Robert Hooke

Robert Hooke

Robert Hooke


Robert Hooke lived during what some people call the scientific revolution. This
was the era of Galileo, Newton, Decartes and Halley just to name a few. During this
age, Physics as we know it was still in its infancy. At this time scientists were not as
specialized as today. They often worked in many different areas, making small but
important contributions to all of their specialities. Hooke was no exception. His interests
spanned biology, anatomy, chemistry, astronomy, architecture, navel technology,
paleontology and of course physics.
Hooke was born on the Isle of Wight, July 18, 1635 and he died in 1703 at the
age of 68 in London England. As a child he survived smallpox, but was scarred
physically and emotionally for life. When Hooke was thirteen years old, his father, John
Hooke, a clergyman hung himself. Young Robert had much emotional pain in his youth.
Receiving a 100 pound inheritance from his father, Robert Hooke became an orphan of
sorts, being sent off to London.
As a boy, Robert Hooke had shown considerable interest and skill in mechanical
things, and this, along with Hooke's intelligence, did not escape the notice of Richard
Busby. Busby had a reputation for "flogging sense into them," but there was no threat
here for Robert Hooke. Busby saw great genius in Hooke, and got involved to the
extent of taking the boy into his own home.
Hooke was then educated at the University of Oxford. He served as assistant to
the English physicist Robert Boyle and assisted him in the construction of the air pump.
In 1662 Hooke was appointed curator of experiments of the Royal Society and served
in this position until his death. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1663 and
was appointed Gresham Professor of Geometry at Oxford in 1665. After the Great Fire
of London in 1666, he was appointed surveyor of London, and he designed many
buildings, including Montague House and Bethlehem Hospital.
Hooke...