August 14

Giambattista Benedetti was born in 1530 in Venice and became an influential thinker of the Renaissance. Rejecting aspects of Aristotelian physics, he proposed novel theories on free fall and the nature of tides. His treatise 'Demonstratio proportionum motuum localium' challenged long-held beliefs and anticipated the concept of inertia. Benedetti held positions at the universities of Padua and Turin and served as court mathematician to Duke Charles Emmanuel I of Savoy. His work influenced later scientists, including Galileo Galilei. He died in 1590, leaving important groundwork for classical mechanics.

Paolo Sarpi was born in 1552 in Venice and became a renowned Venetian canon lawyer and theologian. He served as chief adviser to the Republic of Venice during its power struggle with the papacy. His magnum opus, the 'History of the Council of Trent', provided a critical account of the 16th-century council and influenced Enlightenment thinkers. Sarpi also studied astronomy and hydraulics, improving Venice's defenses against flooding. Known for his independence, he survived an assassination attempt ordered by Pope Paul V. He died in 1623, celebrated for his intellectual rigor and political acumen.

Méric Casaubon was born in 1599 in Geneva into a family of distinguished scholars. He relocated to England and held academic positions at Oxford and Cambridge, where he promoted classical philology. Casaubon edited and published the sermons of John Donne and wrote influential treatises on superstition and belief, such as 'On Credulity and Incredulity'. His works examined the psychology of faith and the boundaries of reason. Casaubon's rigorous approach to historical texts and theology marked him as a leading intellectual of his era. He died in 1671, leaving a lasting scholarly legacy.

Hans Christian Ørsted was a pioneer of experimental physics and a key figure in the Danish Golden Age. In 1820, he discovered that electric currents create magnetic fields, founding the field of electromagnetism. Ørsted also conducted research on aluminum chemistry and isolated several organic compounds. As a professor at the University of Copenhagen, he inspired students and promoted scientific education. He founded Denmark’s first scientific journal and advocated for public access to scientific knowledge. His name lives on in the oersted unit of magnetic field strength and numerous scientific societies.

Charlotte Fowler Wells co-founded Fowler & Wells, a leading phrenological publishing house in New York. She and her sister Lydia launched a journal and lecturing practice that brought phrenology into public discourse. Wells organized conventions, trained students, and published books and pamphlets on character analysis. Her work helped spread phrenological ideas, influencing contemporary thought on psychology and education. After her sister’s death, she continued to manage the business and oversee publications into the late 19th century. Wells played a central role in a movement linking theories of the brain with social reform and self-improvement.

Richard von Krafft-Ebing authored the influential work Psychopathia Sexualis, classifying sexual behaviors and disorders. He served as a professor of psychiatry at the University of Graz and later directed the clinic in Heidelberg. Krafft-Ebing’s case studies and clinical observations laid the groundwork for modern sexology and psychiatric medicine. He introduced terms such as 'sadism' and 'masochism' into medical literature and explored diverse sexual phenomena. His systematic approach influenced both psychiatric theory and legal perspectives on sexual norms. Krafft-Ebing’s legacy endures in psychiatric nomenclature and the ongoing scientific study of human sexuality.

Margaret Lindsay Huggins collaborated with her husband, William Huggins, to advance astronomical spectroscopy. Born in Dublin, she combined artistic talent with scientific precision to produce detailed spectral drawings. In 1875, the Hugginses published the 'Atlas of Representative Stellar Spectra,' a landmark in astrophysical study. She was a founding member of the British Astronomical Association and lectured on spectroscopic discoveries. Huggins advocated for women’s participation in science and curated photographs and notes valuable to historians. Her work laid the foundation for modern astrophysics and the analysis of celestial spectra.

Ernest Thompson Seton (1860–1946) was a writer and naturalist whose vivid tales of wildlife captivated readers around the world. Born in South Shields, England, he emigrated to Canada as a child and developed a lifelong passion for nature. His best-known work, 'Wild Animals I Have Known,' blended scientific observation with storytelling. In 1910, he co-founded the Boy Scouts of America and introduced outdoor education through his Woodcraft Indians program. An accomplished illustrator, Seton's artwork appeared in magazines and books, bringing animal behavior to life on the page. His advocacy for conservation and outdoor skills laid the foundation for modern youth scouting movements.

Guido Castelnuovo (1865–1952) was a leading figure in the Italian school of algebraic geometry. Born in Venice, he studied under Giuseppe Peano and became professor at the University of Rome. Castelnuovo made significant contributions to the classification of algebraic surfaces and formulated the Castelnuovo inequality and theorem. His work laid the groundwork for future developments in birational geometry and the theory of curves. As an educator, he mentored many prominent mathematicians and helped establish Italy as a center for mathematical research. His legacy endures in theorems and concepts that bear his name.

Charles Jean de la Vallée-Poussin (1866–1962) was a Belgian mathematician who provided one of the first rigorous proofs of the prime number theorem in 1896. Educated at the Catholic University of Leuven and the University of Paris, he excelled in analysis and number theory. His work extended to differential equations and analytic functions, earning him the prestigious Prix Francœur. Vallée-Poussin served as a professor at Leuven and influenced generations of mathematicians through his teaching and publications. He was awarded the Copley Medal by the Royal Society for his outstanding contributions to mathematics. His proof remains a milestone in the understanding of prime distribution.

Born in Charleston, South Carolina, Ernest Everett Just became a leading cell biologist. He conducted groundbreaking work on egg fertilization and cell surface properties. His meticulous experiments at the Marine Biological Laboratory advanced understanding of embryonic development. Despite facing racial discrimination, he held prestigious academic positions in the US and Europe. Just's research laid the groundwork for modern cell physiology and developmental biology. He was one of the first African American scientists to gain international recognition in his field.

Arthur Jeffrey Dempster earned his doctorate at the University of Chicago in 1916. In 1935, he discovered uranium-235, a key isotope for nuclear fission, using mass spectrometry. His work provided the scientific basis for nuclear energy and atomic research. Dempster served as a professor and department chair, mentoring generations of physicists. He published numerous papers on isotope separation and instrument design. His contributions remain fundamental to both theoretical and applied nuclear physics.