History and Timeline of the Microscope

Question 1

The first glasses were invented. Spectacles have convex lenses to help far sighted people see more clearly.

Answer 1

1285

Question 2

Hans Janssen and Zaccharias Janssen made a 9x magnifier using two small convex lenses effective for viewing objects nearby. Designed for near sighted people.

Answer 2

1590

Question 3

Galileio perfected the microscope known as occhiolino.

Answer 3

1609

Question 4

Giovanni Faber coined the word “microscope,” coming from the Greek words mikros which means small and skopein which means to look at.

Answer 4

1625

Question 5

Robert Hooke discovered cells and observed feathers, flies’ eyes, and cork. He observed that the cork is made up of repeated units that reminded him of cells in a monastery. He published his observation in his book Micrographia.

Answer 5

1665

Question 6

Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek perfected the microscope. Discovered organisms in saliva, rain water and called these organisms animalcules. First to observed human cells like the red blood cell and sperm cells.

Answer 6

1670

Question 7

The modern microscope is born.

Answer 7

1800

Question 8

Richard Zsigmondy wins Nobel Prize for the Ultra Microscope.

Answer 8

1926

Question 9

Max Knoll and Ernst Ruska invented the Electron Microscope.

Answer 9

1931

Question 9

Frits Zernike wins Nobel Prize for Phase Contrast Method.

Answer 9

1953

Question 10

Tunneling Microscope

Answer 10

1986