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Robert Hooke coined the term "cell" in his book "Micrographia"
Hooke was primarily a physics and chemistry specialist but his discovery of the cell has been monumentally impactful on the world of biology. Hooke had an extraordinary ability to manipulate microscopes, and when applying this ability to looking closely at a thin slice of cork observed empty spaces contained with walls - terming them cells. We now know that cells are the building blocks of all life. -
Carl Linnaeus - the manuscript was published as "Systema Naturae"
A botanist, physician and zoologist all at the same time, Linnaeus came up with the system of naming, ranking, and classifying organisms that we still use today. It was his vast collection of specimens of plants, animals, and shells that lead to Linnaeus' coming up with a way of grouping and naming species. He separated all living things into 3 kingdoms; animals, plants and minerals, subdividing them into classes, then into orders and then finally into genura and species. You've heard of Homo sa -
Alfred Russel Wallace drawed Wallace Line
Another famous naturalist on the list and another one who came up with the theory of evolution. In fact it was Wallace's independent synthesis of evolution by natural selection that lead to Darwin hurrying up and publishing his On the Origin of Species. Fortunately Wallace was an accomplished scientist and his discoveries didn't end there. Wallace noted the distinction of fauna between Asia and Australia, drawing a line between – now known as the Wallace Line. -
Charles Darwin published the book "On the Origin of Species"
Probably the most famous naturalist of all time, Darwin's contribution to biology and society is beyond imagination. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestors, the existence of new species occuring via the process of natural selection. His theory of evolution was published in On the Origin of Species in 1859 and it caused quite the stir – Darwin was disputing the longheld belief that all species had been created by God at the beginning of the world. E -
Gregor Mendel published a paper "Experiments on Plant Hybridization"
Mendel's extraordinary contribution didn't receive its just recognition until long after the friar's death – you could call him the Van Gogh of the biological world. Mendel used peas to discover and demonstrate the laws of genetic inheritance, coining the terms dominant and recessive genes in the process. The laws were rediscovered at the turn of the 20th century and provided the mechanism by which Darwin's theory of natural selection can occur. The two theories combine to form our current under -
Watson and Crick won the Nobel Prize for Medicine in recognition of their discovery of the DNA double helix
Francis Crick and James Watson shot to fame in 1962 for their discovery of the structure of DNA, winning the medical Nobel Prize in the process. Their model of DNA (double helix) explains how DNA replicates and how hereditary info is coded and passed on. The discovery of structure has led to a much more developed understanding of function – used in disease diagnosis and treatment, forensics, etc. -
Wilmut & Campbell : Cloned mammal Dolly was born made by them.
Need we say more? Keith Campbell and Ian Wilmut cloned a mammal, famously named Dolly the Sheep! The pair cloned Dolly using a single adult sheep cell and a process of nuclear transfer. Dolly died after only 6 years but cloning continues - although still not perfected and certainly not ready for human application – yet!
