The Advancement of Learning

Englishman Francis Bacon was a talented statesman, philosopher, and essayist, dedicated to scientific and judicial study of knowledge and truth; yet, there was a time when he was accused, fined, and sentenced for taking bribes as a judge. He could often be heard trumpeting about man's right to master the natural world - and it was Bacon who coined the phrase "Knowledge is power," expressed in his most famous work, The Advancement of Knowledge. Bacon's refined ideas anticipated, among other things, aspects of John Stuart Mill's utilitarian philosophy.