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Inventor of the Kaleidoscope
"Father of Modern Experimental Optics"
Reflective symmetry has been observed since ancient times. Legend claims that early Egyptians would place two or three slabs of highly polished limestone together at different angles and watch with fascination as mandalas were formed by human dancers. It was not until centuries later, however, that this optical phenomenon was encased in one small tube and given a name. The kaleidoscope was invented and exhibited in by Sir David Brewster. (The patent would be granted in ) He was a man with as many facets as his invention. Whether delving into scientific research, religion, philosophy, education, optics, photography, writing, inventions, or life on other planets, Sir David pursued each endeavor with incredible energy.
David Brewster was born in Jedburgh, an obscure country town in the midst of the Scottish lowlands, on December 11, He was recognized as a child prodigy and constructed a telescope when only ten years old. This would prove indicative of the chief bent of Brewster’s work and genius. Nature endowed him with some of its choice gifts: dose observation, u
Brewster, David
(b. Jedburgh, Scotland, 11 December ; d. Allerly, Melrose, Scotland, 10 February )
optics.
The son of Margaret Key and James Brewster, rector of the Jedburgh grammar school, David entered the University of Edinburgh in Although he completed the prescribed courses, like other students of the time, he did not take a bachelor’s degree. Continuing at the university as a divinity student, he was awarded an honorary M. A. in , and in he was licensed to preach in the Church of Scotland, although he was never ordained a minister. As an evangelical, Brewster became an adviser to the leaders of the Disruption; was long a friend of its leader, Thomas Chalmers; and became a member of the Free Church of Scotland in
His formal training, however, was but one part of his education. As amanuensis to Dr. Thomas Somerville, scholar, author, and minister of Jedburgh, Brewster acquired in his youth the writing and editing skills that later were his principal source of income. More important, as a child Brewster began to learn about physical science from his father’s manuscript notes from the University of Aberdeen. Encouraged and assisted by the “peasant astronomer” James
David Brewster
| Scottish physicist, mathematician, astronomer, inventor, writer, historian and university chancellor Date of Birth: Country: Great Britain |
Content:
- Biography of David Brewster
- Scientific Career
- Inventions and Contributions
- Later Years and Legacy
Biography of David Brewster
Early Life and EducationDavid Brewster was born on December 11, , in Canongate, Jedburgh, Roxburghshire, Scotland. He was the third of six children of Margaret Key and James Brewster, the headmaster of Jedburgh Grammar School. At the age of 12, he enrolled at the University of Edinburgh, where he was being prepared for a career in the clergy. He obtained his Master's degree in
Scientific Career
Although Brewster officially became a clergyman and served in the Scottish Church, his passion for natural sciences constantly diverted him from direct religious work. In , Henry Brougham convinced Brewster to study the diffraction of light. The results of his research were periodically published in the "Philosophical Transactions" and other scientific journals, and many of Brewster's discoveries gained recognition. In , he earned a Doctor of Laws degree from Marischal C
Jedburgh, where David Brewster was born |
Sir David Brewster, FRS, lived from 11 December to 10 February He was a renowned scientist who made a particular contribution in the field of optics. The wider picture in Scotland at the time is set out in our Historical Timeline.
David Brewster was born in Jedburgh, where his father was rector of the local grammar school. At the age of 12 he went to the University of Edinburgh to study, his family thought, for the clergy. Brewster duly obtained his theology degree and qualified to become a church minister. He never did so, however, becoming increasingly interested in the physical properties of light.
Brewster went on to make a series of discoveries, sometimes in parallel with the likes of Etienne Louis Malus and Augustin Fresnel working in France. He was particularly engaged in the areas of the polarisation of light, of refraction and reflection, and the absorption of light. In he was awarded a degree by Marischal College, Aberdeen and in he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of London. He also achieved considerable popular recognition through his invent
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