1670 in science explained

The year 1670 in science and technology involved some significant events.

Botany

• John Ray publishes Catalogus plantarum Angliæ, the basis of all later floras of England.^[1]
• The predecessor of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh is opened as a physic garden by Drs Robert Sibbald and Andrew Balfour in Holyrood, Edinburgh, Scotland.^[2]

Earth sciences

• Jean Picard calculates the Earth radius to within 0.44% of the modern value.^[3]
• Agostino Scilla publishes Italian: La vana speculazione disingannata dal senso: lettera risponsiva c. i corpi marini, che petrificati si trovano in varii luoghi terrestri ("Vain Speculation Undeceived by Sense") in Naples, arguing for an organic origin for fossils.^[4]

Technology

• The first longcase clock is built in England by William Clement.^[5]

Births

• February 25 – Maria Margarethe Kirch born Winckelmann, German astronomer (died 1720)^[6]

Deaths

• March 10 – Johann Rudolf Glauber, German chemist (born 1604)^[7]
• May 21 – Niccolò Zucchi, Italian astronomer (born 1586)^[8]

Notes and References

1. Web site: John Ray: Catalogus plantarum Angliae. www.gla.ac.uk. 5 April 2018.
2. Web site: Lost Edinburgh: The Physic Garden. Scotsman. 5 April 2018.
3. Book: Barentine. John C.. The Lost Constellations: A History of Obsolete, Extinct, or Forgotten Star Lore. 2015. Springer. 9783319227955. 308.
4. Web site: Scilla, Agostino, 1670, La Vana Speculazione. Engraved title page. :: Emblematic Science. lhldigital.lindahall.org. 5 April 2018.
5. Book: Usry. Terri. Antique Clocks: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. 2015. Lulu Press, Inc. 9781329632738. 22.
6. Web site: Maria Kirch – German astronomer. Encyclopædia Britannica. 5 April 2018.
7. Web site: The Galileo Project. galileo.rice.edu. 5 April 2018.
8. Web site: Niccolò Zucci – Italian astronomer. Encyclopædia Britannica. 5 April 2018.