On July 28, 1635, microscopist, astronomer, architect, Robert Hooke was born. As a student, Hooke was at ease in his studies of art, languages, music, and mathematics. At Oxford, he met and entered into creative friendships with his professors and peers in various sciences.…
On May 27, 1907, Rachel Louise Carson was born. She spent her entire life loving the natural world, particularly the ocean. She studied English and marine biology and wrote copy for weekly education broadcasts for U.S. Bureau of Fisheries [later named the U.S. Fish…
On April 15, 1452, Leonardo da Vinci was born. Without formal education, he recorded much of his interest in every facet of life and study. He was an observational scientist who tried to understand something by illustrating and describing it, taking joy in quiet,…
On March 14, 1854, German physician, biochemist and bacteriologist Dr. Paul Ehrlich was born. German universities teemed with brilliant doctor-scientist-researchers during Ehrlich’s time. He began as an assistant to bacteriologist Dr. Robert Koch, one of the founders of microbiology, who was only 10 years…
On March 7, 1974, Swiss molecular biologist Martin Oeggerli was born. Although he was 26 when he received his first digital camera and enjoyed the clarity of its close-up detail, Oeggerli came to prefer the images available to him from the Scanning Electron Microscope.…
On March 5, 1512, Gerhard Mercator was born in Flanders. He received as fine an education as he could from church tutors and used this formal education and his selection of master craftsmen to work with to become a cross-discipline 16th century businessman –…
On February 15, 1852, inventor and educator Alfred Carlton Gilbert was born. He paid for some of his university expenses by performing as a magician and launched a company to manufacture and sell magic kits. Upon graduating from Yale medical school, Gilbert chose to…
On February 4, 1725, English entomologist Dru Drury was born. Working as a silversmith and properties owner, Drury supported himself, his family, and his evolving passion for his bug collecting hobby. He became one of England’s foremost names in the scientific study of insects…
On December 17, 1908, American physical chemist Willard Frank Libby was born. He specialized in radiochemistry, the chemistry of radioactive materials. Radiochemistry includes the study of both natural and man-made radioisotopes. Isotopes are variants of a specific chemical element that differ from each other…
On December 12, 1900, biophysicist and solar power pioneer Mária Telkes was born in Hungary. She built her first laboratory at ten years of age. Visiting the U.S.A., she worked with surgeon George Crile, co-founder of the Cleveland Clinic, to investigate the energy produced…