Top 10 Greatest Minds in History
What defines a great mind? Is it sheer intelligence? The capacity to overturn centuries of thinking? Or maybe it's that spark that ignites change and fuels progress across generations?History is overflowing with extraordinary thinkers, scientists, philosophers, and artists who shaped the world you live in. Their innovations, discoveries, and creations still impact how we view ourselves and the universe around us.
Albert Einstein (14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory of relativity, but he also made important contributions to the development... read more Albert Einstein is the greatest mind ever as he understood the geometry of space-time, which is not at all easy stuff. I mean, you can do math like Newton and formulate laws, but it only needs to master a technique. But to really think and understand nature through imagination is very tough indeed.
He solved some observational issues we have always had in predictive modeling of the visible universe, and his work has been applied (for better or worse) to other fields of study. Few have had an impact on humanity in answering many questions, both big and small, as he did.
Nikola Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, physicist, and futurist best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system, X rays, Radio, Remote Control, Laser, and Electric motors. Tesla developed and used... read more It's hard to compare Tesla to Einstein or Hawking. Tesla, with what he had to work with, attained an understanding of electricity that was so far ahead of his peers that even today we don't fully get it. A lot of what he said still seems like madness, but every few years it turns out another thing he said was right. He is most likely one of the best alien glitch candidates on the basis of how else could you explain this guy.
I also vote for Tesla because the alternating current and his discoveries on magnetism, waves, and so on still power the world today. From WiFi and the internet to lights and even basic things like hair dryers (electric motors), nothing has supplanted him.
He was right about so many things no one could even imagine, and that makes Tesla's mind even more relevant today. He had theories he didn't get to work on, and those should be studied.
Sir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist and mathematician who is widely recognised as one of the most influential scientists of all time and a key figure in the scientific revolution. Newton discovered a major part of optics, mainly that white light is made out of rainbow colors. How does that work for the artist's work? He discovered the Laws of Motion. He discovered Universal Gravitation. Then one day, one of his friends comes up to him and asks, "Why are the orbits of the planets elliptic and not circular?"
"I don't know. I'll come back to you in a few months," Newton said.
A couple of months later, Newton comes back to his friend. "You see, the elliptic orbits are sections of a cone cut in slices."
"And how did you come up with that?" his friend asked.
Newton answered, "Oh, I had to create Differential and Integral Calculus to do it." And then he turned 26! Laughing my ass off.
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (April 15, 1452 - May 2, 1519) more commonly Leonardo da Vinci or simply Leonardo, was an Italian polymath whose areas of interest included invention, painting, sculpting, architecture, science, music, mathematics, engineering, literature, anatomy, geology, astronomy,... read more A master of every field he touched, da Vinci questioned authority and combined the smartest practices of the world during a time when it was believed that all knowledge was already known, creativity was the work of God, and anything else was blasphemy.
Artist, inventor, war strategist, philosopher, thinker, and great athlete (he was famous for his ability to fence and bend steel with his bare hands), da Vinci was the quintessential Renaissance man, the likes of which there had never been before and there hasn't been since.
Charles Robert Darwin ( 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist and biologist, best known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended from a common ancestor is now widely accepted and considered a fundamental... read more How Muhammad can be viewed as having a greater mind than Darwin is beyond me! Our understanding of biology, anthropology, and paleontology stems from his work on evolution. Yes, Muhammad was a great man, but by no means was his mind greater than Darwin's, for he wouldn't be able to comprehend the world in the way Darwin could.
Charles Darwin challenged religion methodically and laid the foundations for medicine and biology. The theory of evolution by natural selection is easily one of the most fundamental principles in science and has stood the test of time despite the vitriol which is constantly flung in its way.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, baptised as Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era, born in Salzburg. He listened to a song twice only at the age of eight and wrote the notes on paper. That was a very tight secret kept by the Catholic Church at the time. Awesome!
A child prodigy alright who was autistic back then. He was a very unique being during that era.
Stephen William Hawking (January 8, 1942 - March 14, 2018) was an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, author and Director of Research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology within the University of Cambridge. His most famous research was on the theory of Black Holes. Stephen Hawking is easily the greatest human mind the Earth has seen to date. Don't get me wrong, there are many others who have shaped the world we know, but he is currently on the leading edge of what's really going on out there. He's proven that, for example, some of Einstein's equations and theories don't fully apply to the grand scheme of things. Yes, they work very well for what the Earth has used them for over the years. But Stephen has found the existence of a world (figuratively speaking) where Einstein's equations become erratic and fall apart.
Stephen's theories are so far beyond anything anybody has yet to even imagine. He will most likely be the greatest mind this Earth will ever see. (And he won't be succeeded because some currently unknown source will cause the human race to not survive long enough for a successor to emerge). He probably couldn't have done it without the many others before him, but he understands so much more beyond what any of them would even be able to comprehend.
For example, put Newton, Einstein, and any of them in the same room as him today. Who would lead and who would listen? Einstein would be the only one who would even be able to keep up. They would work well together, but Stephen would clearly be the mentor. Do the research. Stephen is light-years ahead of where any of them even dreamed of leaving off.
Muhammad ibn Abdullah (570 AD - 632 AD) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of the world religion of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet, divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets... read more This is the man who not only gave the world something to believe in but also showed the world how to achieve great success. This is the only man on this list who has had an effect on all spheres of life. Not a single one of his prophecies to this day has been proven false. Each and every word in the book which was brought down to him has been proven to be true, word for word.
