Torbern Bergman

Torbern Olof Bergman was born on March 20, 1735, in Låstad, Västergötland. Educated at Uppsala University under Carl Linnaeus, he initially excelled in physics and astronomy before being appointed Professor of Chemistry and Pharmacy in 1767.

Bergman transformed chemistry into an exact physical science. He devised the most comprehensive tables of elective chemical attractions (affinities) of the 18th century, established the blowpipe as the essential tool of analytical mineralogy, and classified minerals systematically according to chemical composition rather than superficial appearance. A mentor and generous patron of Carl Wilhelm Scheele, Bergman was elected to the Royal Society of London and the Académie des Sciences in Paris.