Portrait of Leonardo da Vinci.
North Wind Picture Archives/Alamy Stock Photo
A document, which dates to 1452, shows that da Vinci’s father emancipated an enslaved woman named Caterina – Leonardo’s mother.
One mathematical constant describes the population growth rate of a bunch of rabbits.
Supalerk Laipawat/EyeEm via Getty Images
Pi gets a lot of attention this time of year, but there are plenty of other mathematical constants just as deserving of recognition.
Vianney Le Caer/AP
It has long been thought the ancient Greeks used the Golden Ratio to beautify their art and architecture. Turns out that’s not really true.
Glen Keane at work.
Google ATAP
The condition challenges the centuries-old idea that all great artists are able to envision what they’re drawing.
The Hekking Mona Lisa is arguably the most famous reproduction of Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece.
Christie's Images Ltd
The reproduction of Leonardo da Vinci’s work is set to fetch a lot at auction. But why would a fake cost so much?
John Gomez/Shutterstock
A formula found often in nature, many artists believe that following the golden ratio leads to the most aesthetically pleasing work. It can also accidentally turn up in musicals.
Chesley Bonestell’s detailed drawings of space travel inspired millions.
James Vaughan/flickr
While the 50th anniversary of the first Moon landing is an opportunity to celebrate a remarkable technological achievement, it’s worth reflecting upon the creative vision that made it possible.
Mona Lisa, Musée du Louvre, Paris, April 2019.
Susan Broomhall
Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is the world’s most visited artwork. Its appeal rests partly on several mysteries.
How many lakes are in Alaska? Thermokarst lakes on Alaska’s North Slope are self-similar and fractal.
Painting by Cherissa Dukelow
What do earthquakes, wealthy Italian families and your circulatory system have in common? Scientists use fractals, self-similarity and power laws to translate from local to global scales.
Leonardo da Vinci’s experiments with friction underpinned the modern science of Tribology.
Once called ‘the most important subject no one has heard of’, tribology is now a key part of the fourth industrial revolution.
Leonardo da Vinci, Saint John the Baptist .
Wikipedia
On the 500th anniversary Leonardo’s death and in appreciation of his rich and varied contributions, how can our educational systems inspire the same imaginative qualities in students today?
Model of Leonardo da Vinci’s helicopter from the exhibition “Leonardo da Vinci - Scientist and Inventor”, Sofia, 2007.
EPA/Krum Stoev
Leonardo’s range of knowledge fascination with flying led directly to the development of modern aircraft, nearly four centuries later.
Ferrara, Italy bears some resemblance to da Vinci’s design.
hectorlo/Flickr.
Leonardo da Vinci’s ideal city contained design features and engineering works not realised until hundreds of years after he died.
Leonardo da Vinci had a seemingly inexhaustible imagination for innovation.
Engineer, artist, mathematician, thinker: Leonardo da Vinci was all these and more.
Marcantonio Raimondi’s 1505 engraving may show Leonardo da Vinci playing an instrument called a lira da braccio.
Cleveland Museum of Art.
A lot has been said about Leonardo and music, much of it speculation. But what do we know for sure?
Leonardo da Vinci’s Virgin of the Rocks.
National Gallery London
Leonardo da Vinci emphasized the naturalness of the relationship of Jesus and Mary in his art, while also inviting viewers into a religious message.
‘Design for a giant crossbow.’
Leonardo da Vinci
As Leonardo da Vinci found centuries ago, scholars of art, design, engineering and science can work together for mutual benefit.
From cats to dragonflies, Leonardo sketched scores of animals.
Leonardo da Vinci/Royal Collection Trust
Rather than prioritizing human beings at the pinnacle of the animal kingdom, Leonardo revered all living beings. When he compared people and animals, it’s the animals that often came out on top.
Larger than life even 500 years ago, Leonardo’s legend has grown over the centuries.
Hunter Bliss Images/Shutterstock.com
Dead five centuries, Leonardo retains a rock star’s fame, well known around the world by just one name. Here, some facts about the man and his legacy.
Old man (possible self-portrait) and water studies, c 1508-9.
Wikimedia Commons
Leonardo’s obsession with water flowed through his technical work, his art and his scientific ideas.