• Question: What is the 1st ever scientist name?

    Asked by chanelle1996 to Anna, Craig, Richard, Shane, Sue on 15 Jun 2011.
    • Photo: Richard Case

      Richard Case answered on 15 Jun 2011:

      Hi chanelle1996,

      Sorry but I have cut and pasted this answer from another very similar question:

      I was on a live webchat with some of the other scientists that are taking part in this competition just before it started, where I learned something very interesting…. the word “scientist” wasn’t invented until the 1800′s… so strictly speaking the first scientist would be the person who came up with the word…..

      So I have googled it, and the answer seems to be William Whewell http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Whewell in 1833.

    • Photo: Shane Pennington-Cooper

      Shane Pennington-Cooper answered on 15 Jun 2011:

      Richard very good answer, you are very true he was a science historian and due to him coining the word scientist he would be the first scientist however some would argue GOD as he carried out the first experiment with adam and eve ‘the snake of temptation’.

    • Photo: Anna Williams

      Anna Williams answered on 15 Jun 2011:

      I think this depends on your definition of a scientist. If it someone who observes and questions the natural phenomena around them, then you have to go back a very long way to find him or her, probably before people started writing things down.
      This guy gives a very good answer to this question, and goes into more depth that we can here. http://ezinearticles.com/?Who-Was-the-First-Scientist?&id=637076

Comments