William Bowie was a man who was very smart about science and math, and he used his smarts to help people understand how our Earth works. He was what we call an "engineer," which means he designed and built things to help solve problems.
One of the biggest things that William Bowie did was help people understand how our Earth is shaped. See, the Earth is like a giant ball, but it's not exactly round. It's a little bit lumpy in some places and flatter in others. William Bowie helped figure out those lumps and bumps, and he made maps to show where they were.
He also helped design special tools to measure the Earth's shape very accurately. This is important because scientists can use this information to help predict things like earthquakes and other natural disasters.
Overall, William Bowie was a really important person because he helped us learn more about our Earth and keep people safe.