Life Sciences

The American Museum of Natural History is a nonprofit research institution chartered as a Museum and Library by the State of New York in 1869. Since that time the Library has grown into the largest natural history library in the Western Hemisphere. The Library's primary function is to serve and support the work of the Museum's scientific staff. The Library also serves scholars in natural history from around the world, as well as interested members of the general public. The Library's holdings are comprised of a research collection, special collections, and digital collections.

The Romans, in their wisdom, were the first people to use a structure to give plants protection.
They used heated pits covered with translucent slabs of rock to form primitive greenhouses.
It was, however in the days of the great explorers that the glasshouse (to give it its correct name) came into its own in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Strange exotic plants and seeds were being bought back to this country, from far distant lands.

The John Ray Initiative (JRI) is an educational charity that works to develop and communicate a Christian understanding of the environment. See our reports, briefings, resources and diary.

Founding Editor:
Everett Mendelsohn
Dept. of the History of Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, USA
Editor-in-Chief:
Garland E. Allen
Washington University, St. Louis, MO, USA
Jane Maienschein
Arizona State University, Tempe, USA

History
April 22, 1941
Establishing meet at Gakushi Kaikan in Tokyo
1941
Founded Kagakushi Kenkyu
1945
Discontinued any activities under World War II
April 24, 1948
First genaral meeting after the war at Nihon Ishi Kaikan (JMA), Tokyo
August, 1962
Founded Japanese Studies in the History of Science
1974
International Conference

Certainly, most microscope collectors are familiar with the firm E. Leitz, Inc. and many of them probably have several Leitz microscopes represented in their collection. Some, however, may not realize that the founder of the firm was not Ernst Leitz I, but Carl Kellner. Kellner founded what was named the Optical Institute in Wetzlar Germany in 1849. By 1851 he employed twelve workmen and was producing his first microscopes. Among the more notable graduates of the Institute was one, Ernst Gundlach, familiar as the designer of the first Bausch & Lomb stands, who was employed during the years 1859-1862.1 Other opticians who at one time worked at the Optical Institute and later founded their own firms include Riechert and Hensoldt.2 Kellner's microscopes met with wide acclaim and were furnished with his noted invention, the orthoscopic eyepiece. While first applied as an eyepiece for telescopes and then later adapted to the microscope, it enables a large flat field of view.

The Owen H. Wangensteen Historical Library of Biology and Medicine is a collection of approximately 60,000 rare and out-of-print books, manuscripts, and journals dating from the early 1400s to 1920. Subject concentrations include medicine, both broad and specific, biology, and natural history. The collection had its origins in the early years of the University when medical faculty purchased landmark works to expand the research materials for medical students. Dr.Wangensteen, who was a teacher, researcher, historian, and chief of surgery at the University of Minnesota, was instrumental in the development of endowments which support the continued growth of the collections. Because of these generous donors, works continue to be acquired in areas such as surgery, ophthalmology, cardiology, mycology, tuberculosis, nursing, radiology, pediatrics, and obstetrics and gynecology.

Robert Hooke (1635-1703), a mechanic, is believed to give 'cells' their name when he examined a thin slice of cork under microscope, he thought cells looked like the small, rectangular rooms monks lived.
1651 William Harvey suggests that all living things originate from eggs
1694 JR Camerarius does pollination experiments and discovers sex in flowering plants