John (1627–1705).Born in Essex, his father was a blacksmith and his mother an herbalist. Educated at Cambridge, he stayed on as a teacher after graduation. This was curtailed when he fell fowl of the authorities after the Civil War on the subject of religious observance. He was supported by an ex‐student from 1662, touring with him across England and Europe. It was only with Linnaeus that Ray's taxonomy was surpassed. Eventually Ray returned to his home town of Black Notley where he continued writing on a wide range of subjects.
Romer, Alfred Sherwood (1894–1973).Born in White Plains, New York, he was educated locally, moving to Amherst College where he studied biology. At Columbia he gained an MSc and completed his PhD there. In 1934 he was appointed professor of biology at Harvard University. He married Ruth Hibbard and they had three children.
Russell, Bertrand (1872–1970).Born in Trelleck, Gwent, he was brought up by his grandmother, educated privately and at Trinity College Cambridge, studying mathematics and philosophy. He was briefly worked as a diplomat in Paris. He married Alys Pearsall Smith, in 1895 and later divorced in 1921, so that he could re‐marry. He married his second wife, Dora Black, in 1921 and they were divorced in 1934. His third marriage was to Patricia Spence in 1936 lasted until a divorce in 1952. His fourth wife was Edith Finch, they married in 1952, shortly after his divorce. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1950.
Scharf, George Johann (1788–1860).Born in Bavaria, he went to Munich in 1804 where he trained as an artist. After several years as a miniaturist, Scharf mastered the art of lithography, which was a recent invention. By a strange confluence of events Scharf found himself a member of the English army on the Continent. In 1816 he left to travel to England where he made a living as a lithographer. He worked for Charles Darwin, producing a series of illustrations of fossil material from South America. He was married to Elizabeth Hicks, the sister of his landlady when he originally came to London, and had two sons.
Scheuchzer, Johann Jacob (1672–1733).Johann was the son of a physician and born in Zürich, where he had his early education. He went to University of Altdorf to study medicine, but finished his medical education at the University of Utrecht. After returning to Zurich he became a town physician and Professor of mathematics in 1710. He was elected FRS in 1704.
Schlotheim, Ernst von (1764–1832).Born in Ebeleben, Germany, von Schlotheim was initially tutored at home, then attending school in Gotha between 1779 and 1781. He went on to study public administration and natural sciences in Göttingen. In 1792 he entered the civil service in Gotha, achieving Lord High Marshall in 1828. Although his living was as a civil servant, it is for his work in palaeontology for which he is remembered.
Schmerling, Philippe‐Charles (1791–1836).Born in Delft, he studied medicine there and at Leiden after which he was a physician with the Dutch army from 1812 to 1816. In 1821 he married Elizabeth Douglas with whom he had two daughters. In 1822 they moved to Liege where Schmerling continued his studies in medicine.
Schönbein, Christian Friedrich (1799–1868).Born at Metzingen in Württemberg and at 13 became apprentice in a chemical firm. By private study Schönbein gained a position at the University of Basel, and by 1835 was appointed professor. This was a position he held for the rest of his career. He described the principle of the fuel cell and later discovered ozone. He also described guncotton, nitrocellulose, which it is said he made against his wife's wishes in the kitchen of their home.
Scott, Peter Markham (Sir)(1909–1989).Born in London, educated at Oundle School and Trinity College Cambridge, where he graduated in history of art in 1931. He went on to study art in Munich and London. He served in the navy during WWII and is credited with the method adopted by the navy for camouflaging ships. He was a founder of the World Wildlife Fund, now called the World Wide Fund for Nature. He was married to novelist Elizabeth Jane Howard in 1942, they had one child and divorced in Divorced in 1951. In 1951 Scott married Philippa Talbot‐ponsonby and they had two children.
Senefelder, Aloys (1771–1834).Born in Prague, he became a successful actor and playwright. His invention of lithography was based upon an observation made around 1796 of drawing on wet surfaces with grease‐based material. By 1806 his technique was good enough for him to open a printing works of his own in Munich. He was appointed director of the Royal Printing Office and started a training school as well.
