The Philosophical Breakfast Club and the Invention of the "Scientist" May 9, 2012

In 1812, four friends met at Cambridge University: Charles Babbage, John Herschel, Richard Jones and William Whewell. Recognizing that they shared a love of science (as well as good food and drink), they began to meet on Sunday mornings to discuss the state of science in Britain and the world at large. The Philosophical Breakfast Club plotted to bring about a scientific revolution—one which privileged an evidence-based, inductive method of discovery, and one which asserted the need for science to serve the public good.

Author Laura Snyder will speak about one aspect of the revolution they wrought: the shift from the amateur natural philosopher to the professional scientist.

Official Website: http://my.arboretum.harvard.edu/Info.aspx?DayPlanner=1073&DayPlannerDate=5/9/2012