Greatest scientist in history

Who made the greatest contribution to science?

  • Isaac Newton (gravity, Newton’s laws)

    Votes: 36 34.6%
  • Albert Einstein (theory of relativity)

    Votes: 18 17.3%
  • Louis Pasteur (germ theory of disease)

    Votes: 4 3.8%
  • Galileo Galilei (numerous astronomical and physical discoveries)

    Votes: 7 6.7%
  • Euclid (Euclidian geometry)

    Votes: 5 4.8%
  • Charles Darwin (evolution)

    Votes: 9 8.7%
  • Nicolaus Copernicus (heliocentric theory)

    Votes: 1 1.0%
  • Antony van Leeuwenhoek (cell theory)

    Votes: 3 2.9%
  • Werner Heisenberg (quantum mechanics, principle of uncertainty)

    Votes: 1 1.0%
  • René Descartes (coordinate gemoetry)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • William Harvey (discovery of the circulation of blood)

    Votes: 1 1.0%
  • Ernest Rutherford (modern atomic theory)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Niels Bohr (modern atomic theory)

    Votes: 1 1.0%
  • Gregor Mendel (genetic inheritance)

    Votes: 1 1.0%
  • Sigmund Freud (psychoanalysis)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Enrico Fermi (radioactivity and neuclear reactions)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Francis Bacon (the scientific method)

    Votes: 5 4.8%
  • John Nash (game theory)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • James Clerk Maxwell (modern field theory)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Other

    Votes: 12 11.5%

  • Total voters
    104
It might be that Copernicus only renewed the ancient wisdom, what I personally don´t think- but that he did it and the following scientific revolution he caused are worth to give him the title.

Adler
 
Copernicus wasn't much of a scientist compared to some of the names on this list, because essentially all he did was propose a theory. He didn't have much evidence to back it up - any more than Aristarchus had. Kepler and Galileo were the ones who took the theory and showed it to be true, and also refined it (Kepler realised that everything happens in ellipses, which in a way was more important than putting the sun at the centre - it paved the way for Newton's explanation of how gravity and the inverse square law explain it all).
 
Charles Darwin for me. Some of the others(e.g. Newton, Einstein and Freud) are strong contenders.
 
I can understand people pick Newton, or Darwin, in fact I agree. But Feyman ahead of Einstein ?? We all love Dick, he's not in the same league though.

Since someone mentioned it, I'll say the best scientist in East Asia in history was Shen Kuo. He lived around 1000AD in China. I guess nobody heard of him, but he existed. (actually he is not in the scientific great leaders' list in CIV conquest, what a shame)

Edit:Have to say the list is not the best possible :) Maxwell is in but no Faraday, pretty ironic. And how can guys like Bohr beat out Newton and Einstein, or even Plank who didn't make the list. It's all arguble when you compare people cross fields. Like if you compare Newton with Darwin. But for people in the same field it's relatively easy. If Newton is in the list, no need to put other physicists except Einstein really. This is the list of the BEST. No need to pay respect to everybody, certainly not Mr Rutherford. :D For some un-known reason I heard way too much about that guy.
 
Back
Top Bottom