gentleman scientists
Self-funded natural philosophers
Gentleman scientists were wealthy amateurs who pursued scientific research independently, without institutional salary or professional training.
Common from the 17th through 19th centuries, they funded their own experiments and expeditions: Darwin was a gentleman scientist who could afford to sail on the Beagle.
The term now evokes an era before science became a credentialed profession.
- hobbyistRecreational pursuer of interests
- amateur naturalistHobbyist who studies wildlife
- autodidactsSelf-taught individuals
- polymathsBroadly knowledgeable scholars
- experimentSystematic investigation procedure
amateur · research · intellectual · learned society · natural philosophy · naturalist · landed gentry · country squire · leisure class · independent means · dilettantes · discovery · cabinet of curiosities · private collections · exploration · aristocracy · salons · philanthropy
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