William Neile
Encyclopedia
William Neile was an English
mathematician
and founder member of the Royal Society
. His major mathematical work, the rectification
of the semicubical parabola, was carried out when he was aged nineteen, and was published by John Wallis. By carrying out the determination of arc length
s on a curve given algebraically, in other words by extending to algebraic curve
s generally with Cartesian geometry a basic concept from differential geometry, it represented a major advance in what would become infinitesimal calculus
. His name also appears as Neil.
MP for Ripon and Newark. His grandfather was Richard Neile
, the Archbishop of York
.. He entered Wadham College, Oxford
as a gentleman-commoner in 1652, matriculating in 1655. He was taught by John Wilkins
and Seth Ward
.
In 1657, he became a student at the Middle Temple
. In the same year he gave his exact rectification of the semicubical parabola and communicated his discovery to William Brouncker, Christopher Wren
and others connected with Gresham College
. His demonstration was published by Wallis in De Cycloide (1659). The general formula for rectification by definite integral was in effect discovered by Hendrik van Heuraet
in 1659. In 1673 Wallis asserted that Christiaan Huyghens, who was advancing his own claim to have influenced Heuraet, was also slighting the priority of Neile.
Neile was elected a fellow of the Royal Society on 7 January 1663 and a member of the council on 11 April 1666. He entered the debate on the theory of motion
, as a critic of the empiricist stance of other members. His own theory of motion was held up from publication by unfavourable peer review by Wallis, in 1667; a revision was communicated to the society on 29 April 1669. Neile objected to Wren's 1668 work on collision
as lacking discussion of causality: he asked for discussion of the nature of momentum
. His own work was much influenced by ideas drawn from the De Corpore
of Thomas Hobbes
.
He made astronomical observations with instruments erected on the roof of his father's residence, the “Hill House” (later called Waltham Place) at White Waltham
in Berkshire
, where he died at the age of 32. A white marble monument in the parish church of White Waltham commemorates him and an inscribed slab in the floor marks his burial-place. He belonged to the privy council of King Charles II.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
and founder member of the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
. His major mathematical work, the rectification
Rectification
Rectification has the following technical meanings:* Rectification, in astrology* Rectification , a concept found in biology and industrial chemistry* Chinese history: see Cheng Feng...
of the semicubical parabola, was carried out when he was aged nineteen, and was published by John Wallis. By carrying out the determination of arc length
Arc length
Determining the length of an irregular arc segment is also called rectification of a curve. Historically, many methods were used for specific curves...
s on a curve given algebraically, in other words by extending to algebraic curve
Algebraic curve
In algebraic geometry, an algebraic curve is an algebraic variety of dimension one. The theory of these curves in general was quite fully developed in the nineteenth century, after many particular examples had been considered, starting with circles and other conic sections.- Plane algebraic curves...
s generally with Cartesian geometry a basic concept from differential geometry, it represented a major advance in what would become infinitesimal calculus
Infinitesimal calculus
Infinitesimal calculus is the part of mathematics concerned with finding slope of curves, areas under curves, minima and maxima, and other geometric and analytic problems. It was independently developed by Gottfried Leibniz and Isaac Newton starting in the 1660s...
. His name also appears as Neil.
Life
Neile was born at Bishopsthorpe, the eldest son of Sir Paul NeilePaul Neile
Sir Paul Neile FRS was an English astronomer and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1640 and from 1673 to 1677....
MP for Ripon and Newark. His grandfather was Richard Neile
Richard Neile
Richard Neile was an English churchman, bishop of several English dioceses and Archbishop of York from 1631 until his death.-Early life:...
, the Archbishop of York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
.. He entered Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, located at the southern end of Parks Road in central Oxford. It was founded by Nicholas and Dorothy Wadham, wealthy Somerset landowners, during the reign of King James I...
as a gentleman-commoner in 1652, matriculating in 1655. He was taught by John Wilkins
John Wilkins
John Wilkins FRS was an English clergyman, natural philosopher and author, as well as a founder of the Invisible College and one of the founders of the Royal Society, and Bishop of Chester from 1668 until his death....
and Seth Ward
Seth Ward (bishop)
Seth Ward was an English mathematician, astronomer, and bishop.-Early life:He was born in Hertfordshire, and educated at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, where he graduated B.A. in 1636 and M.A. in 1640, becoming a Fellow in that year...
.
In 1657, he became a student at the Middle Temple
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...
. In the same year he gave his exact rectification of the semicubical parabola and communicated his discovery to William Brouncker, Christopher Wren
Christopher Wren
Sir Christopher Wren FRS is one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history.He used to be accorded responsibility for rebuilding 51 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including his masterpiece, St. Paul's Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710...
and others connected with Gresham College
Gresham College
Gresham College is an institution of higher learning located at Barnard's Inn Hall off Holborn in central London, England. It was founded in 1597 under the will of Sir Thomas Gresham and today it hosts over 140 free public lectures every year within the City of London.-History:Sir Thomas Gresham,...
. His demonstration was published by Wallis in De Cycloide (1659). The general formula for rectification by definite integral was in effect discovered by Hendrik van Heuraet
Hendrik van Heuraet
Hendrik van Heuraet was a Dutch mathematician. He was noted as one of the founders of the integral. From [1653 he studied at Leiden University where he interacted with Frans van Schooten, Johannes Hudde, and Christiaan Huygens. In 1658 he and Hudde left for Saumur in France. He returned to Leiden...
in 1659. In 1673 Wallis asserted that Christiaan Huyghens, who was advancing his own claim to have influenced Heuraet, was also slighting the priority of Neile.
Neile was elected a fellow of the Royal Society on 7 January 1663 and a member of the council on 11 April 1666. He entered the debate on the theory of motion
Motion (physics)
In physics, motion is a change in position of an object with respect to time. Change in action is the result of an unbalanced force. Motion is typically described in terms of velocity, acceleration, displacement and time . An object's velocity cannot change unless it is acted upon by a force, as...
, as a critic of the empiricist stance of other members. His own theory of motion was held up from publication by unfavourable peer review by Wallis, in 1667; a revision was communicated to the society on 29 April 1669. Neile objected to Wren's 1668 work on collision
Collision
A collision is an isolated event which two or more moving bodies exert forces on each other for a relatively short time.Although the most common colloquial use of the word "collision" refers to accidents in which two or more objects collide, the scientific use of the word "collision" implies...
as lacking discussion of causality: he asked for discussion of the nature of momentum
Momentum
In classical mechanics, linear momentum or translational momentum is the product of the mass and velocity of an object...
. His own work was much influenced by ideas drawn from the De Corpore
De Corpore
De Corpore is a 1655 book by Thomas Hobbes. As its full Latin title Elementorum philosophiae sectio prima De corpore implies, it was part of a larger work, conceived as a trilogy. De Cive had already appeared, while De Homine would be published in 1658...
of Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury , in some older texts Thomas Hobbs of Malmsbury, was an English philosopher, best known today for his work on political philosophy...
.
He made astronomical observations with instruments erected on the roof of his father's residence, the “Hill House” (later called Waltham Place) at White Waltham
White Waltham
White Waltham is a village and civil parish, west of Maidenhead, in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the English county of Berkshire. It has a population of 2,875, and is the location of White Waltham Airfield.-Extent:...
in Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, where he died at the age of 32. A white marble monument in the parish church of White Waltham commemorates him and an inscribed slab in the floor marks his burial-place. He belonged to the privy council of King Charles II.