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Second, the term Renaissance Man itself evolved out of the Renaissance era (14th-17th Centuries). The many talents of the polymath should appear to others to be performed without effort, in an unstrained way, almost without thought. A courtier should have a detached, cool, nonchalant attitude, and speak well, sing, recite poetry, have proper bearing, be athletic, know the humanities and classics, paint and draw and possess many other skills, always without showy or boastful behavior, in short, with “sprezzatura”. Castiglione’s guide stressed the kind of attitude that should accompany the many talents of a polymath, an attitude he called “sprezzatura”. This term was the predecessor of “Renaissance man” and means the following:ĭuring the Renaissance, Baldassare Castiglione, in his guide The Book of the Courtier, wrote about how an ideal courtier should have polymathic traits. The ability to switch seamlessly between different tasks, taking as example Albert Einstein using music for scientific inspiration, could certainly help boost our creativity and productivity.Since this blog is focused on renaissance men and renaissance living, I thought it might be a good idea to establish exactly what a Renaissance Man is.įirst, let’s start with the term Polymath. What can we learn from them? Well, if there’s one thing, it’s to become open and insatiably curious about different areas of knowledge. Polymaths have inquisitive minds, highly creative problem-solving skills and are able to create innovative solutions. In 2018, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for pioneering the use of directed evolution to engineer enzymes. She is the Linus Pauling Professor of Chemical Engineering, Bioengineering and Biochemistry at the California Institute of Technology and has been a director of Alphabet Inc. She is also the co-inventor on over 40 US patents. Frances plays the piano, guitar and pipe organ in addition to researching enzyme evolution.
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A Polymath Of The PresentĪ modern-day polymath, Frances Arnold is an American chemical engineer, Nobel Laureate and Nobel Prize-winning chemist. Amongst his other talents, he was also a leading printer, Freemason, postmaster, humourist, civic activist and statesman. As well as being a successful newspaper publisher he also was also an inventor, producing the first lightning rod. Franklin was hugely industrious and inventive. Most of da Vinci’s aeronautical designs were ornithopters, machines that employed flapping wings to generate both lift and propulsion.īenjamin Franklin was an American writer, politician, scientist and diplomat, born in 1706. Polymaths of Historyĭa Vinci’s blend of curiosity, imagination and intellect allowed him to create, at least on paper, such inventions as the bicycle, the helicopter and an airplane based on the flying capability and physiology of a bat. It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that he also kept dozens of secret notebooks with observations, inventions and theories about subjects as diverse as anatomy through to aeronautics. He believed that art was connected to science and nature. Today he remains best known for his art, including two of the world’s most admired pieces, The Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. He was known by the term “Renaissance man” because his innate genius spanned so many disciplines.
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Leonardo da Vinci was a painter, architect, inventor, and student of all things scientific. The word polymath is derived from the Greek polymathes, “having learned much,” with poly meaning “much,” and manthanein meaning “learn.” What qualities does a polymath embody, and what experience, knowledge and achievements do they typically achieve? Let’s take a look at two famous polymaths of yesteryear and one of the modern-day… A polymath is typically defined as a person with a wide range of interests and expertise in various fields of science, humanities, and the arts. Posted by: Vicky Chilton at 10:00 am, April 16, 2021ĭo you know someone who seems to excel in many fields – perhaps a great mathematician or scientist, who has a published art collection, a talent for music, or expertise in political debate? Such people can be described as polymaths.