| Georg Joachim Rheticus |
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His father had a medical practice in Feldkirch. When he was executed, Achilles Gasser took over the practice. Gasser helped Rheticus continue his studies and was a strong support to him. Rheticus took on this name for the former Roman province of Rhaetia and studied at Feldkirch, Zürich and the University Of Wittenberg , where he received his M.A. in 1536. . The mayor gave Rheticus some financial assistance to publish the ''First Report'' or ''Narratio Prima''. This ''Narratio Prima'', published by Rhode in Gdańsk in 1540, is still considered to be the best introduction to Copernicus' '' De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium ''. While in Gdańsk he interviewed the pilots to find out navigational problems. Rheticus had also visited the bishop of Chełmno Tideman Giese of Gdańsk . In August 1541 Rheticus presented a copy of his work ''Tabula chorographica auff Preussen und etliche umbliegende lender'' (map of Prussia and neighboring lands) to Duke Albrecht, Albert Of Prussia . Duke Albrecht had been trying to compute the exact time of sunrise. Rheticus made an instrument for him, that determined the length of the day. Rheticus asked and received the permission of the duke for the publication of the Copernicus ''De revolutionibus''. Albrecht requested of Rheticus that he return to his teaching position. He returned to the University of Wittenberg in October 1541, after earlier publishing the trigonometrical sections of the Copernicus ''De revolutionibus''. In 1542 he traveled to Nüremberg to supervise the printing of the Copernicus material, published upon Copernicus' death in 1543. The canon of Warmia Georg Donner and the bishop of Warmia Johannes Danticus were both patrons of Rheticus. Rheticus was also commissioned to make a staff for king Sigismund II of Poland, while he held a position as teacher in Krakow for many years. From there he went to Košice (Kassa) in Hungary, where he died in 1574. Based on: Richard S. Westfall, Indiana University See here "Catalog of the Scientific Community of the 16th and 17th Centuries" by this author (Not working on 20-1-2004). '' Needs to be checked for copyright violation!'' JJ O'Connor and EF Robertson, University St. Andrews, Scotland. EXTERNAL LINKS |