[The following has nothing directly to do with humanities computing, but
I pass it on to you in any case, to increase your historical awareness
(mine needed the help, perhaps yours does not) and again to remind you of
Darwin-L, a worthy collegial discussion group. I suppose that few of us
would survive simultaneous awareness of all the things that have happened on
this day throughout time, but here are only a couple of events we can be
glad for. Not entirely unwelcome on a cold, rainy Spring day in Toronto.
--WM]
[1] From: DARWIN@steffi.uncg.edu (27)
Subject: May 23 -- Today in the Historical Sciences
MAY 23 -- TODAY IN THE HISTORICAL SCIENCES
1617: ELIAS ASHMOLE is born at Lichfield, England. The child of humble
parents, Ashmole will study at the Lichfield Grammar School and then move to
London, where he will receive training in the law. As a result of several
fortunate political and social connections he will make while in London,
Ashmole will receive a royal appointment in the College of Arms, eventually
becoming a leading authority on the history of heraldry, and a significant
collector of antiquities. His expanding interests will lead him to the study
of botany, medicine, alchemy, and astrology, and he will be one of the
founding members of the Royal Society in 1660. Ashmole will offer his
extensive personal collections of antiquities and natural history specimens
to the University of Oxford in 1675, and the Ashmolean Museum, the first
public museum in England, will open at Oxford in 1683.
1707: CARL LINNAEUS is born at Sodra, Smaland, Sweden. The son of a country
parson, Linnaeus will rise to be one of the most prominent figures in the
history of natural history. Following study in medicine and botany at the
Universities of Lund and Uppsala, Linnaeus will first spend time travelling
in Lapland, and then will move to Holland where he will receive his medical
degree. While in Leiden he will publish the first edition of his masterwork,
_Systema Naturae_ (1735), which he will revise and expand many times over the
course of his life. In 1741 Linnaeus will be appointed professor of medicine
at Uppsala, and through his many students and his voluminous writings on
systematics and natural history, his influence will spread throughout Europe
and the world.
Today in the Historical Sciences is a feature of Darwin-L, an international
network discussion group on the history and theory of the historical sciences.
Send the message INFO DARWIN-L to listserv@ukanaix.cc.ukans.edu or connect
to the Darwin-L Web Server (http://rjohara.uncg.edu) for more information.