The Resume

(May 28, 1807-December 14, 1873)
Born in Haut-Vully, Switzerland
Birth name was Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz
Geologist, zoologist and paleontologist
Professor of natural history at the University of Neuchatel (1832-46) and Harvard (1846-73)
Wrote 'History of the Freshwater Fishes of Central Europe' (1839-42), 'Principals of Zoology' (1848), 'Contributions to the Natural History of the United States of America' (1857-62), 'Geological Sketches' (1866) and 'Essay on Classification' (1869)

Why he might be annoying:

He proposed that the races were created separately, with (surprise!) whites being more advanced than blacks.
He said of the theory of evolution, 'I trust to outlive this mania.'
Instead, most of his students -- including his son Alexander, a significant naturalist in his own right -- became evolutionists.
When his statue at Stanford fell during the San Francisco earthquake (1906), University President David Starr Jordan observed, 'Agassiz was great in the abstract, but not in the concrete.'

Why he might not be annoying:

He was considered a founder of the science of glaciology and was the first scientist to provide evidence of an ancient Ice Age.
He was a tireless advocate for science education in the United States.
He was a founding member of the National Academy of Sciences (1863).
He was the best-known American scientist of the 19th century, with Henry Wadsworth Longfellow writing a poem to commemorate his 50th birthday.

Credit: C. Fishel

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• 19th Century Scientists
• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 29]
• Hall of Fame for Great Americans (Ranked: 1915)
• I Attended Heidelberg University
• I Earned a Doctorate
• I'm Buried at Mount Auburn Cemetary [Massachusetts]
• Known By a Middle Name
• Look at Me, My Picture Is Art
• Profiles 28751-29000 (Ranked: 28947)
• Scientists

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2022, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 34 Votes: 35.29% Annoying
In 2020, Out of 5 Votes: 20.0% Annoying
In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2017, Out of 11 Votes: 54.55% Annoying
In 2016, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2015, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
In 2014, Out of 14 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
In 2013, Out of 15 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
In 2012, Out of 15 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
In 2011, Out of 13 Votes: 76.92% Annoying
In 2010, Out of 17 Votes: 58.82% Annoying