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Robert Hooke
built 640 days ago
Robert Hooke was born on 18 July (Old Style) 1635 at Freshwater, Isle of Wight, where his father John was curate in charge of the parish. The Reverend John Hooke had fulfilled a variety of curacies on the island since at least 1610, and had been at Freshwater since 1626. As a boy Hooke was not strong, and his father, who was reluctant to subject him to the rigours of a boarding school, educated him at home. It was during these early years... that his talents began to manifest themselves. He was an extraordinarily quick learner, possessed a manual dexterity which enabled him to build an impressive array of mechanical devices, and his untrained draughtsmanship so struck the visiting artist John Hoskins that he advised Mr Hooke to settle upon an artistic career for Robert. In 1648, the Reverend John Hooke died, and while Robert was believed to have received a legacy of £100, the recent discovery of John Hooke's Will indicates that he only received £40, a wooden chest, and some supplementary payments [3].
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Hooke's references to the use of gunpowder probably relate to the agent that was to be used to compress the artificial muscle prior to its activation. Various scientists around Europe were considering the force provided by controlled explosions as an agent that might perform mechanical tasks.
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Robert Hooke