In seventeenth century Scotland, Edinburgh was a filthy backwater synonymous with poverty, disease, and religious fanaticism. A century later, it was an intellectual hotbed, producing groundbreaking books like Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations and James Boswell's The Life of Samuel Johnson. Other luminaries like David Hume, Robert Burns, the chemist James Black, and the geologist James Hutton added to Edinburgh's reputation as a center of creativity and innovation.