A gentleman scientist was a scientist with a private income who could pursue scientific study independently as he wished without excessive external financial pressures, in the days before large-scale government funding was available, up to the Victorian era, especially in England. For example, Charles Darwin's father helped fund him to be a gentleman scientist in Victorian times. Many early fellows of the Royal Society in London were gentleman scientists. The physicist Albert Einstein is probably the most famous scientist of our time. ... Scientific method is a body of techniques for investigating phenomena and acquiring new knowledge, as well as for correcting and integrating previous knowledge. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her Ascension to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian Era of Great Britain marked the height of the British industrial revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... Charles Robert Darwin FRS (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist [1] who achieved lasting fame by producing considerable evidence that species originated through evolutionary change, at the same time proposing the scientific theory that natural selection is the mechanism by which such change occurs. ... The premises of the Royal Society in London (first four properties only). ... full of cockneys. ...

The position essentially died out during the 20th century as other forms of science funding increased, although Stephen Wolfram could be considered a modern-day equivalent, funding his own independent research through the Mathematica tool. Stephen Wolfram (born August 29, 1959 in London) is a scientist known for his work in theoretical particle physics, cellular automata, complexity theory, and computer algebra, and is the creator of the computer program Mathematica. ... This article is about computer software. ...

See also

• Robert Boyle
• Goldsworthy Gurney
• George Frederick Kunz
• Natural philosophy
• Royal Society
• Scientific method

Robert Boyle Robert Boyle (January 25, 1627–December 30, 1691) was an Irish natural philosopher (chemist, physicist, and inventor) noted for his work in physics and chemistry. ... Goldsworthy Gurney in earlier life Sir Goldsworthy Gurney (1793-1875) was a surgeon, chemist, lecturer, consultant, architect, builder and prototypical British inventor of the Victorian period. ... Natural philosophy or the philosophy of nature, known in Latin as philosophia naturalis, is a term applied to the objective study of nature and the physical universe that was regnant before the development of modern science. ... The premises of the Royal Society in London (first four properties only). ... Scientific method is a body of techniques for investigating phenomena and acquiring new knowledge, as well as for correcting and integrating previous knowledge. ...

References

• Martello, Robert, The Life and Times of Sir Goldsworthy Gurney: Gentleman Scientist and Inventor, 1793–1875 (review), Victorian Studies, Volume 42, Number 4, Summer 1999/2000, pp. 688–690. Indiana University Press.
• Porter, Dale H., The Life and Times of Sir Goldsworthy Gurney, Gentleman Scientist and Inventor, 1793–1875. 1988. Lehigh University Press, ISBN 0-934223-50-5.