Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Atlanticus Fully Digitized for Global Access

No historical figure better fits the definition of 'Renaissance man' than Leonardo da Vinci, but that term has become so overused as to become misleading.

We use it to express mild surprise that one person could use both their left and right hemispheres equally well.

But in Leonardo's day, people did not think of themselves as having two brains, and the worlds of art and science were not so far apart as they are now.

That Leonardo was able to combine fine arts and fine engineering may not have been overly surprising to his contemporaries, though he was an exceptional talent.