Identity area
Type of entity
Person
Authorized form of name
Brewster, David
Parallel form(s) of name
- David Brewster
- Brewster, Sir David
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
(1781-1868)
History
Sir David Brewster was a British scientist, inventor, author, and academic administrator. In science, he is principally remembered for his experimental work in physical optics, mostly concerned with the study of the polarization of light and including the discovery of Brewster's angle. He studied the birefringence of crystals under compression and discovered photoelasticity, thereby creating the field of optical mineralogy.
A pioneer in photography, Brewster invented an improved stereoscope, which he called "lenticular stereoscope" and which became the first portable 3D-viewing device. He also invented the binocular camera, two types of polarimeters, the polyzonal lens, the lighthouse illuminator, and the kaleidoscope.
Brewster was a Presbyterian and walked arm in arm with his brother on the Disruption procession which formed the Free Church of Scotland. As a historian of science, Brewster focused on the life and work of his hero, Isaac Newton. Brewster published a detailed biography of Newton in 1831 and later became the first scientific historian to examine many of the papers in Newton's Nachlass. Brewster also wrote numerous works of popular science, and was one of the founders of the British Science Association, of which he was elected President in 1849. He became the public face of higher education in Scotland, serving as Principal of the University of St Andrews (1837–59) and later of the University of Edinburgh (1859–68). Brewster also edited the 18-volume Edinburgh Encyclopædia.
Places
Scotland