![]() ![]() This work was followed three years later by On the connexion of the physical sciences. It is interesting to note that she was over 50 when her first book came out - quite a contrast to today's world where the pressure is to be successful at an early age. Mary was already well known in the scientific community, and the books sold well, further increasing her reputation. ![]() In 1831 Mary's first book Mechanism of the heavens was published. This got her involved in some of the thorny religious questions of the day - but more on that later. Being a keen traveller, she also had an interest in geology. She published papers concerning her experiments in optics - more specifically the effects of different parts of the spectrum on various substances. Chapman also gives us a feel for what questions were being debated at the time, such as the nature of astronomical nebulae - were they condensations of the luminiferous ether? However, Mary's expertise covered a wide range of subjects. In this subject Mary's mathematical skills were much appreciated. In astronomy for instance there was John Herschel, son of the discoverer of Uranus. It is here in the book that one appreciates Chapman's wide knowledge of the history of science as he introduces us to the famous scientists in the Somervilles' circle of acquaintances. This was the time of the Scottish enlightenment and he was happy that they should both play a part rather than being upset because she outshone him. Mary was born in 1780 and was an intelligent child, and an avid reader, but didn't get much of a chance to fulfil her potential until she married her second husband Dr William Somerville in 1812. ![]()
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