Person Young; Thomas (1773 - 1829); physician, physicist and Egyptologist Young Thomas physician, physicist and Egyptologist 1773 - 1829 British Male Milverton, Somerset, England 13 June 1773 London 10 May 1829 Burial: Farnborough, Kent

Natural philosophy Career: Made pioneering contribution to the understanding of light by demonstrating interference patterns, known as 'Young's fringes' (1800) which led to the Young-Fresnel undulatory theory. He also formulated an important measure of elasticity, known as 'Young's Modulus'. First to explain the accommodation of the eye; discovered the phemomenon of astigmatism; and proposed the three colour theory of vision which was later known as the Young-Hemholz theory, and was finally confirmed experimentally in 1959. Appointed to a professorship of natural philosophy at the Royal Institution (1801). His lectures at Royal Institution (1802-1803) were described by Joseph Larmor as "the greatest and most original of all general lecture courses". Undertook seminal work on the Rosetta Stone, deciphering the second type of Egyptian script on the stone, known as demotic, though the credit for finally reading the hieroglyphs belongs to Jean-Francois Champollion. A major scholar in ancient Greek, and a phenomenal linguist who coined the term 'Indo-European' for the language family which includes Greek and Sanskrit. Also a distinguished physician at St. George's Hospital, adviser to the Admiralty on shipbuilding, secretary of the Board of Longitude, and superintendent of the vital 'Nautical Almanac' from 1818 to 1829. Contributed many entries to the 'Encyclopaedia Britannica' (1816-1825). Physician to and inspector of calculations for the Palladian Insurance Company (1824-1829). Nephew of Richard Brocklesby (FRS 1747); married Eliza Maxwell (1804) Royal Society roles: For Sec 1804-1829 Lectures: Bakerian 1800, 1801, 1803; Croonian 1808 Fellow 19/06/1794 Sources: Bulloch's Roll; DNB; DSB References: John R Levene, 'Sir George Biddell Airy, FRS (1801-1892) and the Discovery and Correction of Astigmatism' in NR 1966 vol 21 pp 180-199 G N Cantor, 'Thomas Young's Lectures at the Royal Institution' in NR 1970 vol 25 pp 87-112 Linde Katritzky, 'Coleridge's Links with Leading Men of Science' in NR 1995 vol 49 pp 261-276 Sir John Meurig Thomas, 'Sir Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford and the Royal Institution' in NR 1999 vol 53 pp 11-25 Alex D D Craik, 'James Ivory, FRS, mathematician: "the most unlucky person that ever existed"' in NR 2000 vol 54 pp 223-247 W P Griffith and P J T Morris, 'Charles Hatchett FRS (1765 - 1847), chemist and discoverer of niobium' in NR 2003 vol 57 pp 299 - 31 Andrew Robinson, 'A polymath's dilemma' in 'Nature' Vol 438, November 2005 p 291 Andrew Robinson 'The Last Man Who Knew Everything' 2006, Pi Press ©The Royal Society International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) - Ottawa 1996 ISBN 0-9696035-3-3 National Council on Archives, Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997 https://pictures.royalsociety.org/image-rs-9351 13 Jun 1773 - 10 May 1829 NA7947 21/11/2001 Andyg Martind 28/03/2023 RS_NET\JonathanB Yes http://viaf.org/viaf/128851 5753b237-7082-4c50-9336-0c6e4f309ad6