-New Atlantis

First appearing in a posthumous publication about natural history, Bacon’s unfinished New Atlantis describes the utopian island of Bensalem located in the south Pacific Ocean and dedicated to scientific research. While Bacon describes how the island converted to Christianity, he mentions how the island was ethnically and religiously diverse with Hebrews, Persians, and Indians living together. Salomon's House, an academic college on the island, has laboratories that are staffed hierarchically by groups that collect information, conduct experiments, create scientific theories, and explore philosophy. Bacon describes its scientific pursuits, including optics, acoustics, biology, chemistry and medical research. This concept of collective scientific research inspired the formation of the Royal Society in 1660. Bacon was a preeminent figure in the Enlightenment, and his vision of a utopian society reflects his interest in empiricism.