Ancient Minds
Leonardo Da Vinci Leonardo was born near the little town of Vinci, Italy, which is very close to Florence, on April 15, 1452. His father was Ser Piero Da Vinci, and his mother was a local peasant girl named Caterina. When young Leonardo was only one year old, his father married another woman, and his mother married a peasant man and disappeared. At an early age, Leonardo showed many extraordinary talents. He was very interested in just about everything around him. He was said to have confused his math teachers with his questions, played the lute and sung with great talent, and above all, was incredibly good at drawing. – Read More
Nikola Tesla According to legend, Tesla was born precisely at midnight during an electrical storm, to a Serb family in the village of Smiljan near Gospić, in the Lika region of the Austrian Empire, in the Croatian part of Military Frontier, located in present-day Croatia. His baptism certificate reports that he was born on June 28 [N.S. July 10], 1856, and christened by the Serbian Orthodox priest Toma Oklobdžija. His father was Rev. Milutin Tesla, a priest in the Serbian Orthodox Church Metropolitanate of Sremski Karlovci. His mother was Đuka Mandić, herself a daughter of a Serbian Orthodox Church priest. She was talented in making home craft tools. She memorized many Serbian epic poems, but never learned to read. His godfather, Jovan Drenovac, was a captain in the army protecting the Military Frontier.  – Read More
Albert Einstein Albert Einstein was born at Ulm, in Württemberg, Germany, on March 14, 1879. Six weeks later the family moved to Munich and he began his schooling there at the Luitpold Gymnasium. Later, they moved to Italy and Albert continued his education at Aarau, Switzerland and in 1896 he entered the Swiss Federal Polytechnic School in Zurich to be trained as a teacher in physics and mathematics. In 1901, the year he gained his diploma, he acquired Swiss citizenship and, as he was unable to find a teaching post, he accepted a position as technical assistant in the Swiss Patent Office. In 1905 he obtained his doctor’s degree. – Read More
Edgar Cayce The Sleeping Prophet: Edgar Cayce was born into a farming family on March 18, 1877 near Beverly, seven miles south of Hopkinsville, Kentucky. One convenient way to divide Cayce’s life is according to geography: 1877 to 1920—the Kentucky period. In December 1893 the family moved to Hopkinsville, Kentucky and occupied 705 West Seventh, on the south-east corner of Seventh and Young Street. During this time Cayce received an eighth-grade education; discovered his spiritual vocation; left the family farm to pursue various forms of employment (at Richard’s Dry Goods Store, then in Hopper’s Bookstore both located on Main Street). – Read More
Nostradamus Michel De Nostradamus – On December 14, 1503 in St. Remy, France, Michel De Nostradamus was born. The first son of Jewish parents, forced by the Inquisition to convert to Catholicism, would become a skilled physician but would gain renown during his lifetime and beyond as a seer of the future.
Growing up he spent much of his time learning languages, math, astronomy, and astrology from his grandfather, Jean. Later he attended the University at Avignon where he studied liberal arts. Afterward, he graduated from the medical school at the University of Montpelier and began a private practice where he succeeded at treating plague victims in Montpelier and the surrounding areas. – Read More
Isaac Newton Newton, Sir Isaac , English natural philosopher, generally regarded as the most original and influential theorist in the history of science. In addition to his invention of the infinitesimal calculus and a new theory of light and color, Newton transformed the structure of physical science with his three laws of motion and the law of universal gravitation. As the keystone of the scientific revolution of the 17th century, Newton’s work combined the contributions of Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Descartes, and others into a new and powerful synthesis. Three centuries later the resulting structure – classical mechanics – continues to be a useful but no less elegant monument to his genius. – Read More
Edward Leedskalnin Edward Leedskalnin was born in Riga, Latvia on August 10th, 1887. When Ed was 26 years old, he was engaged to be married to his one true Love, Agnes Scuffs. Agnes was ten years younger than Ed; he affectionately referred to Agnes as his “Sweet Sixteen”. Agnes canceled the wedding just one day before the ceremony. Heartbroken and deeply saddened by this tragic loss, Ed set out on a lifelong quest to create a monument to his lost love that has culminated into one of the world’s most remarkable accomplishments. Ed’s unusual creation is called the Coral Castle, (it was originally called “Rock Gate Park”). Ed without any outside assistance or large machinery single-handedly built the Coral Castle. He carved and sculpted over 1,100 tons of coral rock as a testimony to his lost love, Agnes. – Read More
Mahatma Gandhi MOHANDAS KARAMCHAND GANDHI was born on October 2, 1869, at Porbandar, a small town on the western coast of India, which was then one of the many tiny states in Kathiawar. He was born in middle class family of Vaishya caste. His grandfather had risen to be the Dewan or Prime Minister of Porbandar and was succeeded by his son Karamchand who was the father of Mohandas. Putlibai, Mohandas’s mother, was a saintly character, gentle and devout, and left a deep impress on her son’s mind. – Read More
Galileo Galilei Galileo Galilei Biography – An Italian physicist, astronomer, and philosopher who is closely associated with the scientific revolution. His achievements include improvements to the telescope, a variety of astronomical observations, the first and second laws of motion, and effective support for Copernicanism. According to Stephen Hawking, Galileo has probably contributed more to the creation of the modern natural sciences than anybody else. He has been referred to as the “father of modern astronomy,” as the “father of modern physics,” and as the “father of science.” The work of Galileo is considered to be a significant break from that of Aristotle. – Read More

God does not care about our mathematical difficulties. He integrates empirically. — Albert Einstein