Blaise Pascal
1623 – 1662 French mathematician, physicist, philosopher
The prodigy who advanced probability, physics, and religious thought.
- Religion
- Devout Catholic drawn to the austere Jansenist movement after a mystical experience; author of the Pensees on faith.
- Affiliations
- Aligned with the Jansenists of Port-Royal. No secret society.
Pascal co-founded probability theory, built an early mechanical calculator, and proved key results on pressure and the vacuum. After a religious conversion he turned to defending Christianity in the Pensees, home of his famous wager. He united first-rank science with profound faith.
In the timeline
- 1642 Blaise Pascal builds his adding machine central figure
- 1654 Pascal and Fermat lay the foundations of probability mentioned