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Spontaneous generation was taken as scientific fact for two millennia. Though challenged in the 17th and 18th centuries by the experiments of the Italian biologists Francesco Redi and Lazzaro Spallanzani , it was not discredited until the work of the French chemist Louis Pasteur and the Irish physicist John Tyndall in the mid-19th century.
Francesco Redi. John Needham. Félix-Archimède Pouchet. (Show more) Related Topics: biopoiesis. origin of life. spontaneous generation, the hypothetical process by which living organisms develop from nonliving matter; also, the archaic theory that utilized this process to explain the origin of life.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Louis Pasteur - Microbiology, Germ Theory, Pasteurization: Fermentation and putrefaction were often perceived as being spontaneous phenomena, a perception stemming from the ancient belief that life could generate spontaneously. During the 18th century the debate was pursued by the English naturalist and Roman Catholic divine John Turberville ...
Apr 21, 2024 · The Theory of Spontaneous Generation. The Greek philosopher Aristotle (384–322 BC) was one of the earliest recorded scholars to articulate the theory of spontaneous generation, the notion that life can arise from nonliving matter. Aristotle proposed that life arose from nonliving material if the material contained pneuma (“vital heat”).
May 2, 2024 · Antonie van Leeuwenhoek. Born: October 24, 1632, Delft, Netherlands. Died: August 26, 1723, Delft (aged 90) Subjects Of Study: weevil. bacteria. protozoan. red blood cell. spontaneous generation. On the Web: World History Encyclopedia - Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (May 02, 2024) Top Questions. How did Antonie van Leeuwenhoek become famous?
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
May 30, 2017 · Francesco Redi, 1626-1697. Francesco Redi was an Italian physician and the first scientist to suspect that the theory of spontaneous generation may be flawed, so he set up a simple experiment. He placed fresh meat into two different jars, one with a muslin cloth over the top, and the other left open.
May 21, 2018 · John Needham, an eighteenth century English naturalist and Roman Catholic theologian, began his study of natural science after reading about Leewenhoek ’ s animacules. Needham became a strong advocate of spontaneous generation, and performed an experiment that he felt supported his belief in biogenesis.
