The Man Who Knew Too Much: The life and work of Robert Hooke 1635–1703 by Stephen Inwood, Pan Macmillan, £18.99, ISBN 0333782860 Reviewed by Michael Hunter
“HE WAS anactive, restless, indefatigable genius” is how the late 17th-century polymath Robert Hooke was described by a contemporary, and so he is presented in Stephen Inwood’s book.
Hooke played a pivotal part in the rebuilding of London after the Great Fire of 1666. He was a tireless inventor, responsible for such devices as the “Hooke joint”, a universal coupling still used today. And he was an important scientist, remembered for Hooke’s law…
