(c.1214-c.1294) Philosopher and scientist, born near Ilchester, Dorsetshire, England; died Oxford. He studied in Oxford and later in Paris, 1244-1252. Returning to Oxford, he taught there until 1257 when his superiors obliged him to discontinue. He had become a Franciscan, but just when is not known. Jerome de Ascoli, the General of the Franciscans, condemned the writings of Roger Bacon in 1278, and ordered him confined in a monastery. How long he was detained is unknown, but he was free in 1292 when his Compendium of Theology appeared. His most noted works are the Opus Majus, Opus Minus, and Opus Tertium, comprising recommendations for reform in ecclesiastical studies and in the system of education. He was more interested in mathematics, the natural sciences, and languages than many of his great contemporaries, and placed great emphasis on the experimental sciences. In his writings he even mentions automobiles and flying machines.