Halley’s significance

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Also known as: Edmund Halley
Quick Facts
Edmond also spelled:
Edmund
Born:
Nov. 8, 1656, Haggerston, Shoreditch, near London
Died:
Jan. 14, 1742, Greenwich, near London (aged 85)
Notable Works:
“A Synopsis of the Astronomy of Comets”

Halley’s concern with practical applications of science, such as problems of navigation, reflects the influence on the Royal Society of British author Francis Bacon, who held that science should be for the “relief of man’s estate.” Though wide-ranging in his interests, Halley displayed a high degree of professional competence that foreshadowed scientific specialization. His wise assessment of Newton’s work and his persistence in guiding it to completion earned for him an important place in the emergence of Western thought.

Olin Jeuck Eggen