clark Memorial Library Series)

Vital Matters: Eighteenth-Century Views of Conception, Life, and Death (Ucla Clark Memorial Library Series)

A Cultural History of Heredity I: 17th and 18th Centuries

A Cultural History of Heredity I: 17th and 18th Centuries