- Paperback: 468 pages
- Publisher: University of Chicago Press; New edition edition (30 Jun 2006)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0226793613
- ISBN-13: 978-0226793610
- Product Dimensions: 2.3 x 1.5 x 0.2 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,085,744 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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"Terrall's work is scholarship in the best sense. Her explanations of arcane eighteenth-century French physics, mathematics, astronomy, and biology are among the most lucid available in any language." - Virginia P. Dawson, American Historical Review "As a guide to the public world of post-Newtonian European science, this well-written, scholarly work has much to offer." - Jeremy Black, Times Higher Education Supplement"
Product Description
Self-styled adventurer, literary wit, and statesman of science, Pierre-Louis Moreau de Maupertuis (1698 - 1759) stood at the center of Enlightenment science and culture. With "The Man Who Flattened the Earth", Mary Terrall offers an elegant portrait of this remarkable man, revealing just how his private life and public works made him a man of science in eighteenth-century Europe. Maupertuis entered the public eye with a much-discussed expedition to Lapland and went on to make significant and often intentionally controversial contributions to physics, life science, and astronomy. Equally at ease in cafes and royal courts, Maupertuis used his social connections and his printed works to enhance a carefully constructed reputation as both a man of letters and a man of science. Terrall not only illuminates the life and work of Maupertuis but also delves into larger Enlightenment issues, including the development of scientific institutions, the impact of print culture on science, and the often vexed interactions of science and government.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Mary Terrall re-creates 18th century European society
12 April 2003
Format:Hardcover
The Man Who Flattened The Earth: Marpertuis And The Sciences In The Enlightenment is the story of Maupertuis and his scientific interests in the early to mid 1700s and who represented Enlightenment thinking. Mary Terrall re-creates 18th century European society and science alike as she surveys the man who began his career as a mathematician in Paris, only to form controversial theories about the Earth, physics, and even astronomy. Maupertius used his social connections to enhance both his science and his position in society: this provides a lively account of his achievements.
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