Francis Galton

Sir Francis Galton (February 16, 1822 – January 17, 1911) British anthropologist, explorer, inventor, statistician, a pioneer in eugenics, investigator of the human mind, and the founder of the science of measuring mental faculties: psychometrics. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society and was knighted in 1909.

Related Topics:
February 16 - 1822 - January 17 - 1911 - British - Anthropologist - Explorer - Inventor - Statistician - Eugenics - Psychometrics - Fellow of the Royal Society - 1909

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He was born into the Darwin-Wedgwood family near Sparkbrook, Birmingham and was Charles Darwin's half first cousin, his mother and Darwin's father having been children of Erasmus Darwin by separate marriages. His father was Samuel Tertius Galton, son of Samuel "John" Galton. He was advised at a young age by Charles Darwin that he ought to "read Mathematics like a house on fire," and was very much influenced by Darwin's ideas of natural selection when they came into print.

Related Topics:
Darwin-Wedgwood family - Sparkbrook - Birmingham - Charles Darwin - Erasmus Darwin - Samuel Tertius Galton - Samuel "John" Galton - Natural selection

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Galton had a somewhat directionless youth. Born into a family too wealthy to require him to work he took a gentlemanly rather than a professional interest in science and failed to graduate from Cambridge. In the 1850's he spent some time travelling in Africa and then proceeded to write books on his experiences including The Art of Travel, a handbook of practical advice for the Victorian on the move.

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The event that changed his life and gave him a direction was the publication by his cousin Charles of The Origin of Species in 1859. Galton was gripped by the work and devoted the rest of his life to exploring its implications. The result was a blizzard of discoveries and investigations as varied as detailed research into the perfect cup of tea and his discovery of the anti-cyclone.

Related Topics:
The Origin of Species - 1859 - Anti-cyclone

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Galton devised techniques such as composite photography in order to establish racial and social 'types' which could aid the management of society. He was a proponent of the idea of selective breeding amongst humans in order to halt what he saw as the decline of the British race. His ideas would go on to influence the sterilisation movements in countries such as Sweden, the United States and Germany. His work on eugenics was later adopted by the Nazi party as a justification for the systematic elimination of the Jews and other races.

Related Topics:
Sterilisation - Sweden - United States - Germany

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