John Napier of Merchiston, nicknamed Marvellous Merchiston, was a Scottish landowner known as a mathematician, physicist and astronomer. He was the 8th Laird of Merchiston. Napier is best known as the discoverer of logarithms. He also invented the Napier's bones calculating device and popularised the use of the decimal point in arithmetic. February 11, 1550 – April 4, 1617; died at 67. Alive at the same time as William Shakespeare, Michelangelo, René Descartes, Elizabeth I of England, and John Calvin. Wiki link