Year: 1590

Somewhere in the Netherlands

(Hans and Zacharias Jansen in their store.

one at the counter and the other sitting at a
desk working on spectacles)

(ES: of a small spectacle/glasses store, you

can see eyeglasses for sale in the window.)
Day time)
Hans and Zacharias Jansen (father and
son) own a spectacle shop.

Lens 1 They decide to put two lenses

into a tube and make an
(Over-the-shoulder view of Zacharias sitting
important discovery.
at desk with three lenses and a tube laying
on the desk next to them)

(Side view of Zacharias holding the tube out

with an extended arm and the two lenses
are pointed out in the tube with tool-tips)
One day, the two Dutch spectacle
makers begin experimenting with
some of their lenses. Lens 2

The objects viewed through the tube appeared to be greatly enlarged - much larger than any magnifying glass could achieve on its own.

Typical magnifying glass: Zacharias tube::

3-4x zoom 9-10x zoom

Pretty neat, huh? Close-up of tube microscope laying on desk/table.

Get back
to work!

(Zacharias holding the tub with curious face

and speaking to father)

Little did they know at the time, they had just The compound microscope remains one of the most
invented the first compound microscope. important and influential scientific inventions of all time.
Year: 1665

On a cloudy evening in north England

Hooke at desk/table with microscope,
looking into it. wine bottle is subtly
on the desk next to him.

ES: of compact houses in 16th century England. night time,

cloudy, stars in sky. you can see Robert Hooke through the
window looking through a microscope by candlelight. Robert Hooke, a brilliant scientist,
is looking at objects under his
compound microscope.

He decides to slice off a thin

piece of a wine cork and observe
it with his microscope.

(aerial view of Hooke looking through

ork

Close-up of knife slicing off a

t
cut-ou

the microscope)
wine c

thin piece of cork.

(Hooke holding up wine bottle and

looking at it curiously)

What he sees will change science forever.

I shall call them, cells.

(monk monastery building
in thought bubble)

Hooke standing up holding the cork

between fingers and proclaiming is
(close-up side view of hook (zoomed in cork cells) naming of cells.
looking into microscope, spotlight
circle of what he sees)

The term cells stuck and because of

When he looks at the wine cork, Hooke discovers his observation with the wine cork,
empty spaces contained by walls. They remind of Hooke is credited with discovering
the rooms monk live in at a monastery. the building blocks of all life.
Year: 1973

Back in the Netherlands

ES: of a small spectacle/glasses store, you can

see eyeglasses for sale in the window.

Anton Van Leeuwenhoek is the As a hobby on the side,

owner of a drapery business in Leeuwenhoek is interested in
the Netherlands. microscopes.

Not satisfied with the 20-30x Through a special method that

He decides to learn how to make
magnification of the microscopes he kept a secret, he was able to
his own lenses.
available. magnify

Leeuwenhoek out on lake dipping a glass jar in

the pond.

side close-up of him looking into his little

microscope.
jar of
water
Glass
po nd

I shall call them, animalcules.

These little animalcules were actually

the very first single-celled organisms
ever observed. For this discovery,
Leeuwenhoek is often referred to as
Not satisfied with the 20-30x magnification of the Father of Microbiology.
the microscopes available.
Year: 1838-1839

Meanwhile in Germany

(animal cells)

(plant cells)

Schleiden sitting at desk looking into

a microscope facing this way <- Schwann sitting at desk looking into
a microscope facing this way ->

Matthias Schleiden is a german botanist

Schleiden is friends with another german
who studies plants using a microscope.
scientist, named Theodor Schwann, who
During his studies he discovers that all
studies animal cells with his microscope.
plants are made of cells.

I have noticed that every

Ive noticed the same
plant cell contains a
thing about animal
nucleus that looks like
cells. Hmm
the two men sitting across the
dinner table from each other.

One night, the two men are having dinner and the conversation turns towards their research.
Schleiden mentions something that catches Schwanns attention.

