Biology is a term used to describe a whole system of sciences. It generally studies living beings, as well as their interaction with the outside world. Biology explores absolutely all aspects of the life of any living organism, including evolution, forms of behavior, its origin, reproduction and growth.
When did the term "biology" appear? As a separate science, it began to emerge only at the beginning of the 19th century. Who coined the term "biology"? You will learn more about this later.
Antiquity and the birth of the first biological disciplines
Before we know when the term "biology" appeared, we should talk a little about the origin of this discipline as such. It is believed that it was the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle who first laid the foundations of biological disciplines - the foundation of such sciences as zoology and botany. Archaeologists have found a mass of material artifacts on which Aristotle's writings on animals are recorded. He was the first to bring connections between certain types of animals. It was Aristotle who noticed that all artiodactyl animalschewing gum.
An equally important scientist in the field of biology is Dioscorides, who throughout his life compiled a large list of medicinal plants and described their action (only about six hundred plants).
Another ancient philosopher, Theophrastus, wrote a huge work called "Studies on Plants". In it, he developed the thoughts of Aristotle, but only about plants and their properties.
Middle Ages
Who coined the term "biology" and when did it happen? It is still too early to talk about this, since after the decline of the Western Roman Empire, many knowledge, including medicine and biology, were lost. Arabs during the early Middle Ages capture a vast territory and the works of Aristotle fall into their hands - after which they will be translated into Arabic.
In the VIII century, Arab researchers in the field of botany and anatomy achieved great success. In zoology, the Arab writer Al Jahis achieved great success, who was the first to put forward the theory of evolution, he also proposed the theory of food chains.
Al-Danavari became the founder of the botany of the Arab world. Like Aristotle, Al Danavari described approximately six hundred species of plants, as well as their development and the growth phases of each.
An incredibly great contribution to the development of biology and especially medicine was made by the Arab doctor Aviatsenna. He wrote the famous book "The Canon of Medical Science", which remained in service with European doctors until the 18th century inclusive. It was Aviatsenna who gavepharmacology to mankind and described the first clinical studies, which later seriously influenced the study of human anatomy and methods of combating diseases.
Ibn Zuhr studied the nature of such a disease as scabies, and performed surgical operations, as well as the first clinical experiments on animals. In medieval Europe, medicine and the study of sciences such as botany, zoology, was not widespread, primarily due to the influence of the Catholic Church.
Renaissance and interest in medicine, biology
In the Renaissance, the meaning of the term "biology" was not yet known. But the position of the church weakened significantly, and scientists, mostly in Italy, began to show interest in botany, zoology, anatomy and medicine - they began to study the works of scientists of Antiquity.
Already in the 16th century, the Dutch scientist Vesalius laid the foundations of modern anatomy. To write his works, he personally opened human bodies and examined the structure of internal organs.
Researchers returned to a close study of plants, that is, to botany, as they realized that many herbs have quite strong medicinal properties and help in curing diseases.
In the 16th century, the description of animals and their way of life turned into a whole scientific direction for the study of the entire known animal world.
An equally important contribution to the development of biology was made by Leonardo da Vinci, Paracelsus, who continued to study anatomy and pharmacology.
In the 17th century, the scientist Kaspar Baugin describedall plants known at that time in Europe - more than six thousand species. William Harvey, performing an autopsy on animals, made a number of important discoveries that relate to blood circulation.
In the 17th century, a new biological discipline was born, associated with the invention of the microscope. Thanks to his discovery, people learned about the existence of microscopic single-celled organisms, which caused a resonance in society. At the same time, human spermatozoa were studied for the first time.
Which scientist used the term "biology"?
At the beginning of the 19th century, the biological disciplines developed into a full-fledged science, which was recognized by the scientific community.
So which scientist suggested using the term "biology"? When did this happen?
The term "biology" was proposed by the German anatomist and physiologist Friedrich Burdach, who specialized in the study of the human brain. This event took place in 1800.
Also, it is worth saying that biology is a term that was proposed by two more scientists who did not know about Burdakh's proposal. In 1802, Gottfried Treviranus and Jean-Baptiste Lamarck stated this in parallel. The definition of the term "biology" has become known to all scientists working in this direction.
Biology in the 19th century
Now that we know who coined the term "biology", it is worth talking about its further development. One of the key works of the 19th century was the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species. At the same time, scientists discoveredfundamental differences between the inanimate and living worlds. Doctors and scientists continued to experiment on animals, which gave a huge boost to the understanding of the internal organs.
Biology in the 20th century
Pharmaceutics and other disciplines were radically changed by the discovery of Mendeleev - he created the so-called periodic table of Mendeleev. After the discovery of Mendeleev, scientists discovered chromosomes as carriers of genetic information.
Genetics was born already in the 1920s. Around the same period, the study of vitamins and their use began. In the late 1960s, the DNA code was deciphered, which led to the birth of such a biological discipline as genetic engineering. She is currently actively studying human and animal genes, and is also looking for ways to change them through piece mutations.
Development of biology in the 21st century
In the 21st century, many problems remain unresolved. One of the most important is the problem of the origin of life on Earth. Also, researchers have not come to a consensus on the question of how the triplet code arose.
Biologists and geneticists are very actively working on the issue of aging. Scientists are trying to understand why organisms age and what causes the aging process. This problem is called one of the greatest mysteries of mankind, the solution of which will forever change the world.
No less actively researchers, and especially botanists, are working on the problem of the origin of life on other planets. Such research will play an important role inexploration of space and other planets.
Principles of Biology
In total, there are only five fundamental principles. They unite absolutely all biological disciplines into one single science of living organisms, the name of which is biology. The term includes the following principles:
- Evolution is a natural process of development of any living organism, during which the genetic code of the organism changes.
- Energy is an indispensable attribute of any living organism. In short, the influx of energy, and only a constant one, ensures the survival of the organism.
- Cell theory (the cell is the basic unit of a living being). All body cells originate from a single egg. Their reproduction occurs due to the division of one cell into two.
- Gene theory (a small part of the DNA molecule that is responsible for storing and transmitting genetic information from one generation to another).
- Homeostasis is the process of self-regulation of the body and its restoration to the norms of balance.
Biology
At the moment, biology is a term that includes several dozen disciplines, each of which has a narrow specialization, but the above principles of this science apply to all of them.
Among the most popular disciplines are:
- Anatomy is a discipline that studies the structure of multicellularorganisms, structure, and functions of internal organs.
- Botany is a discipline that studies purely plants, both multicellular and unicellular.
- Virology is an important branch of microbiology that deals with the study and fight against viruses that are dangerous to humans, as well as to animals. At the moment, virology is a weapon to fight viruses, and therefore save millions of people.
- Genetics and genetic engineering are sciences that study the laws of heredity and variability of organisms. The latter is engaged in the manipulation of genes, which makes it possible to modify organisms and even create new ones.
- Zoology is a science that studies the animal world or, more simply, fauna.
- Ecology is a science that studies the interaction of any living organism with other organisms, as well as their interaction with the surrounding world.
Now you know which scientist proposed the term "biology", what path of development this science has gone through. We hope the information was useful.
