BIOLOGY TIMELINE: MAJOR DISCOVERIES - BIOLOGY - 2024

The timeline of biology is the set of events that have shaped this science throughout human history. Certainly, it is not possible to trace every advance that may have occurred since its inception, but that does not imply that during its development there were no revealing discoveries that made its evolution possible.

In this sense, it is necessary to establish when the concept of what is understood today by biology began to develop and how it progressed within a historical context.

Based on this approach, those moments that have more meaning for the discipline, the time in which they occurred, who were the protagonists and their contributions will be seen more clearly.

Biology timeline

- The ancient world

For many experts, the Neolithic revolution (10,000 years ago) represents a very important step.

That moment in history meant the beginning of agriculture, the domestication of animals and the establishment of more sedentary cultures. When taking a tour of ancient cultures, the following can be established:

Egyptian tradition

Notable traces such as the Edwin Smith papyrus or the Ebers papyrus can be found in the 16th century BC, which speak of surgery and the preparation of remedies to treat diseases. The Egyptians are also known for embalming and mummification.

Mesopotamian culture

By the 11th century BC, the medicine of this people was headed by the academic Esagil-kin-apli, who presented his methods and prescriptions as exorcisms.

Indian tradition

Also known as Ayurveda, it arises from the holy book Atharvaveda (1500 BC) and is based on the concept of the 3 humors, 5 elements and 7 basic tissues. The Indians are known for their classifications of living things, their surgical methods and the Sushruta Samhita (6th century BC) treatise that describes 57 animal preparations, 64 mineral formulas and 700 medicinal plants.

Chinese medicine

Hand in hand with philosophers, alchemists, herbalists and doctors, its development was based on the search for the elixir of life, the theory of Ying and Yang and even evolution. All this took place between the 6th and 4th centuries BC.

- The time of the Greeks (5th and 4th centuries BC)

Whether it is the timeline of biology or another science, Greek culture laid the foundation for modern thought and gave rise to the fundamental sciences. This can be evidenced in greater detail in the following chronology:

Alcmeon de Crotonas (5th century AC)

Home of the famous Pythagoreans, this scientist practiced dissection. Although his purpose was to find intelligence, his contributions to anatomy include the differentiation between veins and arteries, and the optic nerve. In this century Xenophanes examined fossils and theorized about the evolution of life.

Hippocrates of Cos (5th and 4th centuries BC)

This descendant of physicians is considered by some to be the father of medicine. His contributions include diagnosis, prevention, self-healing, diet, among other concepts. The Hippocratic Oath remains an ethical reference in the modern world. Furthermore, his theory of the 4 humors remained unchanged until the 16th century.

Aristotle (4th century BC)

Without a doubt the most influential classical philosopher on this subject, believed that intelligence was located in the heart. His methodical observations brought zoology to life, classifying as many as 540 animal species and dissecting at least 50 of them.

Theophrast (4th century BC)

This philosopher and pupil of Aristotle took into account the botanical works of his predecessor to continue his work. His most significant contribution was "The History of Plants," a 9-volume treatise on botany that survived into the Middle Ages. He made a description of the flora of the Hellenic world, its structure, behaviors and uses.

Galen of Pergamum (2nd century BC)

Doctor of gladiators and after emperors, he discovered that the arteries did not have air, as was believed then, but blood. He dissected and identified cranial nerves, heart valves, infectious diseases, where the voice originates, and more. His conception of blood circulation as ebb and flow lasted until the 16th century.

- After the Roman Empire (5th and 14th centuries AD)

The fall of the then most powerful kingdom of civilization meant a destruction and concealment of the knowledge that had been achieved. The most important texts were preserved in monasteries, universities began to emerge, but there was no significant development of biology, except for some specific facts:

• 1275: The first human dissection is recorded.
• 1377: The city of Ragusa applies the quarantine to deal with the plague of the plague.
• 1494: The use of mercury to treat syphilis begins.

