Needham's Grand Question
| Joseph Needham | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Born |
Noel Joseph Terence Montgomery Needham 6 December 1900 London, England, UK |
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| Died |
24 March 1995 (aged 94) Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK |
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| Alma mater |
Oundle School Gonville and Caius College Cambridge University |
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| Occupation | Historian, biochemist | ||||||||
| Spouse(s) |
Dorothy Moyle Needham (m. 1924; d. 1987) Lu Gwei-djen (m. 1989; d. 1991) |
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| Awards | Leonardo da Vinci Medal, 1968 | ||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 李約瑟 | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 李约瑟 | ||||||||
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| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Lǐ Yuēsè |
| Wade–Giles | Li Yüeh-Sê |
Noel Joseph Terence Montgomery Needham CH FRS FBA (/ˈniːdəm/; 9 December 1900 – 24 March 1995) was a British scientist, historian and sinologist known for his scientific research and writing on the history of Chinese science. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1941, and a fellow of the British Academy in 1971. In 1992, the Queen conferred on him the Companionship of Honour, and the Royal Society noted he was the only living person to hold these three titles.
Needham was the only child of a London family. His father was a doctor, and his mother, Alicia Adelaïde, née Montgomery (1863–1945), was a music composer from Oldcastle, Co. Meath, Ireland. Needham was educated at Oundle School (founded in 1556 in Northamptonshire) before attending Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he received a BA in 1921, an Oxbridge MA in January 1925 and a DPhil in October 1925. He had intended to study medicine but came under the influence of Frederick Hopkins, resulting in his switch to biochemistry.
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