PEOPLE KNOWN FOR: education
German philosopher
Johann Gottlieb Fichte, German philosopher and patriot, one of the great transcendental idealists. Fichte was the son of a ribbon weaver. Educated at the Pforta school (1774–80) and at the universities...
Greek orator and rhetorician
Isocrates, ancient Athenian orator, rhetorician, and teacher whose writings are an important historical source on the intellectual and political life of the Athens of his day. The school he founded differed...
Egyptian astronomer, mathematician, and geographer
Ptolemy, an Egyptian astronomer, mathematician, and geographer of Greek descent who flourished in Alexandria during the 2nd century ce. In several fields his writings represent the culminating achievement...
German physiologist
Johannes Müller, German physiologist and comparative anatomist, one of the great natural philosophers of the 19th century. His major work was Handbuch der Physiologie des Menschen für Vorlesungen, 2 vol....
British politician
David Blunkett, British Labour Party politician who served as home secretary (2001–04) and secretary of work and pensions (2005) in the Labour government of Tony Blair. Blunkett, who was blind from birth,...