Astronomer. Born in London. He became Astronomer Royal in 1811, and during his tenure, he substantially modernised the Greenwich Observatory. In 1833 he oversaw the installation of the time ball on the roof (probably, the first public time signal in the UK). The ball dropped daily at 1:00 p.m., and was intended to aid mariners on the Thames to synchronise their marine chronometers.
Credit for this entry to: Alan Patient of www.plaquesoflondon.co.uk
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
John Pond
'A tonic for the Nation', The Festival was intended to cheer us all up after WW2, and incidentally to celebrate the centenary of the 1851 Great Exhibition. The symbol for the Festival was designed ...
Anthropologist and poet. Born at Viewfield, in Selkirk. Chiefly known for his publications on folklore, mythology, and religion. He was one of the founders of 'psychical research' and his writings ...
American chemist, inventor and industrialist. Born Pennsylvania. Â Initially worked with Edison. Companies he founded include: Carborundum, Inc., UCar International, and Acheson Industries. Â In abou...
Born Ernst Boris Chain in Germany. Biochemist. Moved to England in 1933. 1945 co-recipient of the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for work on penicillin. Founder of Imperial College's Bioche...
Born Stenbrohult, Småland in southern Sweden. Inventor of a system for naming, ranking, and classifying organisms. One of the great collectors of the 18th century. At his death Joseph Banks tried b...
Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in to see them