MEDIEVAL MONK FORESEES THE MODERN WORLD

MEDIEVAL MONK FORESEES THE MODERN WORLD

Born in 1214 and living until 1292, Roger Bacon was a famed thinker who devoured new knowledge reaching Europe from the Muslim Near East. In 1247, he resigned from the University of Paris to devote his time to study, producing his book Epistola de Secretis Operibus Artis et Naturae. Bacon is credited with designing a magnifying glass and for producing the first written recipe for gunpowder. Bacon also wrote:

‘First, by the figurations of art there be made instruments of navigation without men to row them, as great ships to brooke the sea, only with men to steer them, and they shall sail far more swiftly than if they were full of men; also chariots that shall move with unspeakable force without any living creature to stir them. Likewise an instrument may be made to fly withal if one sits in the midst of the instrument, and then do turn an engine, by which the wings, being artificially composed, may beat the air after the manner of a flying bird.’

In the 13th century, Roger Bacon predicted powered ships, cars and aeroplanes. He was also believed to possess a mechanical brass head that could answer any question, like a medieval search engine. Bacon acquired the nickname Doctor Mirabilis – the Admirable Doctor.

When we wonder what a medieval person might make of today’s technology, Bacon might wonder what took us so long!

Source ~ ‘HistoryHit Miscellany’ Introduction by Dan Snow