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Did Charles Darwin have any nicknames?

Question #46124. Asked by Benny Hill.
Last updated Sep 01 2016.

mandelbrotset
Answer has 4 votes
mandelbrotset
22 year member
31 replies

Answer has 4 votes.
Stinky Pants, I believe.

Apr 06 2004, 10:55 AM
Linus_337
Answer has 7 votes
Linus_337
21 year member
503 replies

Answer has 7 votes.
Darwin's nickname was apparently "Gas".

Not for the reason alluded to by mandelbrotset, though. It was more to do with his penchant for conducting noxious chemistry experiments in his shed.
Eras (his brother) took an interest in chemistry and Charles became his assistant, with the two using a garden shed at their home fitted out as a laboratory and extending their interests to crystallography. When Eras went on to a medical course at the University of Cambridge, Charles continued to rush home to the shed on weekends, and for this received the nickname "Gas".

link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Darwin%27s_education

Response last updated by Terry on Sep 01 2016.
Apr 06 2004, 12:01 PM
Benny Hill
Answer has 6 votes
Benny Hill

Answer has 6 votes.
He would often sign his letters to scientific friends as "Stultis".

This name referred to his habit of trying experiments most people would prejudge as being fruitless or a fool's experiment.

Apr 06 2004, 4:46 PM
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Terry star
Answer has 11 votes
Currently Best Answer
Terry star
Moderator
24 year member
333 replies avatar

Answer has 11 votes.

Currently voted the best answer.
This site suggests he had numerous nicknames:

"Philos" while on the HMS Beagle.
"Flycatcher" when he was collecting specimens.
"Sage of Down", "Saint of Science" by journalists.
"Czar of Down" and "Pope of Science" by his friend Thomas Henry Huxley.
"Stultis the Fool" a nickname of his own choosing, and he often signed letters to scientific friends with "Stultis." This name referred to his habit of trying experiments most people would prejudge to be fruitless or fool's experiments.

"Gas" in a previous answer seems to be an accepted nickname too.

link https://www.papertrell.com/apps/preview/The-Handy-Science-Answer-Book/Handy%20Answer%20book/Did-Charles-Darwin-have-any-nicknames/001137021/content/SC/52cb031f82fad14abfa5c2e0_cool_facts.html

Sep 01 2016, 10:57 AM
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