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Oxford, where he studied law but developed an interest in geology from attending lectures by William Buckland. On graduating he worked as a lawyer. In 1827 Lyell ceased to work in the law and took to full‐time geology. During the 1830s he was Professor of Geology at King's College, London.
Lysenko, Trofim Denisovich (1898–1976).Born in Ukraine, Lysenko initially worked at Kiev Agricultural Institute, developing a completely wrong idea of genetics based loosely on the ideas of Lamarck. The difference between the two was that due to the political turmoil and scientific ignorance of the political leaders of Russia, Lysenko became a leading figure and set back biology in the USSR by half a century
Mantell, Gideon (1790–1852).Mantell was born in Lewes, Sussex, where he secured an apprenticeship at the age of 15, with a local surgeon. After five years he started his formal medical training in London. Upon graduation he returned to Lewes and started practising as a medic in the local practice. He married Mary Ann Woodhouse in 1816, they had two children, Walter and Hannah. Mary left Gideon in 1839. Having been involved in a carriage accident, Mantell regularly took opium for pain relief and it was an overdose of opium which finally killed him.
Marsh, Othniel Charles (1831–1899).Born into a farming family in New York state, his education was financially helped by his uncle and a scholarship place at Yale. From there he travelled to Berlin to continue his studies in palaeontology. When he returned to the USA, he was appointed Professor of Vertebrate Palaeontology at Yale, the first such position in the USA. He received a large legacy from his uncle, which made him financially independent and able to pursue his expensive field expeditions. Marsh was a significant protagonist, along with Edward Cope, in the ‘bone wars’ of the USA.
Mayr, Ernst (1904–2005).Born in Bavaria, his father died when he was 13 years old, and the family moved to Dresden. He went to university at Greifswald, initially to study medicine but he changed to biology quite quickly. After field trips to New Guinea, he returned to Germany and in 1931 took a position at the American Museum of Natural History. He went to Harvard University in 1953, retiring in 1973 as Emeritus Professor of Zoology. He was married to Margarete, with whom he had two daughters.
Mercati, Michele (1541–1593).Born in Tuscany, he went to the University of Pisa, studying medicine and philosophy. His important works were not published until more than a century after his death, when his ideas were already being developed.
Mendel, Gregor Johann (1822–1884)A farmer’s son, at the age of 21 he entered the Augustinian monastery at Brno, being ordained 4 years later. He studied science for two years at Vienna from 1851, after which he started his experiments in plant hybridisation, which he continued until he became Abbot in 1868. He did not do well at examinations and it was 16 years after his death that the significance of his results was understood.
Meyer, Christian Erich Hermann von (1801–1869).Meyer was born in Frankfurt am Main with club feet, this restricted his movement. He worked initially in a glassworks and then as an apprentice in a bank. Between 1822 and 1827 he studied finance and natural science at Heidelberg, Berlin and Munich. When he returned to Frankfurt, he applied himself to palaeontology. However, in 1837 Meyer joined the Bundestag in the financial administration, which meant that his palaeontology was only carried out in his spare time. To maintain his independence he turned down an offered appointment at Göttingen University.
Miller, Hugh (1802–1856).Born in Cromarty, his father was lost at sea when he was five years old. He was apprenticed to a stone mason at the age of 16, where he worked for 17 years. For the period 1834–1839 he was a bank accountant during which he became disillusioned with the appointments of the Church of Scotland and reinvented himself as a radical journalist, while still writing articles on geology. The cottage in which he was brought up is now a museum run by the Scottish National Trust. Apparently due to illness and overwork Miller committed suicide.
Mullis, Kary (1944–2019).Mullis was born in North Carolina and raised in South Carolina. He studied chemistry at Georgia Institute of Technology and gained a PhD from University of California in biochemistry. He also published in astrophysics while studying for his PhD. He went to several institutions with research fellowships, during one of which he managed a bakery at the same time. Mullis went to the Cetus Corporation where he is credited with inventing the PCR reaction. He was married four times, had three children with two of them, enjoyed surfing and swore a lot, apparently.