Together, they go to Schwanns lab to look at his Schleiden & Schwanns Cell Theory:
animal cell slides and saw nuclei just like the
Their proposed cell theory consisted of 3 parts.
ones Schleiden described in his plant cells..
But only two of the parts were correct

inside a science lab, both mens e

backs are facing us and they are
bent over looking into a microscope

Through this, Schleiden and Schwann

realized that all living things are made
of cells. This led them to propose a e
unifying theory on cells
Spontaneous generation, the idea that cells Year: 1858
form out of thin air, was the accepted
theory by most scientists of the time. All cells
come from
We dont believe you!
pre-existing
cells.

Virchow standing up
cells spontaneous appearing out of 2 or 3 random
with a paper in hand
thin air scientists expressing
making his statement.
their disbelief.

It wasnt until a German scientist,

named Rudolf Virchow, famously
declared in a published paper that all But he couldnt design an experiment
cells come from pre-existing cells. to prove his theory

It wasnt until 1861 when a French

scientist, named Louis Pasteur,
designed an experiment that proved
Virchow was right.

Louis Pasteurs Experiment

Pasteurs experiment contained 2 flasks that were filled with sterile

broth that had been boiled ahead of time. One flask was sealed and
the other was open to the air. After some time, the one left open to
the air contained microorganisms, while sealed one remained pure.
This experiment disproved spontaneous generation and that all cells
must come from other cells.

Modern Cell Theory:

Their proposed cell theory consisted of 3 parts.
But only two of the parts were correct

cells spontaneous appearing out of

thin air
All living things are made of
e
cells and cell products.

Cells are the most basic building

e
blocks of life.

Pasteurs experiment fixed Schleiden & Schwanns

third tenet of theory and led to the complete cell
theory that we reference today. e
Year: 1973

Back in the Netherlands

ES: of a small spectacle/glasses store, you can

see eyeglasses for sale in the window.
Anton Van Leeuwenhoek is the
owner of a drapery business in
the Netherlands.

As a part of his daily routine, But, he was not satisfied He became determined to
he uses a glass lens to with the 3x magnification of learn how to grind his own
examine cloth. the lenses he was using. lenses.

Through his own method, which he kept a secret

until the day he died, he was able to produce
lenses that magnified objects by over 200x!

Microscopes available in
Leeuwenhoeks day offered a This was a major leap forward in
magnification of around 20-30x. the world of microscopy

One day, Leeuwenhoek was out on a lake

and decided to take a sample of some
algae in the pond water near him.

He developed a passion for

observing objects underneath
these ultra-powerful lenses.
 When he observed this pond water sample
under his ultra-powerful microscope, he He saw hundreds of microscopic
discovered an entirely new world. organisms moving around in the sample.

For this profound discovery, Anton Van

Leeuwenhoek is often referred to as
He initially called them animalcules. This was the Father of microbiology. He
the first discovery of single-celled organisms. forever changed the way we see the
world around us.
 Year: 1665
On a cloudy evening in north
England
ES of compact houses in 16th century
England. night time, cloudy, stars in sky.
can see Hooke in the window looking through
microscope by candlelight.
When he looks at the wine cork,
Hooke discovers empty spaces
contained by cell walls.
wine cork cells microscope close-
up with vignette
Robert Hooke is a brilliant scientist
who is looking at objects under his
compound microscope.
Hooke at desk/table with
you
microscope, looking into it. wine
bottle is on the desk next to him.
I will call them,
cells.
monk monastery
hooke standing up proclaiming his
statement.
He decides to slice off a thin piece
of a wine cork and observe it with
his microscope.
What he sees will change science
forever
Close-up of knife slicing off thin piece of wine aerial view of hooke looking
cork. through the microscope.
The term cells stuck and because of
this observation with the wine cork,
Hooke is credited with discovering the
building blocks of all life.
Hooke standing with award paper
thing giving him credit for discovering
cells.