Sometimes we need a reminder that a strong sense of self-discipline and curiosity can lead to great scientific discovery. Mary Fairfax Somerville, the 19th century “Queen of Science” who gained recognition as a self-taught science writer after the publication of her Mechanism of the Heavens in 1831, exemplifies this notion. Somerville, born in Scotland in 1780, was a pioneer for women in science. She was named an honorary member of the Royal Astronomical Society and was awarded a government pension for her writing. During her lifetime, she wrote four books that inspired significant discoveries in the field of astrophysics: Mechanism of the Heavens, On the Connexion of the Physical Sciences, Physical Geography, and On Molecular and Microscopic Sciences. Mary Fairfax Somerville: The Curious “Wild Child” At the time of Somerville’s childhood in Scotland, it was believed that academic study would be detrimental to girls’ health. Although she had brief exposure to formal education during a year she spent in boarding school at the age of 10, she was both illiterate and innumerate well into her teens. What she lacked in education, however, she made up in curiosity. Somerville set out to understand how the world around her worked after spending much of her time observing the beaches where she grew up. She also found an interest in algebra after seeing sewing patterns in a women’s magazine when she was 15. This inspired her to teach herself mathematics at a time when most universities would not admit women.   A Cultivated Self After marrying physician William Somerville in 1812, Mary Fairfax Somerville was introduced to London’s scientific society. This introduction led to relationships between Somerville and leading scientists, including the French mathematician Pierre-Simon Laplace, whose work provides the basis to Mechanism of the Heavens. She taught herself French and “continental” calculus in order to read and understand Laplace’s Mecanique Celeste and Latin to read Isaac Newton’s Principia. Seeking Connections in Magnetism Published in 1834, Somerville’s On the Connexion of the Physical Sciences delved into the possible connection between magnetism and light on which she conducted experiments. No one knew that light itself was electromagnetic at the time, but experimenters such as Somerville questioned whether or not light and magnetism influenced one another. Although she was proven incorrect, Mary Fairfax Somerville’s work was praised by Scottish scientist James Clerk Maxwell. Maxwell, who theorized the connection between electricity, magnetism, and light, said that Connexion put “into definite, intelligible and communicable form the guiding ideas that are already working in the minds of men of science…but which they cannot yet shape into a definite statement.” Connexion also inspired John Couch Adams to begin the search for the planet Neptune due to a speculation that an unseen entity was affecting Uranus’s orbit. If you are interested in learning more about the men and women who have influenced and made discoveries in the field of magnetism, check out more of our Magnetic Personalities series through the Apex Magnets blog!