Nicolaus Jack Copernicus was born on this date 550 years ago. He was a polyglot and a polymath, but not polyamorous as far as anybody knows. His major work on the heliocentric theory was De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres) and published after his death in 1543. He never got excommunicated for it because he died moments before the thing hit Barns & Nobles - good career move, Dude. But the church did ban the book and punished anybody who wrote a positive review of it. In 8th grade, Patricia Nowicki, who sat next to me, pronounced his name as “coe-per-NINK-us”, which had us budding scholars falling about the place for fully five minutes. Patty, however, didn’t lose a gram of street cred because she was physically advanced her years if you follow my meaning. Here’s the point.
© 2024 John Oliver
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