William Jay Youmans was a United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 scientist. He edited Popular Science Monthly for a time.

Biography

He was born at Milton, New York

Milton, New York

Milton, New York can refer to the following places in New York:*Milton , New York - a town in Saratoga County**Milton , Saratoga County, New York - a census-designated place in the town of Milton...

. He studied chemistry

Chemistry

Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....

 under his brother, Edward Livingston Youmans, and at Columbia

Columbia University

Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

 and Yale

Yale University

Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

, then took a course in medicine

Medicine

Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....

 at New York University

New York University

New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...

, and in 1865 studied natural history

Natural history

Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...

 under biologist Thomas Henry Huxley in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. On his return to the United States, Youmans settled at Winona, Minnesota

Winona, Minnesota

Winona is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, in the U.S. State of Minnesota. Located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf....

, and practiced medicine for about three years.

Works

In 1872 he assisted his brother in establishing and subsequently was associated in editing the Popular Science Monthly. After his brother's death in 1887, he became its editor-in-chief, remaining in that position until 1900. He edited Huxley's Lessons in Elementary Physiology, to which he added a second part on “Elementary Hygiene” (1867), and wrote Pioneers of Science in America (1895).