European Renaissance: The Polymath or Renaissance Man
The European Renaissance was a time of renewed learning, a time when classical knowledge from ancient Greek and Roman times were reintegrated into society. Some key figures in the Renaissance were called polymaths, also known as Renaissance Men or Homo Universalis (universal man). Polymaths had a wide variety of knowledge from many different fields of study.
Popular polymaths were Isaac Newton, Leonardo da Vinci, and Galileo Galilei. These men were known for their broad depth of knowledge in a variety of areas, from both the arts and scientific fields. As an example, Leonardo da Vinci was known not only for his works of art, but also for his scientific knowledge and study of the human body and anatomy. Polymaths attempted to understand all knowledge in the universe, which was considered an ideal in the time of the European Renaissance.
In today’s Information Renaissance, the idea of the polymath is still applicable. Having knowledge in a wide variety of information technologies will aid in understanding the current happenings in the Information Renaissance. Some notable Information Age polymaths I would list include Bill Gates from Microsoft, and Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the founders of Google. The polymath of the European Renaissance was based on an ideal that one could aquire universal learning. The Polymath of the Information Renaissance is someone who has universal learning in the information field. Striving to become an Information Polymath should be a goal of all professionals working in the information and communication field today.