The Lunar Society

In 1764, the Lunar Society (so named because they met for dinner on the Monday night nearest the full moon; they called themselves the "Lunatics") was formed it in Birmingham and promoted new scientific and technological ideas. The original founders included Erasmus Darwin (Charles Darwin's grandfather), William Small (Jefferson's mentor), and the industrialist Matthew Boulton. Soon the "Lunatics" included many of the great minds in Britain (including Benjamin Franklin when he visited). In Scotland, the brilliant men who met in Edinburgh and Glasgow pubs included the philosopher David Hume, the pioneering economist Adam Smith ("father of capitalism"), the inventor of the steam engine, James Watt, and the father of modern geology, James Hutton. Eventually, these new ideas and challenges to royal authority helped lead to the American Revolution against Britain in 1775. The American patriots such as Jefferson were inspired largely by British and French political philosophers, such as Locke and Rousseau. These ideas also triggered the French Revolution in 1787, which overthrew the centuries-long domination of France by the Bourbon monarchy and the Church.

Notes:

Referred to themselves as "Lunatics" and included many famous Americans and scientists.

Folksonomies: science culture societies science society

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Concepts:
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Industrial Revolution (0.875318): dbpedia | freebase | yago
Erasmus Darwin (0.845434): dbpedia | freebase | yago
Matthew Boulton (0.762301): dbpedia | freebase | yago
David Hume (0.682948): dbpedia | freebase | opencyc | yago
United States Declaration of Independence (0.674051): dbpedia | freebase | yago
Age of Enlightenment (0.659238): dbpedia | freebase | yago
John Locke (0.601705): dbpedia | freebase | opencyc | yago

 Evolution
Books, Brochures, and Chapters>Book:  Prothero , Donald R. and Buell , Carl Dennis (2007), Evolution, Columbia Univ Pr, Retrieved on 2012-04-13
  • Source Material [books.google.com]
  • Folksonomies: science