We are accustomed to clearly distinguish between the scientific activities of the great scientists of the past and their private, everyday life, firmly believing that, say, Darwin the man has only the most indirect relation to Darwin the naturalist.
We are accustomed to clearly distinguish between the scientific activities of the great scientists of the past and their private, everyday life, firmly believing that, say, Darwin the man has only the most indirect relation to Darwin the naturalist. The French scientist and journalist Nicola Witkowski questioned the legitimacy of such a division and proposed his own version of the history of science — a version based on the perception of the personality of a scientist and his accomplishments as a single and indivisible whole. Such a view in itself becomes the basis for many amusing discoveries: for example, from Witkowski’s book, the reader learns that, for example, Newton’s works are not only the result of the hard work of an outstanding mind, but also the result of a childhood passion for kites. Or that the great physicist Maxwell, when compiling his famous equations, recalled the games that he dabbled in when he had nothing to do in his youth. Bringing back forgotten names from oblivion and juggling with funny anecdotes, Witkowski, nevertheless, unnoticed by the reader, is doing a very important and serious job — making our ideas about the development of world science not only more systematic, but also much more humane.
Kolibri, 448 p.