Why are cells so important for us! Animal and plant cell .png. History of the Cell: Discovering the Cell. Although they are externally very different, internally, an elephant, a sunflower, and an amoeba are all made of the same building blocks. From the single cells that make up the most basic organisms to the trillions of cells that constitute the complex structure of the human body, each and every living being on Earth is comprised of cells. This idea, part of the cell theory, is one of the central tenants of biology. Cell theory also states that cells are the basic functional unit of living organisms and that all cells come from other cells. Although this knowledge is foundational today, scientists did not always know about cells.
The discovery of the cell would not have been possible if not for advancements to the microscope. Interested in learning more about the microscopic world, scientist Robert Hooke improved the design of the existing compound microscope in 1665. His microscope used three lenses and a stage light, which illuminated and enlarged the specimens.
Robert Hook. To call Dr Robert Hooke a genius is too small a word to describe such a man. Robert Hooke was born on the Isle of Wight on 28th July 1635. As a child he was sickly, which kept him away from school for long periods. His mind, therefore, remained largely uncluttered by any preconceived learnings and as such, flourished. Robert loved to draw, and from his sick bed armed with a drawing pad and pencil his imagination was let loose. His time away from school was well spent and he began to draw incredibly detailed diagrams. His father, a clergyman, was so taken by his artwork, especially those for new clock mechanisms that he declared them no less than the work of a genius. Robert’s father died in 1648, bequeathing £40 to Robert in his will, a substantial sum in the 17th century. 1653: At eighteen he became a student at Christ Church College.
Hooke’s microscope, from an engraving in ‘Micrographia’. He became thoroughly engrossed in the world of the invisible. Inside the cell. Eukaryopolis - The City of Animal Cells. Plant Cells: Biology #6. Little quiz game for you. Cells - Flash cards. Cell crossword. Cells mind Mip.