Dictionary.net

An English clergyman and scientist; born at Fawsley, Northamptonshire, 1614; died in London, Nov. 19, 1672. He was bishop of Chester (1668), and one of the founders of the Royal Society (1645). His works were one of the most effective agents in the spread of the Copernican system in England. He wrote: "Discovery of a New World" (1638); "Discourse concerning a New Planet" (1640); "Mercury; or, The Secret and Swift Messenger, Showing How a Man May Communicate his Thoughts to a Friend at Any Distance" (1641); "Mathematical Magic" (1648); "Essay toward a Real Character and a Philosophical Language" (1668); "Principles and Duties of Natural Religion" (1675); etc.