Other editions of book Great Astronomers: William Rowan Hamilton illustrated

Sir William Rowan Hamilton (1805–1865) was an Irish physicist, astronomer, and mathematician who made important contributions to mechanics, optics, and algebra. As a teenager, he mastered parts of Newton's Principia and studied Laplace's celestial mechanics treatise. When barely 22, Hamilton became a professor of astronomy at University of Dublin, however he was more interested in theoretical rather than practical astronomy. His studies of mechanical and optical systems led him to discover new mathematical concepts and techniques. His greatest contribution is perhaps the reformulation of Newtonian mechanics, now called Hamiltonian mechanics. This work has proven central to the modern study of classical field theories such as electromagnetism, and to the development of quantum mechanics.

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The Rt. Rev. John Mortimer Brinkley DD HFRSE (ca. 1763 in Woodbridge, Suffolk – 14 September 1835 in Dublin) was the first Royal Astronomer of Ireland and later Bishop of Cloyne. He was President of the Royal Irish Academy (1822–35), President of the Royal Astronomical Society (1831–33) and awarded the Copley Medal in 1824.He graduated B.A. in 1788 as senior wrangler and Smith's Prizeman, was elected a fellow of the college and was awarded M.A. in 1791. He was ordained at Lincoln Cathedral in the same year.In 1792 he became the second Andrews Professor of Astronomy in the University of Dublin, which carried the new title of Royal Astronomer of Ireland. Together with John Law, Bishop of Elphin, he drafted the chapter on "Astronomy" in William Paley's Natural Theology. His main work concerned stellar astronomy and he published his Elements of Plane Astronomy in 1808.In 1818 he was awarded the prestigious Cunningham Medal of the Royal Irish Academy and in 1822 was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He was awarded the Copley Medal by the Royal Society in 1824.Brinkley's observations that several stars shifted their apparent place in the sky in the course of a year were disproved at Greenwich by his contemporary John Pond, the Astronomer Royal. In 1826, he was appointed Bishop of Cloyne in County Cork, a position he held for the remaining nine years of his life. Brinkley was elected President of the Royal Astronomical Society in 1831, serving in that position for two years.Brinkley died in 1835 at Leeson Street, Dublin and was buried in Trinity College chapel. He was succeeded at Dunsink Observatory by Sir William Rowan Hamilton.

Webster's edition of this classic is organized to expose the reader to a maximum number of synonyms and antonyms for difficult and often ambiguous English words that are encountered in other works of literature, conversation, or academic examinations. Extremely rare or idiosyncratic words and expressions are given lower priority in the notes compared to words which are ¿difficult, and often encountered¿ in examinations. Rather than supply a single synonym, many are provided for a variety of meanings, allowing readers to better grasp the ambiguity of the English language, and avoid using the notes as a pure crutch. Having the reader decipher a word's meaning within context serves to improve vocabulary retention and understanding. Each page covers words not already highlighted on previous pages. If a difficult word is not noted on a page, chances are that it has been highlighted on a previous page. A more complete thesaurus is supplied at the end of the book; synonyms and antonyms are extracted from Webster's Online Dictionary. PSAT¿ is a registered trademark of the College Entrance Examination Board and the National Merit Scholarship Corporation neither of which sponsors or endorses this book; SAT¿ is a registered trademark of the College Board which neither sponsors nor endorses this book; GRE¿, AP¿ and Advanced Placement¿ are registered trademarks of the Educational Testing Service which neither sponsors nor endorses this book, GMAT¿ is a registered trademark of the Graduate Management Admissions Council which is neither affiliated with this book nor endorses this book, LSAT¿ is a registered trademark of the Law School Admissions Council which neither sponsors nor endorses this product. All rights reserved.

Sir Frederick William Herschel, (Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel) (1738–1822) was a German-born British astronomer, telescope maker, and composer. He became famous for the first discovery of a planet not visible to the naked eye, the planet Uranus, and two of its major moons (Titania and Oberon), and two moons of Saturn. He was the first person to discover infrared radiation.Herschel's first profession was composing and performing music, with astronomy being his hobby. He is known for the twenty-four symphonies that he composed. Astronomy was his hobby and passion. He built his own telescopes of superb quality. After becoming known, he earned substantial income by building telescopes for others. Eventually, astronomy and science became his primary work after he was appointed as the King's astronomer by King George the Third, who provided Herschel with a residence, a salary, and funds for construction of great telescopes.

Great Astronomers: William Herschelby Robert Stawell BallSir Frederick William Herschel, (Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel) (1738–1822) was a German-born British astronomer, telescope maker, and composer. He became famous for the first discovery of a planet not visible to the naked eye, the planet Uranus, and two of its major moons (Titania and Oberon), and two moons of Saturn. He was the first person to discover infrared radiation.Herschel's first profession was composing and performing music, with astronomy being his hobby. He is known for the twenty-four symphonies that he composed. Astronomy was his hobby and passion. He built his own telescopes of superb quality. After becoming known, he earned substantial income by building telescopes for others. Eventually, astronomy and science became his primary work after he was appointed as the King's astronomer by King George the Third, who provided Herschel with a residence, a salary, and funds for construction of great telescopes.(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Herschel)

Flamsteed (1646-1719) was an English astronomer, a contemporary of Isaac Newton, and the first Astronomer Royal in charge of the newly built observatory at Greenwich, England (1676). Although he made no great discoveries nor new astronomical theories, Flamsteed distinguished himself by his meticulous measurements of the positions of stars,… (more)John Flamsteed (1646-1719) was an English astronomer, a contemporary of Isaac Newton, and the first Astronomer Royal in charge of the newly built observatory at Greenwich, England (1676). Although he made no great discoveries nor new astronomical theories, Flamsteed distinguished himself by his meticulous measurements of the positions of stars, as Tycho Brahe did with observations of the planets. He also made improvements to astronomical techniques and some observations of the moon and sun.Over 40 years, Flamsteed accumulated position data on over 2900 stars and tediously reduced it to a form usable by astronomers, but he refused to publish his star catalog until he was confident that the data was accurate and verified. This evoked the ire of Isaac Newton, who was then president of the Royal Society, the highest scientific body in England at that time. In 1712, Newton and Edmund Halley pirated the data and published it without Flamsteed's consent. Flamsteed burned as many copies of the unauthorized catalog as he could gather. His own star catalog was published posthumously by his wife in 1725.This eBook is a chapter from Great Astronomers by Sir Richard Stawell Ball (1907) plus information from A Short History of Astronomy by Arthur Berry (1910).