Alexander von Humboldt

Cosmos

Synthesis of natural science describing Earth's physical and living systems

About the author

Alexander von Humboldt
Alexander von Humboldt

German naturalist and explorer whose Personal Narrative of Travels to the Equinoctial Regions of America inspired Darwin, Thoreau, and a generation of scientists and explorers. His Cosmos attempted a unified physical description of the universe. He virtually invented the science of ecology.

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