For his followers, he is the last messenger of God (Allah in Islam and monotheistic religions). However, what makes him great is not this side, possibly. His humbleness while equating humans rich and poor and guiding them for social equity in a society of clans makes him a great history maker with a vision ever, I believe.
One of the best mathematical physicists of the 20th century!
The Newcomers
Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (June 21, 1905 – April 15, 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, political activist, biographer, and literary critic.
Karl Heinrich Marx ( 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, critic of political economy, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 pamphlet The Communist Manifesto and the four-volume Das Kapital... read more
Benjamin Franklin (January 6, 1706 – April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Among the leading intellectuals of his time, Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States,... read more
Aryabhata or Aryabhata I was the first of the major mathematician-astronomers from the classical age of Indian mathematics and Indian astronomy. The discoveries by him are beyond nature and were very powerful. He invented the mathematical digit '0' but did not get credit for it.
To be creative and flexible in thinking to grasp such a ubiquitous concept as math is incredible all by itself.
Creator of the first number called 0 (Zero). Because of this person.
Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation through the American Civil War and succeeded in preserving the Union, abolishing slavery,... read more
Alexander Hamilton was an American statesman, politician, legal scholar, military commander, lawyer, banker, and economist. He was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, writer, social critic, political activist, and Nobel laureate.
Archimedes of Syracuse was an ancient Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, and inventor. He is famous for his contributions to geometry, calculus, and mechanics, as well as for inventions like the Archimedes screw, a water-lifting device still used in some applications today... read more Archimedes invented the pulley! Several of his inventions are still used today. In my opinion, he was brilliant. Everyone that came after him stood on his shoulders.
Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer, he is regarded as one of the leading scientists of classical antiquity.
Archimedes is the best in my opinion. Even for his time, his inventions and mathematics reshaped the world of knowledge. Better than any other mind. Imagine before Christ and you found much before any other great mind, which is why this man should be praised.
Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, Palestine. He was born to Mary, as the bible says "she was found with child of the Holy Ghost" (Matthew 1:18). He was both man and God (John 20:28). According to the bible He is God alone (Deuteronomy 6:4)... read more Jesus never claimed to be God. In fact, he clearly said that the Father was greater than he was. The Bible also says that Jesus was the first of God's creations, and subsequently, God used him to create all other things. Therefore, he must have had an extensive knowledge of science and mathematics, far more than any human could ever have.
Jesus is above the station of all on this list. His words and life still affect the entire world today. Time is calculated starting from his death and preceding his life. None is up to the task. He is by far the greatest. The most searched name on the internet.
Swami Vivekananda (12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902), born Narendranath Datta, was an Indian Hindu monk, a chief disciple of the 19th-century Indian mystic Ramakrishna... read more To know yourself, know him. One of the greatest teachers ever to take birth, with incomparable discriminating ability, a flawless command over English, an orator like no other, whose little influence is enough to change the course of anyone's life. The very embodiment of fearlessness, THE WARRIOR SAINT.
He combined the best of all major faiths via Vedantic thoughts, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, etc., and worked for the real advancement of humanism.
Energized the youths of India. The most active person on earth at his time.
Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956), popularly known as Babasaheb or B. R. Ambedkar, was an Indian jurist, economist, politician and social reformer who inspired the Dalit Buddhist movement and campaigned against social discrimination towards Untouchables (Dalits), while also... read more He is the greatest person on the planet I have ever heard of. He changed the lives of millions of people in India, which no one could change for thousands of years. Whatever I am today is because of him, not because of any other person.
Absolutely right, he is the greatest person India has. His work might have contributed a little to the world (because of Indian situations at that time), but India witnessed his greatness since independence and will continue to do so.
He was truly a master in all fields, from philosophy to law, to anthropology, to social sciences. There was no field in which he wasn't a master, and that is a great feat in one lifetime.
John Adams was born on October 30, 1735 in Quincy, Massachusetts, United States. Adams served as the president of the United States from March 4, 1797 to March 4, 1801. He died on July 4, 1826 at the age of 90.
Galileo Galilei, was an Italian astronomer, physicist, engineer, philosopher, and mathematician who played a major role in the scientific revolution during the Renaissance. Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the Scientific Revolution. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and consequent astronomical observations.
Coming in at 19. Just shows people need to read a book or two. Easily number 1, 2, or 3.
Greatest scientist ever in the universe.
Richard Phillips Feynman was an American theoretical physicist known for his work in the path integral formulation of quantum mechanics, the theory of quantum electrodynamics, and the physics of the superfluidity of supercooled liquid helium, as well as in particle physics for which he proposed the... read more
Sigmund Freud was an Austrian neurologist and the father of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for treating psychopathology through dialogue between a patient and a psychoanalyst. Even though Freud's theories can't be scientifically proven, they are fascinating! It's a tough job to try to develop a theory that attempts to explain human thought processes and behaviors for our crazy human race.
We can't understand the world before understanding ourselves.
One of the greatest minds in psychology.
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a German philosopher, cultural critic, poet, and Latin and Greek scholar whose work has exerted a profound influence on Western philosophy and modern intellectual history. Many people misinterpret his work and only take snippets of what he's meaning to say. His work is, in reality, much more than Western society makes it out to be. His work, while not a "must like," is a must-read for anyone who wants to know about knowledge itself.
Way ahead of his time. Reveals the truth about our rotten society.
One of the smartest men of all time.