The essay explores how seventeenth-century French mathematician Marin Mersenne used his network of correspondents in the Republic of Letters to help himself become a trendsetting mathematician of the period. The author argues that his letter writing helped him become notable despite his limited mathematical abilities and helped create a flow of information across Europe. His correspondents included French mathematician René Descartes, Italian mathematician Galileo Galilei, and Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens.
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