Part 1, Chapter 2 Summary and Analysis

"The American Adventure of Louis Agassiz" turns to the career of Humboldt's grateful protygy, for whom he arranges his first professorship at Neuchwtel, and who becomes America's premier naturalist. Born in Switzerland and educated in medicine in Munich, Agassiz at 24 studies fossil fish, and then turns to the study of Alpine glaciers. At 33, he helps the world appreciated the Ice Age explains many natural phenomena in Europe. By 1846, mounting debt leads Agassiz to a U.S. lecture tour and to broaden his horizons. From Boston, he ranges up and down the Atlantic coast, impressing the cream of American science. He speaks "without notes and from a full brain," in hesitant English, chalk in hand to render superb illustrations of his subjects on a blackboard. In six months, he earns $6,000 (a modern equivalent of $60,000), and the timing of his appearance...