11-04-2018, 11:19 PM
Over the years, a vast array of scientists have contributed greatly to our understanding of the world and the universe. Some of them - for example, Newton, Darwin and Galileo - have become household names for their work. However, there are others who have made major contributions, but don't have the level of name recognition that they perhaps deserve. So, do you know of any such people?
Up until a few years ago, I would have put both Alan Turing and Nikola Tesla into this category. However, they're both more well-known these days: Turing due to The Imitation Game, and Tesla due to the electric car brand which bears his name. So, I don't think either of them really counts as "under-appreciated" any more .
For someone who's still under-appreciated, I would nominate James Clerk Maxwell. He formulated the four equations which form the foundation of classical electromagnetic theory. Thanks to this, he's probably the third most important physicist in history, behind only Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein. However, while Newton and Einstein are (rightly) known by practically everybody, Maxwell remains obscure outside scientific circles. I guess he just doesn't have an interesting tale associated with him, nor is his work particularly accessible to a general audience: most people can understand "an apple fell on his head", or even simple equations like "E = mc2" - but, it's much harder to get them to understand the significance of "∇ ^ E = -∂B/∂t" .
So, are there any under-appreciated scientists, in any field, that you'd like to bring to our attention?
Up until a few years ago, I would have put both Alan Turing and Nikola Tesla into this category. However, they're both more well-known these days: Turing due to The Imitation Game, and Tesla due to the electric car brand which bears his name. So, I don't think either of them really counts as "under-appreciated" any more .
For someone who's still under-appreciated, I would nominate James Clerk Maxwell. He formulated the four equations which form the foundation of classical electromagnetic theory. Thanks to this, he's probably the third most important physicist in history, behind only Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein. However, while Newton and Einstein are (rightly) known by practically everybody, Maxwell remains obscure outside scientific circles. I guess he just doesn't have an interesting tale associated with him, nor is his work particularly accessible to a general audience: most people can understand "an apple fell on his head", or even simple equations like "E = mc2" - but, it's much harder to get them to understand the significance of "∇ ^ E = -∂B/∂t" .
So, are there any under-appreciated scientists, in any field, that you'd like to bring to our attention?