Samuel Vince

Samuel Vince ( born April 6, 1749 Fressingfield, † November 28, 1821 in Ramsgate ) was a British mathematician, astronomer and clergyman.

Vince was the son of a bricklayer and helped his father until the age of twelve years on the job. A priest noticed him reading at work and took care of his education. He studied from 1771 Sizar ( scholarship ) at Caius College, Cambridge, where he was Senior Wrangler in 1775 in the Tripos examinations and the Smith Prize won. In 1777 he moved to the Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge (as Samuel Taylor Lecturer, but he was not a Fellow ), earned an MA degree in 1778 and was ordained as a priest in 1779. After that, he held various positions in the Anglican Church - 1809 he was archdeacon ( Archdeacon ) of Bedford. In 1796 he was Plumian Professor of Astronomy in Cambridge, which he remained until his death.

In 1780 he was awarded the Copley Medal of the Royal Society, of which he became a Fellow in 1786. He wrote a textbook of astronomy (A Complete System of Astronomy, 3 volumes, 1797-1808 ), published sermons in Cambridge and a defense of the Christian faith against David Hume. His experimental and theoretical investigations on the flow resistance were in the early attempts at aviation (for example, the Wright brothers ) of influence.

Vince had been married since 1780.

He held several times Bakerian Lecture of the Royal Society.