Who was the inventor of the classic magnifying glass?
He is credited with the invention of the magnifying glass, although he was following up on the work of earlier studies (mainly Arab optician Ibn al-Haytham [Alhazen], who was in his turn influenced by Ibn Sahl’s 10th century legacy in dioptrics). Bacon possessed one of the most commanding intellects of his age, or perhaps of any, and, notwithstanding all the disadvantages and discouragements to which he was subjected, made many discoveries, and came near to many others. His Opus Majus contains treatments of mathematics and optics, alchemy and the manufacture of gunpowder, the positions and sizes of the celestial bodies, and anticipates later inventions such as microscopes, telescopes, spectacles, flying machines, hydraulics and steam ships. Bacon studied astrology and believed that the celestial bodies had an influence on the fate and mind of humans. The study of optics in part five of Opus Majus seems to draw on the works of the Arab writers Kindi and Alhazen, including a discussion o
