he came 4th in the greatest briton poll. why? oh-wow-were decended
from apes!!! it's changed my life!!! if he hadn't put forward this idea,
someone else probubly would have (in fact-he wasn't the only person
with that idea at that time-he just sat on his for 20 odd years...). and
what about princess diana? there are millions of people like princess
diana doing good all over the world-she's just got the media attention.
issac newton, robert the bruce, alexander graham bell, alexander the
great; all were probubly greater than either of those two...
you've also got oliver cromwell. there are 7 points of democracy: equal
constituencies, regular elections, universal sufferage, 2 elected
houses, the right of any person to stand for either house, and -erm-
two others... but up untill the second reform act which wasn't untill the
second half of the C19, britain had one of these-regular
elections...and even then it was only every seven years...democracy?
G
Originally posted by geniusYou could use that argument for just about anything; relativity, the
he came 4th in the greatest briton poll. why? oh-wow-were
decended
from apes!!! it's changed my life!!! if he hadn't put forward this idea,
someone else probubly would have (in fact-he wasn't the only person
with that idea at that time-he just sat on his for 20 odd years...).
printing press, electric lights, the steam engine, etc. Darwin is pretty
much recognized as being the first person to put the theory of
evolution into a coherent scientific argument. The fact is that while
Darwin certainly wasn't 100% correct with his theory, it laid the
foundations for much of modern biology, and changed the way that
people think about themselves and the rest of the world. I'd say
that's pretty important, and should rank him up there with other
influential Britons.
-mike
My list of the most influential: The inventor of the birth control pill
(forget Darwin, this is survival of the fittest), Henry Ford (made
everyone's knees last longer and the horses were grateful),
Guttenburg (brought reading and education to the masses), Inventor
of floridated water (single most beneficial thing for public health), and
finally, the inventor of the breast implant ( made art accessible to the
common man). Kirk😀
The concept that man was not placed on earth by a special act of god, but rather that he evolved
from a lower order of primate, was one of the most revolutionary concepts ever put forward. Its
influence has reverberated through every field of endeavor, and has radically altered the way man
views himself, the world, and his relationship to it. Darwin changed the intellectual landscape of the
world as few men before him have ever done. I'm surprised he wasn't ranked any higher than
fourth.
Two of the reasons why he wasn't any higher were Winston Churchill
and Isambard Kingdom Brunel (the third, and why I'll never know, was
Princess Diana) . These sort of things by their very nature are
subjective and bound to provoke discussion and disagreement.
The top 10 for anyone that is interested is as follows:-
1. Churchill
2. Brunel
3. Diana, Princess of Wales
4. Darwin
5. Shakespeare
6. Newton
7. Elizabeth I
8. John Lennon
9. Nelson
10. Cromwell
To see the rest in order from 11-100 go here:-
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/greatbritons/list.shtml
Mark
(Personally pleased that Alan Turing was well placed)
Originally posted by rwingettIn a word, yes.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel? Who is that? I've never heard of him.
Is there a gaping hole in my
knowledge of noteworthy Brits?
You're not alone though, many Britons haven't heard of him either!
In short he was an engineer in the 19th Century who is widely
regarded as a genius; responsible for many constructions and ideas
which helped to drag Britain forward with a never before seen
infrastructure.
A good place to start is here (there are 4 pages in total):-
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/society_culture/industrialisation/brunel_isa
mbard_01.shtml
Mark
Originally posted by T1000Interesting. Over 40 cigars a day. No wonder he died at 53.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/society_culture/industrialisation/brunel_isa
mbard_01.shtml
I detect a lack of poets from the last three centuries on the top 100 list. Although such "notables"
as Boy George, Johny Rotten, and Robbie Williams made the list, poets such as Tennyson, Lord
Byron, Coleridge, and others, did not. I guess Tennyson would have been better off writing song
lyrics instead of poetry.
Given that it it was a vote open to members of the public, far from
being dismayed at the lack of people who (to my mind without doubt)
should have been there but weren't, I'd much rather take the positive
aspect of just how many "worthy" names did make it onto the list.
Most pleasing 😀
Mark
I have finally worked up the courage to post on the new format in the
forums ... and thought this was a suitable subject to comment on.
For me there was a major exclusion from this list ... two of the finest
engineers of all time, that created an enclosed self sufficient
community far away from teh rigours of life, where man (thats the
inclusive term of men and women to all those feminists out there) can
live and play together.
My candidates would be Chris & Russ ... the British Public should be
ashamed to have missed them off the list.
With regards to the real list ...
Not sure why Diana is on there (a woman that craved publicity and was
a cheater and has done nothing greater than many celebs out there),
Churchill ? Good effort with the war and rallying a country totally
unprepared for war but #1 - nope .... Isenbard ... created the
Industrial Revolution... not really sure about that...surely it was an
agglomerated effort .. Farraday, Stephenson, Tull, Watt (christ he
even has a unit of power named after him), James Hargreaves
(spinning jenny ... dont laugh was very important in revolutionising
manufacturing), the decline of feudalism and most important factor,
the massive improvement in medical treatments leading to a
reduction in child deaths lead to the revolution.
My choice would be Liz I who was on the throne for 50 odd years ...
won against the Spanish in the Armada thingy, bashed the scots,
bashed the catholic church.
No coincidence that shakespeare, Bacon, Spenser, Sidney and Raleigh
were around at this time.
Oh and led to a great series of Blackadder with Rowan Atkinson
if he hadn't put forward this idea, someone else probubly would have... ah but Darwin was the first person to put the theory forward, despite
(in fact-he wasn't the only person with that idea at that time-he just
sat on his for 20 odd years...).
it challenging every aspect of the most powerful body in the country at
the time - the church. You are right though, a lot of other people
(Charles Lyell, William Hutton, John Frere and probably others) were
all drawing to the same conclusion from slightly different angles.
Claiming he shouldn't be up there because someone else would have
said or done it eventually - well you claim that for NEwton, Alexander
Bell etc.
Mark