This Day In History: English philosopher Francis Bacon was born on this day in 1561. He is credited with developing the scientific method, and his dedication to science leads to a great story as to how he died: "Bacon was riding along in his horse and carriage when he suddenly decided he needed to know whether snow delays putrefaction. So he abruptly stopped his carriage, hopped out to buy a hen, and stuffed it with snow. Unfortunately, this caused him to be seized with a sudden chill, which brought on bronchitis, and he died soon after at a friend’s house. This, to me, is a noble anecdote. Okay, it’s a little embarrassing that his death involved frozen poultry. And maybe he displayed a touch of sadism—I’m just hoping the poor hen wasn’t alive when he rammed snow into its gullet. But there’s also something great about it. Bacon had such an itch for knowledge, he was so giddy about an idea, that he just went bonkers and bolted out of his carriage. The man couldn’t wait another second to find out more about antiputrefaction techniques. I find this inspiring. If you’re going to give your life for a cause, furtherance of knowledge has got to be in the top two or three." The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World by A. J. Jacobs
Buy this book at https://www.amazon.com/Know-All-Humble-Become-Smartest/dp/0743250621/
“Against cold meats was he insured?
For frozen chickens he procured —
brought on the illness he endured,
and never was this Bacon cured.”
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