On this day Sept 17, 1683 Antonie van Leeuwenhoek describes “animalcules“ in a letter to The Royal Society. According to Why Evolution is True,
This was the first verification of the existence of bacteria (he’d detected protozoa earlier). Here’s what one of his simple but effective microscopes looked like.
I will admit, I wasn’t sure which way was up on this microscope. And I’m pretty sure it is neither USB nor WIFI enabled. Check out van Leeuwenhoek using his scope. How many hours of him squinting did it take to make his observations? It puts my time staring at my phone into perspective.
A replica of van Leeuwenhoek’s microscope is available on ebay or you can build your own. There are many how-to guides on the net. I’ll stick with the pencam.
A couple of random observations. When I searched for images for van Leeuwenhoek, one of the first results was walmart, of all things. They are selling a picture of van Leeuwenhoek’s microscope for your wall. Maybe I’ll get it to class up my place.
Also came across this vintage Listerine advertisement featuring van Leeuwenhoek. It mentions him, Pasteur and Dr. Lister. What modern advert today would mention 1 scientist, let alone 3. Also note the ad mentions that Listerine might not be in your store because of wartime.
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