The Argument for the Intellectual Character of the First Cause as Affected by Recent Investigations of Physical Science. Burney Prize Essay. A.D. 1868

82 pp. An essay on the first cause (often called the prime mover) in philosophy, by a student who would go on to a career as an architect. The debate regarding the nature of a first cause encapsulates the conflict between religion and the sciences, in that the former attributes this status to God, and the latter attempt to explain it through series such as the Big Bang. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: "George Gilbert Scott Jr. (8 October 1839 - 6 May 1897) was an English architect working in late Gothic and Queen Anne revival styles. Known in later life as 'Middle Scott', he was the eldest son of Sir Gilbert Scott (George Gilbert Scott), and father of Sir Giles Gilbert Scott and Adrian Gilbert Scott, all also architects. The last years of his life after the death of his father were marred by mental instability and excessive drinking. He died in the Midland Grand Hotel, St Pancras, a building designed by his father, of cirrhosis of the liver."