Class 9 Biology Fundamentals Unit of Life
Table of Contents
- History of Cells
- Summary
- What’s Next?
In the previous segment of the chapter ‘Cell Structure and Functions’, we got introduced to cells. In this segment, let us get acquainted with the History of cell studies.
How cells were discovered?
Many scientists contributed to the history of cell studies. Two important scientists are Robert Hooke and Antonie van Leeuwenhoek.
Robert Hooke and his microscope, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek and his microscope
- Robert Hooke – Around 1665, the English scientist Robert Hooke observed a thin slice of tree cork with a self-designed microscope. He found tiny structures clustered together. These structures appeared empty and had prominent borders. They resembled the honeycomb structure but to Robert Hooke, these structures appeared like the small rooms in the monastery where the Monks lived. Hence, he named these empty structures as Cells.
- Antonie van Leeuwenhoek – Fascinated by glasses and lenses, a Dutch businessman named Antonie van Leeuwenhoek made his own microscope. Most commonly referred to as the father of microbiology, he came up with an outstanding model of a self-designed microscope which is believed to be better than many microscopes available today. He checked the dental scrapings under his microscope where he observed numerous tiny bacteria. He named them Animalcules because they resembled moving animals. Thus, he was the first to observe live cells.
Also Read: Structure and Components of Cells – Part 1 | Class 9 Biology Fundamentals Unit of Life
