Mikhail Lomonosov
A fisherman's son who became Russia's first great modern scientist, laying the foundations for its language, literature, and understanding of the natural world.
1711–1765 (age 54)·Russian polymath·Birthday: November 19
Biography
Mikhail Lomonosov's story begins with an epic 800-mile walk. At 19, the son of a Pomor fisherman left his village, trekked to Moscow, and lied about his nobility to gain entry to a seminary. His ferocious intellect propelled him through the ranks of the Russian Academy of Sciences and to study in Germany. Lomonosov was a force of nature in a single mind—a chemist who articulated the law of mass conservation, a physicist who theorized about the wave nature of light, and an astronomer who identified the atmosphere of Venus. Simultaneously, he disciplined the chaotic Russian language, writing a defining grammar and pioneering a new, powerful style of Russian poetry. He practically willed the establishment of Moscow University, which now bears his name. More than a scholar, he was Russia's Enlightenment embodied, arguing that science and art were twin engines for national progress.
#1 When Mikhail Was Born
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Mikhail's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1711Born
1716Started school
1724Became a teenager
1727Could drive
1729Could vote
1732Turned 21
1741Turned 30
1751Turned 40
1761Turned 50
1765Died at 54
Key Achievements
- Founded Moscow State University in 1755, which was later renamed in his honor.
- Formulated the law of conservation of mass in chemical reactions, a cornerstone of modern chemistry.
- Correctly hypothesized that Venus possessed an atmosphere based on his observations of its 1761 transit.
- Published 'Russian Grammar' in 1755, which standardized and systematized the modern Russian literary language.
- Pioneered the study of physical chemistry and designed improved mosaic art and optical instruments.
Did You Know?
He was imprisoned for several months after a dispute with several German professors at the Academy of Sciences.
Lomonosov was also a skilled artist, creating large mosaic portraits using glass he helped manufacture.
He nearly died after being shanghaied into the Prussian army while studying in Germany, but managed to escape.
He vigorously argued against the prevailing 'phlogiston' theory in chemistry, which was later proven false.
“Thus, observing the course of nature with profound attention, I dare assert that all changes in the visible world are subject to one common law: as much is taken from one body as is added to another.”
