Cell Theory Timeline

  • Jan Baptist van Helmont Came Up With The Idea of Gases

    Jan Baptist van Helmont Came Up With The Idea of Gases
    Jan Baptist van Helmont came up with the idea of gases using a Greek word for the word "gas".
  • The Invention of The Microscope by Robert Hooke

    The Invention of The Microscope by Robert Hooke
    Robert Hooke first observed cork and other plant tissues with the microscope he made. He introduced the word "cell" because the cellulose walls of the dead cork reminded him of the bars of a cell in a prison or jail. Zacharias Janssen was believed to be the first investigator to invent the compound microscope.
  • Discovery of Cells

    Discovery of Cells
    Antonie van Leeuwenhoek discovered blood cells, spermatozoa, and what he called "animalcules." He came up with the idea of Spontaneous Generation because he did not observe the "animalcules" dividing.
  • The First Idea of The Fundamental Units of Life

    The First Idea of The Fundamental Units of Life
    Lorenz Oken came up with the first idea of the fundamental units of life, which he called "infusoria". Even though his ideas were incorrect, he inspired the creation of proper correct ideas that stuck.
  • Nucleus Was Observed by Robert Brown

    Nucleus Was Observed by Robert Brown
    Robert Brown, a Scottish botanist, observed the nucleus. Nuclei were then observed and were found in animal cells. Protoplasm was then found within cells it was discovered to be alive because it was flowing as though it seemed to be living. After these discoveries, the cell could no longer be considered non-living as it had living parts in it.
  • Theodor Schwann and Mattias Schlieden

    Theodor Schwann and Mattias Schlieden
    Theodor and Mattias stated that cells are "elementary particles of organisms" in animals and plants and established that some things are unicellular and some are multicellular. These ideas were stated in Theodor's Microscopical Researches into the Accordance in the Structure and Growth of Animals and Plants. Mattias' ideas helped Theodor in writing this.
  • The Origin of The Idea of Sperm Cells and Eggs

    The Origin of The Idea of Sperm Cells and Eggs
    Albrecht von Roelliker came up with the idea of sperm and eggs being composed of the same cells and that humans are made from the same cells from beginning to end.
  • Rudolf Virchow Invents the Correct Principle of Where Cells Come From

    Rudolf Virchow Invents the Correct Principle of Where Cells Come From
    Rudolf Virchow was the first person to come up with the idea that all cells come from cells or as he put it "omnis cellula e cellula."
  • Louis Pasteur Studied Microbes

    Louis Pasteur Studied Microbes
    Louis Pasteur's studies led to the principle of biogenesis, or that organisms arise only by the reproduction of other organisms.