Narborough, John (1640–1688).Coming from a Norfolk family, Narborough received a naval commission in 1664, progressing to become Rear Admiral Sir John Narborough. He married once and had two surviving sons.
Newton, Isaac (1642–1727).Born in Lincolnshire, after the death of his father and the re‐marriage of his mother, Newton was brought up by his grandmother. He studied at Trinity College, Cambridge, where at the age of 26 he became professor of mathematics. In 1687 he published Principia, after which he became more interested in alchemy and theology.
Ostrom, John (1928–2005).Born in New York, he was originally planning to become a physician, but changed his ideas to palaeontology and enrolled at Columbia University. He taught at several colleges until his appointment as Professor at Yale University. He married Nancy Hartman in 1952 and had two daughters.
Othenio Abel (1875–1946).Abel was born in Vienna, studying law and science at University of Vienna, where he became a professor of palaeontology. His major interest was vertebrate palaeontology, with a neo‐Lamarkcian evolutionary slant. During WWII his alignment with the Nazi regime gave him a senior position in Vienna University. This was rescinded after the end of the war when he was forced into retirement.
Owen, Richard (1804–1892).Born in Lancaster, Owen studied medicine at Edinburgh University and then St Bartholomew's, London. He became the curator of the museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. In 1856 he became the superintendent of the British Museum natural history department. The Natural History Museum was not then an independent entity.
Palaephatus (fourth Century BCE).This is possibly a pseudonym, and even the original date is uncertain. It is the name given to the author of a set of rationalisations of Greek myths. He put his place as between the believers of Greek myths as literal truths and those who dismissed them as simple stories, although the author does frequently use phrases such as ‘this is unbelievable’. The use of the pseudonym may well have been a protection since it would have been seen as heretical to disbeliev the myths in fourth Century BCE Athens.
Paley, William (1743–1805).Born in Peterborough, Paley became tutor at Christ's College Cambridge in 1768, archdeacon of Carlisle in 1782 and subdean of Lincoln in 1795. He was an advocate for the abolition of slavery.
Peabody George (1795–1869).Born in Massachusetts, a member of a large and poor family. Initially working in his brother's shop he moved to Baltimore where he developed a business as a financier. He developed a large fortune and used much of it for philanthropic purposes. He died in London and was laid to rest in the USA having been transported across the Atlantic on HMS Monarch.
Pius IX (1792–1878).Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti was born in Senigallia, on the Adriatic coast of Italy. He took Holy Orders in 1818 and by 1827 was Archbishop of Spoleto. In 1840 he was Cardinal and elected Pope in 1846.
Pius XII (1876–1958).Eugenio Pacelli was born in Rome and was a papal diplomat before being elected Pope in 1939.
Plato (427–347 BCE).Plato was born in Athens and with the exception of short periods spent most of his life in the city. As far as we know, and somewhat unusually, all of the works of Plato have been preserved, making a considerable collection of philosophical documents. He is generally considered to be the originator of philosophy as it was known in classical terms.
Pliny the Elder (c. 23–79).A Roman whose name was Gaius Plinius Secundus, which is where the Anglicised name originates. His original training was in law and at the age of about 23 he joined the army as an officer. When he left the army, he lived in Rome where he exercised his legal training. He travelled widely in the Mediterranean basin, becoming familiar with many of the local customs and methods of working. It is reported by Pliny the Younger in a letter to Tacitus, that he died trying to rescue a friend from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius by boat. In the nineteenth century, doubt was thrown on this and some think he died of a heart attack.
Plot, Robert (1640–1696).Plot was born in Borden in Kent and started his education at Wye Free School, Kent. In 1658 he went to Magdalen Hall in 1658, graduating in 1661. Soon afterwards he developed an interest in natural history. He became the first Professor of Chemistry at Oxford University and the first keeper of the Ashmolean Museum. In 1690 he resigned his position at Oxford University and then married. He became the registrar of the College of Heralds in 1695. He is buried in Borden churchyard.
Ptolemy II Philadelphus (309–222 BCE).He was responsible for a considerable expansion
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