Smith, James Edward (1759–1828).Born in Norwich, Smith travelled to Edinburgh to study medicine, even though his main interest was botany. When he was 24 the widow of Carl Linnaeus sold him his entire collection of natural history specimens and note books. These were transferred to London where they eventually became the origin of the Linnaean Society.
Spencer, Herbert (1820–1903).Born in Derby, he had a scientific education from his father but developed an ability to focus on specific subjects to become self‐taught in many disciplines. He worked variously as a civil engineer, writer and sub‐editor. He moved in the literary and scientific circles of London and started writing works on psychology and philosophy, which were popular and widely read. He is credited with coining the phrase ‘survival of the fittest’.
Steno, Nicolaus (1638–1686).Born in Copenhagen, he was the son of a Goldsmith, due to early illness he grew up in relative isolation. At 19 he enrolled at the University of Copenhagen and after graduating he travelled widely in Europe, settling in Italy in 1666 as Professor of Anatomy at the University of Padua. He was ordained a priest in 1675, later becoming bishop. After his death in Germany in 1686, his body was taken to Italy where he was buried and venerated as a local saint. He formulated four principles of stratigraphy during his lifetime along with much anatomical research. In 1946 his grave was opened, his body removed for a procession through the streets and then reburied.
Strabo (60 BCE–20 CE).A geographer, he was born in Amasia in Pontus, now mid‐northern Turkey, of Greek descent. Most of his life he travelled and studied, settling in Rome after AD14. Although most of his historical works only survive as fragments, his 17‐volume work on geography has withstood time and is almost complete.
Strato of Lampsacus (c. 335–269 BCE).Born in Lampsacus, now in Turkey, Strato was Greek. He attended Aristotle's school in Athens and was a keen student of natural science. Although credited with a considerable body of work, none has survived in the original form and his views are only known through reports by later writers.
Stukeley, William (1687–1765).Born in Holbeach and educated at Cambridge, he was ordained in 1729, moving to a London ministry in 1747. He carried out extensive field work at Stonehenge and Avebury, but related these monuments to druids.
Talbot, William Henry Fox (1800–1877).Born at Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire Williamwent to Eton School and Trinity College Cambridge. He wrote on optics and mathematics before moving into photography. Between 1832 and 1835 he was Member of Parliament for Chippenham in Wiltshire. Having excelled at classics as a student, it is little surprise that he was a keen archaeologist and helped decipher cuneiform inscriptions from Mesopotamia. He was married and had three daughters and a son. He dropped the name William and was usually referred to as Henry Fox Talbot.
Thales (c. 624–545 BCE).Thales came from Miletus and had a wide‐ranging reputation, being a statesman, engineer and astronomer as well as a natural philosopher. He left no writings of his own, other than a star guide, so what is known of his work comes from other sources.
Thomson, Wyville Thomas Charles (1830–1882).Born in West Lothian, he studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh. Although he graduated, his interests were in natural science. In 1850 he was appointed lecture in botany and a year later, professor at the University of Aberdeen. In 1853 he was apointed professor of natural history at Queen's College, Cork. He changed his name to Charles Wyville Thomson.
Tilesius, Wilhelm Gottlieb (1769–1857).Born in Mühlhausen in northwest Germany. He was introduced to drawing and natural history by his uncle and went on to the University of Leipzig where he studied natural sciences and medicine, graduating in 1795. He was appointed as Professor at Moscow University in 1803. In 1807 he married Olympia von Sitzky, with whom he had a son, but they separated in 1809. In 1814 he returned to Mühlhausen where he continued working although never in a formal position.
Ussher, James (1581–1656).Ussher was born in Dublin, the City where he was educated at Trinity College. In about 1606 he became chancellor of St Patrick's, where he became professor of divinity. By 1602 he was bishop of Meath and in 1625, Archbishop of Armagh. He was a committed royalist, but was favoured by Cromwell. This may be associated with his renowned good temper and charity.
Wallace, Alfred Russel (1823–1913).Born near Usk, South Wales, he was the eighth of nine children. When he was 5, the family moved to Hertford where he went to school until he was 14 and left secondary education. For the next few years he was an apprentice surveyor to his
