Voting Station

Simon Newcomb

Please vote to return to collections.

Astronomer

The Resume

    (March 12, 1835-July 11, 1909)
    Born in Wallace, Nova Scotia, Canada
    Astronomer and mathematician
    Director of the American Nautical Almanac Office (1877-97)
    Professor of astronomy and mathematics at Johns Hopkins University (1884-93)
    Founding member and first President (1899-1905) of the American Astronomical Society
    Known for his detailed calculations of the paths of the Moon and the planets

Why he might be annoying:

    He was disappointed at not being named Superintendent of the US Naval Observatory.
    He wrote, ‘We are probably nearing the limit of all we can know about astronomy.’ (1888)
    Two months before the Wright Brothers’ first flight, he wrote, ‘May not our mechanicians... be ultimately forced to admit that aerial flight is one of the great class of problems with which man can never cope, and give up all attempts to grapple with it?’

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was self-taught in science and math until he attended Harvard.
    He was fluent in French, German, Italian, and Swedish.
    He changed his views on astronomy, writing ‘What lies before us is an illimitable field, the existence of which was scarcely suspected ten years ago.’ (1903)
    In addition to several popular science books, he wrote a science fiction novel, ‘His Wisdom the Defender’ (1900).
    His calculations of planetary positions remained the international standard for half a century after his death.
    His burial at Arlington National Cemetery was attended by President William Howard Taft.
    Craters on the Moon and Mars were named after him.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying