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Science timeline

Science timeline: Watt's Steam Engine
Watt’s steam engine. Symbol of the Industrial Revolution and the application of science to technology
James Watt transformed the steam engine from a reciprocating motion that was used for pumping to a rotating motion suited to industrial applications. Watt and others significantly improved the efficiency of the steam engine.

Introduction – Science timeline

The history of science is a captivating narrative that spans millennia, filled with groundbreaking discoveries, ingenious inventions, and paradigm-shifting theories that have shaped the way we understand the world around us. From ancient civilizations pondering the mysteries of the cosmos to modern-day scientists unraveling the complexities of quantum mechanics, the evolution of scientific thought has been a testament to human curiosity, ingenuity, and perseverance.

This comprehensive timeline aims to chronicle the key milestones in the history of science, highlighting the pivotal moments, influential figures, and transformative ideas that have propelled our collective understanding of the natural world. By tracing the progression of scientific knowledge from antiquity to the present day, we can appreciate the interconnectedness of different scientific disciplines and the cumulative nature of human inquiry.

The journey begins in ancient times, when early civilizations such as the Mesopotamians, Egyptians, and Greeks laid the foundations of scientific thought through observations of the stars, the development of mathematics, and the formulation of rudimentary theories about the nature of matter. The birth of philosophy in ancient Greece, exemplified by the works of thinkers like Thales, Pythagoras, and Aristotle, marked a pivotal moment in the history of science, as it laid the groundwork for systematic inquiry and rational analysis.

The timeline then transitions to the Middle Ages, a period characterized by the preservation and transmission of scientific knowledge by Islamic scholars in the Golden Age of Islam. Figures such as Al-Kindi, Al-Khwarizmi, and Ibn al-Haytham made significant contributions to mathematics, astronomy, and optics, paving the way for the scientific revolution that would unfold in Europe in the following centuries.

The Renaissance, with its emphasis on humanism, artistic innovation, and intellectual curiosity, witnessed a resurgence of interest in the natural world and a reevaluation of traditional scientific beliefs. Visionaries like Leonardo da Vinci, Nicolaus Copernicus, and Galileo Galilei challenged prevailing dogmas and revolutionized our understanding of the cosmos through their observations and experiments.

The timeline then delves into the Scientific Revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries, a period of intense intellectual ferment that saw the emergence of modern science as we know it today. The contributions of luminaries such as Johannes Kepler, René Descartes, and Isaac Newton transformed the fields of astronomy, physics, and mathematics, ushering in an era of empirical observation, mathematical rigor, and experimental method.

The Enlightenment of the 18th century further accelerated the progress of science, as thinkers like Carl Linnaeus, Antoine Lavoisier, and James Hutton advanced our understanding of biology, chemistry, and geology, respectively. The Age of Enlightenment also saw the rise of scientific societies, such as the Royal Society in England and the Académie des Sciences in France, which fostered collaboration, communication, and the dissemination of scientific knowledge.

The timeline continues into the 19th and 20th centuries, a period marked by unprecedented scientific achievements and technological advancements. The development of evolutionary theory by Charles Darwin, the formulation of the theory of relativity by Albert Einstein, and the discovery of the structure of DNA by James Watson and Francis Crick are just a few examples of the transformative breakthroughs that reshaped our understanding of the natural world.

The 20th century witnessed the birth of modern physics with the advent of quantum mechanics and the theory of the Big Bang, as well as the rapid progress of disciplines such as genetics, neuroscience, and computer science. The contributions of pioneering scientists like Marie Curie, Niels Bohr, and Alan Turing expanded the frontiers of human knowledge and laid the groundwork for the technological innovations that define the contemporary era.

As we approach the present day, the timeline invites reflection on the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in the realm of science. From climate change and biodiversity loss to artificial intelligence and space exploration, the pressing issues of our time call for interdisciplinary collaboration, ethical reflection, and a commitment to evidence-based decision-making.

In conclusion, the history of science is a testament to the power of human curiosity, creativity, and collaboration in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding. By exploring the milestones and achievements of the past, we can gain insight into the dynamic and evolving nature of scientific inquiry and appreciate the enduring impact of scientific discoveries on society, culture, and the natural world.

This timeline serves as a tribute to the countless individuals who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of scientific truth and as an invitation to future generations to continue the quest for knowledge, innovation, and discovery. As we embark on this journey through time, let us celebrate the rich tapestry of human ingenuity and imagination that has shaped the history of science and continues to inspire us to explore the mysteries of the universe.

Word Count: 849

GPT-4o

3rd century BCE

• 323–283 BCE – Euclid: wrote a series of 13 books on geometry called The Elements
• 280 BCE – Aristarchus of Samos: used a heliocentric, heliostatic model

2nd century BCE

• 150s BCE – Seleucus of Seleucia: discovery of tides being caused by the moon
• 150s Ptolemy: produced the geocentric model of the solar system.

9th century

• Al-Kindi (Alkindus): refutation of the theory of the transmutation of metals
• 780-850 Al-Khawarizmi: wrote the first major treatise on Algebra titled “Al-jabr wal-muqabaleh”

10th century

• Muhammad ibn Zakarīya Rāzi (Rhazes): refutation of Aristotelian classical elements and Galenic humorism; and discovery of measles and smallpox, and kerosene and distilled petroleum
• 984 – Ibn Sahl accurately describes the optics which became known as Snell’s law of refraction

11th century

• 1021 – Ibn al-Haytham’s Book of Optics. First use of controlled experiments and reproducibility of its results.
• 1020s – Avicenna’s The Canon of Medicine
• 1054 – Various early astronomers observe supernova (modern designation SN 1054), later correlated to the Crab Nebula.
• Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī: beginning of Islamic astronomy and mechanics
• Shen Kuo: Discovers the concepts of true north and magnetic declination. In addition, he develops the first theory of Geomorphology.

12th century

• 1121 – Al-Khazini: variation of gravitation and gravitational potential energy at a distance; the decrease of air density with altitude
• Ibn Bajjah (Avempace): discovery of reaction (precursor to Newton’s third law of motion)
• Hibat Allah Abu’l-Barakat al-Baghdaadi (Nathanel): relationship between force and acceleration (a vague foreshadowing of a fundamental law of classical mechanics and a precursor to Newton’s second law of motion)
• Averroes: relationship between force, work and kinetic energy

13th century

• 1220–1235 – Robert Grosseteste: rudimentals of the scientific method (see also: Roger Bacon)
• 1242 – Ibn al-Nafis: pulmonary circulation and circulatory system
• Theodoric of Freiberg: correct explanation of rainbow phenomenon
• William of Saint-Cloud: pioneering use of camera obscura to view solar eclipses[2]

14th century

• Before 1327 – William of Ockham: Occam’s Razor
• Oxford Calculators: the mean speed theorem
• Jean Buridan: theory of impetus
• Nicole Oresme: discovery of the curvature of light through atmospheric refraction[3]

15th century

• 1494 – Luca Pacioli: first codification of the Double-entry bookkeeping system, which slowly developed in previous centuries[4]

16th century

• 1543 – Nicolaus Copernicus: heliocentric model
• 1543 – Vesalius: pioneering research into human anatomy
• 1552 – Michael Servetus: early research in Europe into pulmonary circulation
• 1570s – Tycho Brahe: detailed astronomical observations
• 1600 – William Gilbert: Earth’s magnetic field

17th century

• 1609 – Johannes Kepler: first two laws of planetary motion
• 1610 – Galileo Galilei: Sidereus Nuncius: telescopic observations
• 1614 – John Napier: use of logarithms for calculation[5]
• 1619 – Johannes Kepler: third law of planetary motion
• 1628 – William Harvey: Blood circulation
• 1638 – Galileo Galilei: laws of falling body
• 1643 – Evangelista Torricelli invents the mercury barometer
• 1662 – Robert Boyle: Boyle’s law of ideal gas
• 1665 – Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society first peer reviewed scientific journal published.
• 1665 – Robert Hooke: Discovers the Cell
• 1668 – Francesco Redi: disproved idea of spontaneous generation
• 1669 – Nicholas Steno: Proposes that fossils are organic remains embedded in layers of sediment, basis of stratigraphy
• 1669 – Jan Swammerdam: Species breed true
• 1672 – Sir Isaac Newton: discovers that white light is a spectrum of a mixture of distinct coloured rays
• 1673 – Christiaan Huygens: first study of oscillating system and design of pendulum clocks
• 1675 – Leibniz, Newton: Infinitesimal calculus
• 1675 – Anton van Leeuwenhoek: Observes Microorganisms by Microscope
• 1676 – Ole Rømer: first measurement of the speed of light
• 1687 – Sir Isaac Newton: Classical Mathematical description of the fundamental force of universal gravitation and the three physical laws of motion

18th century

• 1745 – Ewald Jürgen Georg von Kleist first capacitor, the Leyden jar
• 1750 – Joseph Black: describes latent heat
• 1751 – Benjamin Franklin: Lightning is electrical
• 1761 – Mikhail Lomonosov: discovery of the atmosphere of Venus
• 1763 – Thomas Bayes: publishes the first version of Bayes’ theorem, paving the way for Bayesian probability
• 1771 – Charles Messier: Publishes catalogue of astronomical objects (Messier Objects) now known to include galaxies, star clusters, and nebulae.
• 1778 – Antoine Lavoisier (and Joseph Priestley): discovery of oxygen leading to end of Phlogiston theory
• 1781 – William Herschel announces discovery of Uranus, expanding the known boundaries of the solar system for the first time in modern history
• 1785 – William Withering: publishes the first definitive account of the use of foxglove (digitalis) for treating dropsy
• 1787 – Jacques Charles: Charles’ law of ideal gas
• 1789 – Antoine Lavoisier: law of conservation of mass, basis for chemistry, and the beginning of modern chemistry
• 1796 – Georges Cuvier: Establishes extinction as a fact
• 1796 – Edward Jenner: small pox historical accounting
• 1796 – Hanaoka Seishū: develops general anaesthesia
• 1800 – Alessandro Volta: discovers electrochemical series and invents the battery
• 1800 – William Herschel discovers infrared radiation.

19th century

• 1802 – Jean-Baptiste Lamarck: teleological evolution
• 1805 – John Dalton: Atomic Theory in (Chemistry)
• 1820 – Hans Christian Ørsted discovers that a current passed through a wire will deflect the needle of a compass, establishing a deep relationship between electricity and magnetism (electromagnetism).
• 1824 – Carnot: described the Carnot cycle, the idealized heat engine
• 1827 – Georg Ohm: Ohm’s law (Electricity)
• 1827 – Amedeo Avogadro: Avogadro’s law (Gas law)
• 1828 – Friedrich Wöhler synthesized urea, destroying vitalism
• 1830 – Nikolai Lobachevsky created Non-Euclidean geometry
• 1831 – Michael Faraday discovers electromagnetic induction
• 1833 – Michael Faraday is the first to observe a property of semiconductors.
• 1833 – Anselme Payen isolates first enzyme, diastase
• 1838 – Matthias Schleiden: all plants are made of cells
• 1838 – Friedrich Bessel: first successful measure of stellar parallax (to star 61 Cygni)
• 1842 – Christian Doppler: Doppler effect
• 1843 – James Prescott Joule: Law of Conservation of energy (First law of thermodynamics), also 1847 – Helmholtz, Conservation of energy
• 1846 – Johann Gottfried Galle and Heinrich Louis d’Arrest: discovery of Neptune
• 1848 – Lord Kelvin: absolute zero
• 1858 – Rudolf Virchow: cells can only arise from pre-existing cells
• 1859 – Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace: Theory of evolution by natural selection
• 1861 – Louis Pasteur: Germ theory
• 1864 – James Clerk Maxwell: Theory of electromagnetism
• 1865 – Gregor Mendel: Mendel’s laws of inheritance, basis for genetics
• 1865 – Rudolf Clausius: Definition of Entropy
• 1869 – Dmitri Mendeleev: Periodic table
• 1871 – Lord Rayleigh: Diffuse sky radiation (Rayleigh scattering) explains why sky appears blue
• 1873 – Frederick Guthrie discovers thermionic emission.
• 1875 – William Crookes invented the Crookes tube and studied cathode rays
• 1876 – Josiah Willard Gibbs founded chemical thermodynamics, the phase rule
• 1877 – Ludwig Boltzmann: Statistical definition of entropy
• 1880 – Pierre Curie and Jacques Curie: Piezoelectricity
• 1887 – Albert A. Michelson and Edward W. Morley: lack of evidence for the aether
• 1888 – Friedrich Reinitzer discovers liquid crystals.
• 1895 – Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovers x-rays
• 1896 – Henri Becquerel discovers radioactivity
• 1897 – J.J. Thomson discovers the electron in cathode rays
• 1898 – J.J. Thomson proposed the Plum pudding model of an atom
• 1898 – Marie Curie discovers polonium, radium, and coins the term “radioactivity”
• 1900 – Max Planck: Planck’s law of black body radiation, basis for quantum theory

20th century

• 1905 – Albert Einstein: theory of special relativity, explanation of Brownian motion, and photoelectric effect
• 1906 – Walther Nernst: Third law of thermodynamics
• 1907 – Alfred Bertheim: Arsphenamine, the first modern chemotherapeutic agent
• 1909 – Fritz Haber: Haber Process for industrial production of ammonia
• 1909 – Robert Andrews Millikan: conducts the oil drop experiment and determines the charge on an electron
• 1911 – Ernest Rutherford: Atomic nucleus
• 1911 – Heike Kamerlingh Onnes: Superconductivity
• 1912 – Alfred Wegener: Continental drift
• 1912 – Max von Laue: x-ray diffraction
• 1913 – Henry Moseley: defined atomic number
• 1913 – Niels Bohr: Model of the atom
• 1915 – Albert Einstein: theory of general relativity – also David Hilbert
• 1915 – Karl Schwarzschild: discovery of the Schwarzschild radius leading to the identification of black holes
• 1918 – Emmy Noether: Noether’s theorem – conditions under which the conservation laws are valid
• 1920 – Arthur Eddington: Stellar nucleosynthesis
• 1922 – Frederick Banting, Charles Best, James Collip, John Macleod: isolation and production of insulin to control diabetes
• 1924 – Wolfgang Pauli: quantum Pauli exclusion principle
• 1924 – Edwin Hubble: the discovery that the Milky Way is just one of many galaxies
• 1925 – Erwin Schrödinger: Schrödinger equation (Quantum mechanics)
• 1925 – Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin: Discovery of the composition of the Sun and that Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the Universe
• 1927 – Werner Heisenberg: Uncertainty principle (Quantum mechanics)
• 1927 – Georges Lemaître: Theory of the Big Bang
• 1928 – Paul Dirac: Dirac equation (Quantum mechanics)
• 1929 – Edwin Hubble: Hubble’s law of the expanding universe
• 1928 – Alexander Fleming: Penicillin, the first beta-lactam antibiotic
• 1929 – Lars Onsager’s reciprocal relations, a potential fourth law of thermodynamics
• 1932 – James Chadwick: Discovery of the neutron
• 1934 – Clive McCay: Calorie restriction extends the maximum lifespan of another species
• 1938 – Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner and Fritz Strassmann: Nuclear fission
• 1938 – Isidor Rabi: Nuclear magnetic resonance
• 1943 – Oswald Avery proves that DNA is the genetic material of the chromosome
• 1947 – William Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain invent the first transistor
• 1948 – Claude Elwood Shannon: ‘A mathematical theory of communication’ a seminal paper in Information theory.
• 1948 – Richard Feynman, Julian Schwinger, Sin-Itiro Tomonaga and Freeman Dyson: Quantum electrodynamics
• 1951 – George Otto Gey propagates first cancer cell line, HeLa
• 1952 – Jonas Salk: developed and tested first polio vaccine
• 1953 – Crick and Watson: helical structure of DNA, basis for molecular biology
• 1963 – Lawrence Morley, Fred Vine, and Drummond Matthews: Paleomagnetic stripes in ocean crust as evidence of plate tectonics (Vine-Matthews-Morley hypothesis).
• 1964 – Murray Gell-Mann and George Zweig: postulates quarks leading to the standard model
• 1964 – Arno Penzias and Robert Woodrow Wilson: detection of CMBR providing experimental evidence for the Big Bang
• 1965 – Leonard Hayflick: normal cells divide only a certain number of times: the Hayflick limit
• 1967 – Jocelyn Bell Burnell and Antony Hewish discover first pulsar
• 1983 – Kary Mullis invents the polymerase chain reaction, a key discovery in molecular biology.
• 1986 – Karl Müller and Johannes Bednorz: Discovery of High-temperature superconductivity
• 1994 – Andrew Wiles proves Fermat’s Last Theorem
• 1995 – Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz definitively observe the first extrasolar planet around a main sequence star
• 1995 – Eric Cornell, Carl Wieman and Wolfgang Ketterle attained the first Bose-Einstein Condensate with atomic gases, so called fifth state of matter at an extremely low temperature.
• 1997 – Roslin Institute: Dolly the sheep was cloned.
• 1997 – CDF and DØ experiments at Fermilab: Top quark.
• 1998 – Supernova Cosmology Project and the High-Z Supernova Search Team: discovery of the accelerated expansion of the Universe / Dark Energy.
• 2000 – The Tau neutrino is discovered by the DONUT collaboration

21st century

• 2001 – The first draft of the Human Genome Project is published.
• 2003 – Grigori Perelman presents proof of the Poincaré Conjecture.
• 2006 – Shinya Yamanaka generates first induced pluripotent stem cells
• 2010 – J. Craig Venter Institute creates the first synthetic genome for a bacterial cell.[6]
• 2010 – The Neanderthal Genome Project presented preliminary genetic evidence that interbreeding did likely take place and that a small but significant portion of Neanderthal admixture is present in modern non-African populations.[citation needed] • 2012 – Higgs boson is discovered at CERN (confirmed to 99.999% certainty)
• 2012 – Photonic molecules are discovered at MIT
• 2014 – Exotic hadrons are discovered at the LHCb
• 2015 – Kepler 438b discovered to have similar Earth-like properties[7] • 2015 – Traces of liquid water discovered on Mars

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