- Paperback: 256 pages
- Publisher: Da Capo Press; Reprint edition (Jun 1 2004)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0786713585
- ISBN-13: 978-0786713585
- Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 13.2 x 2 cm
- Shipping Weight: 386 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,312,478 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Booklist
When science and Bacon occur in the same sentence, the Bacon meant is usually Francis (1561-1626), said to have formulated the scientific method. Clegg says it should be Roger (c.1220-92), the first person to argue that "natural philosophy" (i.e., science) should be based in mathematics, undertaken with an open mind, communicated to others, and, most important, conducted by experimentation. A son of wealth, Roger went to Oxford at 13 to prepare for a calling. He became an experimenter, theorist, and writer who, disdaining magic, expected phenomena to be rationally explicable. He spent a fortune, presumably his family's, on books and equipment. When the Bacons lost their holdings, Roger joined the Franciscans, which required giving his belongings away but opened the door to church sponsorship. A friendly pope's death and the accession of a hostile general of the Franciscans put Roger in solitary confinement. Released, he wrote one more innovative book before dying and becoming a Faust-like figure of legend. The Victorians revived interest in him, but twentieth-century carpers demurred. Clegg's enthralling book launches Roger Bacon's re-revival. Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Review
"[An] immensely likeable work of pop science."
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
The First Scientist-A Life of Roger Bacon by Brian Clegg,
By Dr. Joseph S. Maresca "Dr. Joseph S. Maresca ... (Bronxville, New York USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)
This review is from: First Scientist: The Visionary Genius Of Roger Bacon (Hardcover)
This is an excellent work for historians and science buffs.It describes a friar who lived in the 13th century. Roger Bacon predicted horseless carriages and telescopes. He is one of the first scientists to link science with the experimental method. Early in life, he studied astronomy, grammar, mathematics, music, logic and rhetoric. He presented a fairly detailed earth map. The work describes his incarceration for teachings contrary to the orthodoxy of the day. This work would make a perfect class project for students in grammar or high school.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing introduction to an amazing man,
By Suzanne Trayner (Boston) - See all my reviews
This review is from: First Scientist: The Visionary Genius Of Roger Bacon (Hardcover)
The great thing about this book is it's not over-academic like practically everything else I've seen about Bacon, but rather gives a real insight into the man and his times. If you are at all interested in science, where it comes from and the people who made it happen this book should be on your have-to-buy list!
3.0 out of 5 stars
A good introduction,
By
This review is from: First Scientist: The Visionary Genius Of Roger Bacon (Hardcover)
I found Brian Clegg's biography of Roger Bacon to be a good introduction for anyone wishing to understand the great man's life and work, and the times in which he lived. However, this book seemed to me to be too focused on Bacon as a precursor of the Scientific Revolution, and at times I would question the depth (although not necessarilly the breadth) of Clegg's understanding of ancient and medieval science. Whilst the author has obviously done a lot of research, and his admiration for his subject shines through at every page, this is not a truly scholarly life of Bacon that would be of great use to academics. But, having said this, I would still recommend this book for anyone coming at Bacon for the first time.
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