of 33 elements and invented modern chemical nomenclature. Formal biological science remained in its infancy in the 18th century, when the focus lay upon the classification and categorization of natural life. This growth in natural history was led by Carl Linnaeus, whose 1735 taxonomy of the natural world is still in use. Linnaeus in the 1750s introduced scientific names for all his species. 19th-century developments (1800–1900) By the 19th century, the study of science had come into the purview of professionals and institutions. In so doing, it gradually acquired the more modern name of natural science. The term scientist was coined by William Whewell in an 1834 review of Mary Somerville's On the Connexion of the Sciences. But the word did not enter general use until nearly the end of the same century. Modern natural science (1900–present) According to a famous 1923 textbook, Thermodynamics and the Free Energy of Chemical Substances, by the American chemist Gilbert N. Lewis and the American physical chemist Merle Randall, the natural sciences contain three great branches: Aside from the logical and mathematical sciences, there are three great branches of natural science which stand apart by reason of the variety of far reaching deductions drawn from a small number of primary postulates — they are mechanics, electrodynamics, and thermodynamics. Today, natural sciences are more commonly divided into life sciences, such as botany and zoology; and physical sciences, which include physics, chemistry, astronomy, and Earth sciences. See also Empiricism Branches of science List of academic disciplines and sub-disciplines Natural Sciences (Cambridge), for the Tripos at the University of Cambridge References Bibliography Further reading Defining Natural Sciences Ledoux, S. F., 2002: Defining Natural Sciences, Behaviorology Today, 5(1), 34–36. The History of Recent Science and Technology Natural Sciences Contains updated information on research in the Natural Sciences including biology, geography and the applied life and earth sciences. Reviews of Books About Natural Science This site contains over 50 previously published reviews of books about natural science, plus selected essays on timely topics in natural science. Scientific Grant Awards Database Contains details of over 2,000,000 scientific research projects conducted over the past 25 years. E!Science Up-to-date science news aggregator from major sources including universities. Branches of science