Many researchers tried to find out who Lomonosov was for Russian science. It is rather difficult to determine this briefly, because this scientist was a universal specialist. He was interested in both the exact sciences and the humanities.
Origin
Mikhail Lomonosov was born on November 19, 1711 in the village of Mishaninskaya. This place was located on the outskirts of Russia - in the distant northern Arkhangelsk province. The future scientist by nationality belonged to Pomors. His father Vasily Dorofeevich was a wealthy merchant by local standards. He was fishing. When Mikhail grew up, his father began to take him with him on trips.
Belonging to the far North is important as one of the main features that determined who Lomonosov was. Already at maturity, Mikhail Vasilievich devoted a lot of his scientific works to his native land, as well as to the peculiarities of local nature, for example, the amazing phenomenon of the northern lights.
Education
Lomonosov grew up as a curious young man, but in his native places there was not a single institution where he could get an education. He even learned to read and write only thanks to the efforts of the local clerk.
In 1730, a nineteen-year-old youth escaped from his house and, together with a trade caravan, went to Moscow. He did not tell his father and stepmother about his intentions, and he was considered missing for a long time. What Lomonosov was (an aromatic pomor) could prevent him from entering the Slavic-Greco-Roman Academy. Only children from noble families were taken there. But the young man most of all in the world wanted to study. And he, speaking as a noble son, still turned out to be enrolled in the academy.
Lomonosov quickly established himself as the best student. He was sent to continue his education, first to Kiev, and then to Petersburg. At this time, the domestic Academy of Sciences was just beginning its work. She chose the best students and sent them abroad at public expense. So Lomonosov got to the University of Marburg in Germany. There he met Western science, which for several decades was ahead of Russian. The state tried to develop education in the young empire, but even for this it was necessary to hire foreign specialists. When Lomonosov returned to his homeland in 1741, he was determined to instill Western standards in science in relation to science.
At the Academy of Sciences
To understand who Lomonosov was, it is enough to list the places where he managed to work for his long and vibrant academic career. In the 40s, the young specialist did not leave the offices of the Kunstkamera, where he was immersed in the world of natural science. He successfully translated Western scientific texts from Latin and German into Russian.
In 1745, an event occurred that Lomonosov had been waiting for a very long time. The professorship was his cherished dream throughout his youth. It was awarded to a 35-year-old scientist for his dissertation in chemistry on the topic of the properties of metals. Together with the title of professor, Lomonosov also received a noble title. Since then, he tirelessly worked at the metropolitan Academy of Sciences.
The comprehensiveness of Lomonosov
For the entire XVIII century, Russia did not have a more prominent scientist than Mikhail Lomonosov. What science interested him the most? This question cannot be answered unequivocally. Lomonosov at various times devoted himself to history, mechanics, chemistry and mineralogy. He was fond of creativity, including drawing and poetry.
As a major scientist, Lomonosov was always close to the supreme power. Most of his activities fell on the reign of Elizabeth Petrovna. With her, in 1754, Moscow State University was founded according to the project of Lomonosov . Like no one else, Mikhail Vasilievich understood the importance of popularizing education in the country.
In preparing the project of the higher educational institution, Lomonosov was assisted by a prominent statesman Ivan Shuvalov. He also became the first curator of an important university. Already after the death of Lomonosov, the university received his name, which he still bears.
Naturalist
Most famous Russian scientist is known as a researcher of natural sciences. Many works were devoted to them, the author of which was Lomonosov. The physicist was a supporter of the atomic theory of the structure of matter. In the XVIII century it was not yet proven, and it had many opponents. Nevertheless, thanks to years of observation and experimentation, Lomonosov came to the conclusion that each substance consists of molecules, which he called corpuscles.
Mikhail Vasilievich loved to study chemistry with the help of physics and explain natural phenomena through these sciences. In this field, Lomonosov discovered the law of conservation of mass. He was also the first to give a scientific definition of physical chemistry. It is not surprising that it was Lomonosov who did this. The physicist studied a huge layer of the then Western science literature. He translated into Russian many terms that were not previously in the domestic vocabulary.
Language researcher
Mikhail Lomonosov, whose years of life passed not in his office, but mainly in the Academy of Sciences, spoke a lot in public. He had to discuss with opponents, to prove the correctness of his decisions on paper, etc. Therefore, in the 50s, Lomonosov thoroughly engaged in rhetoric.
His scientific mindset forced every thought to put on paper as a theory. In particular, therefore, Mikhail Vasilievich wrote and published the “Brief Guide to Rhetoric,” which later became popular at universities for a long time.
The rich and complex Russian language was another area that Lomonosov was interested in. The field of science grammar was studied by him thoroughly. He rightly considered the Russian language to be living matter, which was constantly changing. This was especially acute just in the 18th century, when Russia was greatly influenced by European and especially German culture.
Of course, Lomonosov could not stay away from these processes. He wrote Russian Grammar, in which he laid out in detail all the rules for using the Russian language. At that time, domestic humanitarian science did not know such detailed and accurate studies on this topic.
Death
Mikhail Lomonosov died on April 15, 1765. The cause of the death of the scientist was pneumonia. The luminary of Russian science was only 53 years old. Already during his lifetime, his name received worthy fame. This is confirmed by the fact that shortly before his death, Empress Catherine II visited Lomonosov. She recently appeared on the throne, but she always appreciated the activities of the scientist, since she herself was extremely educated.
Many universities in Europe were happy to make such a fruitful researcher as Lomonosov their professor. What title did he receive besides this? For example, in the Bologna and Stockholm Academies of Sciences he was elected an honorary member.