Thomas Godfrey was a glazier of colonial Philadelphia who taught himself mathematics and astronomy and, around 1730, invented the octant, a reflecting instrument for measuring angles used in celestial navigation. A similar instrument was developed independently around the same time in London by John Hadley, who received greater credit at the time, but Godfreys instrument is recognized as an independent invention arising from his self-directed study of mathematics.
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Source Thomas Godfrey (inventor) (Wikipedia)
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1. Thomas Godfrey (inventor) (Wikipedia)
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January 10, 1704
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was a glazier and self-taught mathematician and astronomer
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