Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (1769 – 1859) was a German polymath, and brother to Wilhelm von Humboldt (who was a statesman, and also one of the founders of linguistics).
Humboldt was a naturalist who undertook extensive expeditions (and wrote extensive accounts of them). His writings were highly influential, and and inspiration to the young Charles Darwin.
Working before the formal institutions and distinctions of modern science (read about 'The sins of scientific specialisation'), Humboldt sought a holistic study of nature: La physique générale . It has been suggested:
"One of the distinctive features of Humboldtian science is that it corresponds to none of our modern scientific disciplines or specialities. La physique générale was essentially an all-encompassing, comprehensive enterprise."
icolson, Malcolm (1995), Historical Introduction, in Humboldt, Alexander von, Personal Narrative of a Journey to the Equinoctial Regions of the New Continent, Penguin.
Among Humbolt's many contributions:
- realising the decrease in the earth's magnetic field moving towards the equator
- noting anomalous magnetic effects in certain rocks (later understood as due to reverses in the earth's magnetic field)
- suggesting seismic waves
- began the systematic study of botany in relation to geography and climate
- reported a wide range of food plants (and the poison curare) used in Latin America, but unknown in Europe
- sent guano back to Europe for analysis (leading to its uptake as fertiliser)
- recognised relationships between different volcanoes
- suggested building (what became) the Panama canal
- provided scientific accounts of Native American people
- reported on Aztec art and science
- mapped Mexico, Cuba
- developed new visual ways of recording scientific data
