Georges-Louis Le Sage
| Georges-Louis Le Sage | |
|---|---|
Georges-Louis Le Sage
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| Born |
13 June 1724 Geneva, Republic of Geneva |
| Died | 9 November 1803 (aged 79) Geneva, Republic of Geneva |
Georges-Louis Le Sage (French: [lə saʒ]; 13 June 1724 – 9 November 1803) was a Genevan physicist and is most known for his theory of gravitation, for his invention of an electric telegraph and his anticipation of the kinetic theory of gases. Furthermore, he was a contributor to the Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers.
Le Sage was born in Geneva, his father was Georges-Louis Le Sage from Conques in Burgundy and his mother Anne Marie Gamp, a descendant of Théodore Agrippa d'Aubigné. His father, who was the author of many papers on various subjects, occupied his son of his own studies early, including the works of the Roman poet Lucretius at the age of 13. According to Pierre Prévost and some notices of Le Sage, the education by his parents in his early years was very strict, and Le Sage reacted to this by isolating himself and with meditation on various subjects. Contrary to his father, who allegedly only accepted facts and had little interest in generalization, Le Sage was primarily interested in general and abstract principles.
Le Sage took the first regular education at the college of Geneva, were was friendly connected with Jean-André Deluc. Besides philosophy, he studied mathematics under Gabriel Cramer, and physics under Calendrini. Later he decided to study medicine in Basel, where he also gave private lessons in mathematics. Here, Le Sage also met Daniel Bernoulli, whose work on the kinetic nature of gases was very influential to him. Then Le Sage left Basel and continued to study medicine in Paris. After he came back to Geneva, Le Sage tried to work as a physician, but it was denied because his father was a native from France. There, he was friendly connected with Charles Bonnet.
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