MEPX
Chapter 4 of 10All chapters
  1. 1Before modern science
  2. 2The scientific revolution
  3. 3Chemistry and the elements
  4. 4Life sciences
  5. 5Modern physics
  6. 6The molecular era
  7. 7Computing and mathematics
  8. 8Astronomy and space
  9. 9Medicine and public health
  10. 10What the record shows

Chapter 4 of 10

Life sciences

Evolution and inheritance.

Evolution

Darwin and Wallace independently reached natural selection and published jointly in 1858, with On the Origin of Species following a year later.

  • Wallace's contribution is often left out of the popular story.
  • Mendel's inheritance rules sat unnoticed for decades.

The cell and the microbe

Pasteur and Koch established that microorganisms cause disease, a finding that reshaped medicine, surgery and public sanitation.