- From the Renaissance to the modern era (15th and 19th centuries AD)

The era of enlightenment call gave way to a great number of events that would change previous knowledge and gradually transform it. Among these notable facts, we can mention the following:

Leonardo Da Vinci (1489-1515)

Using the dissection of human bodies, his anatomical drawings (about 70), include bone structures, internal organs, muscles, the brain and the heart.

Otto Brunfel (1530)

The advent of the printing press meant a great change for those who observed nature. Thanks to this advance, this German botanist publishes his Herbarum vivae eicones (Living images of plants), a collection of 3 volumes.

Andreas Vesalius (1533-1543)

This famous Belgian doctor was the one who revolutionized the field of anatomy when he opposed the thought of the time (dominated by Galen). In his famous treatise De humani corporis fabrica (The structures of the human body), his illustrations are based on real bodies and not monkeys.

William Harvey (1628)

In his book The anatomical function of the movement of the heart and blood in animals, this English scientist demonstrated what blood circulation is like.

Marcello Malpighi (1661)

This theorist of medicine was the one who promoted the use of the microscope, an invention of the Dutchman Zacarías Jenssen. His use of this invention led to the discovery of capillaries, which completed Harvey's theory.

Antoine Van Loeuwenhoek (1674)

Using the microscope and improving its magnification with more elaborate lenses, he can visualize the red blood cells, sperm and bacteria in saliva. He was the one who discovered the complete life cycle through the flea.

Carl von Linné (1735)

This famous Swedish classifier was the one who proposed the Linnaean or Linnaean system that is the basis of modern taxonomy. Although its classification for plants has been modified, that of animals remains the same.

Jean Baptiste Lamarck (1809)

He is the first to propose a theory of evolution based on the inheritance of acquired characteristics.

Georges Cuvier (1812)

This French scientist took the study of the fossils of William Smith for the development of geology and turned it into what we know today as paleontology. His results would become a fundamental part of the theory of evolution.

Theodore Schwann (1836)

He was the first to propose that animal tissues were made up of cells.

Louis Pasteur (1856, 64 and 78)

This renowned French scientist first discovered fermentation, then refutes the theory of spontaneous generation and also checks how germs make us sick.

Charles Darwin (1859)

Taking natural selection as a premise, this English scientist makes one of the greatest contributions to the theory of evolution.

Gregor Mendel (1866)

Father of modern genetics, he established the principles of heredity, known as Mendel's laws.

Friedrich Miescher (1869)

It is the first to isolate DNA and other acids that are essential and called nucleic acids.

Edward Strasbourg (1884)

It is who establishes the configuration of the cell and coined the term cytoplasm to describe the liquid that a cell has.

Martinius Beijerinck (1898)

Through filtration experiments with the tobacco exmosaic disease, he showed that it was caused by a virus, something smaller than a bacterium.

- The modern era and its advances (XIX to XXI centuries)

Industrialization brought with it a series of changes that were reflected in all areas of society, especially in technology, science and knowledge. This brought milestones such as:

• 1911: Thomas H. Morgan proposes that genes are aligned on chromosomes.
• 1928: Alexander Flemming discovers penicillin and its effects.
• 1933: Tadeus Rachstein makes the first artificial synthesis of vitamin C.
• 1946: American chemist Melvin Calvin explains how photosynthesis works.
• 1953: From incomplete information, scientists James D. Watson and Francis Crick publish the double helix structure of DNA.
• 1963: Nikolaas Tinbergen clearly exposes the 4 reasons that govern the animal kingdom.
• 1981: Martin Evans discovers the embryonic state of stem cells.
• 1983: Kary Mullis describes the polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
• 1995: The complete genome of a living organism is published for the first time.
• 1996: Irish scientists clone the first sheep named Dolly.
• 2001: The first draft of the human genome is published.
• 2002: Microbiologists succeed in producing the first polio virus from scratch.
• 2007: Mario Capecchi creates his own gene targeting technique.

This is just a small outline of the enormous changes that this science has undergone, which continues to evolve in the different branches that make it up.

References

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5. Pinto, Daniela (undated). Timeline: History of Biology. Recovered from es.scribd.com.
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