Champagne break with Robyn Arianrhod

Interviews with a world expert on the scientific achievements of Émilie du Châtelet

Cheryl: We first met because of your fascinating Seduced by Logic: Émilie du Châtelet, Mary Somerville and the Newtonian Revolution. At the time you mentioned how rare it was to meet readers who knew the importance of Émilie's scientific and mathematical writings. Having spoken at overseas conferences with other experts, do you think her achievements are better recognised these days?

Robyn: It was wonderful to connect with you, and to know that you had been writing about Émilie, too! At the time I started my project, there had been no accessible, reliable books about the importance of her work. As fate would have it, two new books came out while I was writing, although they didn’t elaborate adequately on Émilie’s scientific achievements.

My goal was to explain her work (and life) in the context of her own time and ours.

In recent years she has been the subject of much scholarly research, notably through the History of Women Philosophers and Scientists group at Germany’s University of Paderborn. In 2016, she was the subject of a special edition of the Mathematical Intelligencer magazine – and by December 2025 she’d inspired a couple of plays and operas (including yours), and her own edition of The Science Show. She has definitely arrived!