December 30, 1691

Robert Boyle, a famous 17th century chemist and physicist, died on this day in 1691 at the age of 64. Boyle was born in Co. Waterford to a wealthy Irish family. His father Richard Boyle was the 1st Earl of Cork and held a great deal of land. He attended Eton College in England. He visited Italy in 1641 and met and studied the work of Galileo Galilei. Today, Boyle is regarded as the first modern chemist and one of the pioneers of the scientific method. Boyle’s Law, which is named for him, says that absolute pressure and the volume of gas are inversely proportionate.