Gratuitous Anglophilic Posting

Now this is really cool. Long lost notes from meetings of Britain's Royal Society for the years 1661 to 1682 have been rediscovered in an old cupboard in Hampshire. The notes record debate and discussion among some of the 17th Century's scientific heavyweights, inculding Wren, Hooke, Leibniz, Aubrey, Evelyn and Newton.

Apparently, the rediscovery of these minutes makes the Society's archives complete from its founding in 1660 under Charles II up to the present.

The bad news? The manuscripts were discovered by an appraiser for Bonham's auctioneers and are going to be put on the block in March. The Society itself can't afford the expected million pound selling price and various Friends appear to be scrambling to find a way to get the records back to it.

What would be really, really cool? If whoever bought the notes donated them back to the Society. Message to potential bidders out there: Think about it.

Just to geek out about it a bit, here is a list of Presidents of the Royal Society from the 17th to the 19th Century:

17th century Presidents

1662-1677 William, Viscount Brouncker
1677-1680 Sir Joseph Williamson
1680-1682 Sir Christopher Wren
1682-1683 Sir John Hoskins, Bart
1683-1684 Sir Cyril Wyche
1684-1686 Samuel Pepys
1686-1689 John, Earl of Carbery (Lord Vaughan)
1689-1690 Thomas, Earl of Pembroke, KG
1690-1695 Sir Robert Southwell
1695-1698 Charles Montagu (afterwards Earl of Halifax, KG)

18th century Presidents

1698-1703 John, Lord Somers
1703-1727 Sir Isaac Newton
1727-1741 Sir Hans Sloane, Bart
1741-1752 Martin Folkes
1752-1764 George, Earl of Macclesfield
1764-1768 James, Earl of Morton (Lord Aberdour)
1768-1768 James (afterwards Sir James) Burrow
1768-1772 James West
1772-1772 James (afterwards Sir James) Burrow
1772-1778 Sir John Pringle, Bart

19th century Presidents

1778-1820 Sir Joseph Banks, Bart, PC
1820-1820 William Hyde Wollaston
1820-1827 Sir Humphry Davy, Bart
1827-1830 Davies Gilbert (formerly Giddy)
1830-1838 HRH The Duke of Sussex
1838-1848 Joshua Alwyne Compton, Marquess of Northampton
1848-1854 William Parsons, Earl of Rosse
1854-1858 John, Lord Wrottesley
1858-1861 Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie, Bart
1861-1871 Sir Edward Sabine, KCB
1871-1873 Sir George Biddell Airy, KCB
1873-1878 Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker, OM, GCSI
1878-1883 William Spottiswoode
1883-1885 Thomas Henry Huxley, PC
1885-1890 Sir George Gabriel Stokes, Bart.
1890-1895 Lord Kelvin (Sir William Thomson), PC, OM
1895-1900 Lord Lister, PC, OM

Mmmmm.....Rule, Britannia.....mmmmmmm.

Yips! to Rachel.

UPDATE: Rex Ferric points us to this extremely funny site dedicated to the Lord Kelvin. I dunno - it seems the Flying Spaghetti Monster may have some serious competition. Conservation from entropy without all those messy noodles sounds pretty good to me.