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Period: Jan 1, 1500 to
Amazing Minds in Science
Get to know the scientists who have shaped the understanding of our world and how we interact with it! With a little hard work, you can make this list too! -
Feb 15, 1564
Galileo Galilei
Galileo Galilei is one of the most important proponents of the Copernican theory. He was put under house arrest by the Catholic Church in the later years of his life for his publications on the nature of the solar system. He proved that the Sun was the center of the solar system and discovered many concepts that are the basis of modern physics. He also improved upon the telescope which aided him in his studies. -
René Descartes
The invention of Cartesian coordinates in the 17th century by René Descartes revolutionized mathematics by providing the first link between Euclidean geometry and algebra. The conception of this system occurred when Descartes observed a fly journey across the ceiling of his room. He realized he could track the movements in a way that became the Cartesian coordinate system. He is also considered one of the great philosophers. -
Robert Hooke
Robert Hooke built his own compound microscope in 1665 and began exploring many things with it. When he peered through its lenses at a thin slice of corkwood, he saw tiny shapes that reminded him of religious monks’ cells. Hooke thereby discovered biological cells, the fundamental unit of all organisms. Yet another revolutionary moment in science! -
Isaac Newton
Considered one of the greatest scientists who ever lived. He devised the three laws of motion as well as the law of gravity. These laws have shaped our understanding of the physical world radically since their conception. His ideas have allowed us to travel into space and to understand the mechanics of motion. -
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin is mostly known in the science world as the first to recognize the principle of the conservation of charge (electrical charge cannot be created or destroyed.) His most important achievements in science were in the field of electricity. He also performed experiments that implied lightning was electric. -
Gregor Mendel
Gregor Mendel was an Austrian monk who invented modern genetics with his pea plant trait inheritance experiments. His experiment led to what is now known as Mendel’s Law of Inheritance. These laws are the basis of our understanding of genetics and inheritance. -
Otto Loewi
Otto Loewi is known as the "father of neuroscience." He confirmed that chemicals transmit nerve impulses through the body, figuring out how the nervous system communicates (it was between bioelectrical or chemical). Loewi dreamed the experiment one April night in 1923. He woke up and jotted the dream down, planning on conducting it the next day. However, when he awoke, he could not read his notes! Fortunately, he had the same dream again and successfully began the experiment the following day. -
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein may be the most famous and influential scientist of the 20th century. His accomplishments include his energy = mass formula, his assistance in winning the race for the atomic bomb (and conversely, his argument against nuclear power as a weapon) and his theory of relativity which has influenced modern and quantum physics. -
Edwin Hubble
Edwin Hubble discovers Milky Way is not the only galaxy in the universe. While observing the cosmos in California in 1923, Hubble discovered the Andromeda galaxy which confirmed that the Milky Way is not the only galaxy in the universe. This revolutionized how scientists see our place in the galaxy. -
Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall is a scientist who made revolutionary discoveries and conclusions regarding chimpanzees and their behavior. She effectively concluded that chimpanzees show a full range of emotions and gestures that were thought to be uniquely human. She also discovered that chimpanzees utilized tools, which was also assumed to be uniquely human. Her studies changed the way we look at other species, specifically chimpanzees. -
Tim Berners-Lee
Inventor of the World Wide Web. He proposed a information management system which later became the World Wide Web in 1989. On Christmas Day in 1990 he and his team successfully established technical communication that is now known as the Internet.
