Wikipedia - Benutzerbeiträge [de]

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2009-10-14T01:17:04Z

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Französische Kronjuwelen

2008-07-30T09:43:57Z

TestPilot: clean up & spell check, typos fixed: coup d'etat → coup d'état using AWB

{{unreferenced|date=August 2007}}
[[Image:French-crown-jewels.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Crown Jewels of France, on display at the Louvre]] The '''French Crown Jewels''' were the [[crown (headgear)|crown]]s, orbs, diadems and jewels that were the symbol of royalty and which were worn by many [[King of France|Kings and Queens of France]]. The set was finally broken up, with most of it sold off in [[1885]] by the [[Third French Republic]]. The surviving French Crown Jewels, principally a set of historic crowns now set with decorated glass, are on display in the [[Louvre]], [[France]]'s premier [[museum]] and former royal [[palace]].

==Use of the French crown jewels==
[[Image:Louis15.jpg|thumb|right|[[1722]] [[Crown of Louis XV]]]]
In contrast with [[England|English]] monarchs, French kings were less attached to the ritual use of crown jewels. Nevertheless, all monarchs were crowned until the [[French revolution]], in the [[Notre-Dame de Reims]] cathedral (apart for two of them, who were crowned elsewhere). After the revolution, only the emperor [[Napoleon]] and the king [[Charles X of France|Charles X]] were crowned. Though not always used, a set of expensive crown jewels did exist and was added to by various monarchs.

==Famous diamonds==
Among the most famous diamonds in the collection were the [[Sancy]] Diamond, which once had been part of the pre-Commonwealth Crown Jewels of England, the Royal [[French Blue]], and the [[Regent Diamond]]. The treatment of the Regent Diamond epitomised the attitude of the French Royal Family to the Crown Jewels. While the Regent Diamond was the centrepiece of the King [[Louis XV of France|Louis XV]] crown, and worn by him at his coronation in February [[1723]], [[Marie Antoinette]], wife of [[Louis XVI of France|Louis XVI]], wore it in a black velvet hat.

==Theft of the crown jewels during the revolution==
[[Image:HopeDiamond1.JPG|thumb|left|''The Hope Diamond'', which was cut from the ''Royal French Blue'', part of the French Crown Jewels.]]
The Crown Jewels were stolen in [[1792]] when the ''Garde Meuble'' (Royal Treasury) was stormed by rioters. Most, though not all, of the Crown Jewels were recovered eventually. Neither the [[Sancy]] Diamond nor the French Blue Diamond were found in the years after, however. The Royal French Blue was cut and what remained is now known as the [[Hope Diamond]].

The Hope is famously alleged to have been surrounded by bad luck. Marie Antoinette who supposedly wore it was beheaded (in fact, it was actually worn by her husband, Louis XVI). Other owners and their families experienced suicides, marriage break-ups, bankruptcy, deaths in car crashes, falls off cliffs, revolutions, mental breakdowns, and deaths through drug overdoses. It was even tangentially associated with the case of the murdered [[Lindbergh kidnapping|Lindbergh baby]], when its then owner, silver heiress [[Evalyn Walsh McLean]], [[pawn]]ed it to raise money that she ended up paying to a con-man unconnected with the actual kidnap. Most modern historians view the tales of a curse on the Hope to be spurious; the first mention of such tales is documented to 1908. Pierre Cartier, the Parisian jeweler, is widely credited with publicizing the stories of a curse on the diamond in hopes of increasing its saleability. Since [[1958]], it has been in the [[Smithsonian Institution]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], where it is the singlemost-viewed object in the Smithsonian's collection.

The Crown Jewels were augmented by jewels added by [[Napoleon I of France|Napoleon I]] and [[Napoleon III of France|Napoleon III]] along with their empresses.

==Last coronation==
The last French coronation occurred in [[1824]] when King [[Charles X of France|Charles X]] was crowned at [[Reims|Rheims]]. The scale of the coronation was seen by critics to indicate a return to the [[Political absolutism|absolutism]] of the ''[[ancien regime]]'' that had been ended by the [[French Revolution]]. Some historians suggest that the very grandeur of the ceremony marked the beginning of the end for the Bourbon monarchy, with Charles's image as an old style monarch falling out of favour with the French public, who had much preferred the low-key monarchy of his brother, [[Louis XVIII of France|Louis XVIII]]. [[Louis Phillipe|Louis Phillipe of France]], the last [[King of France]], was not crowned, and neither was [[Napoleon III]], the last Emperor. Napoleon III's consort, [[Eugénie de Montijo]], however, did have a [[Crown of Empress Eugenie|Crown]] made for her, though it was never used in an official coronation.

==Break-up and sale of the French crown jewels==
[[Image:Reims.jpg|thumb|right|250px|left|Notre-Dame de Reims, traditional location of the coronations of Kings of France]]
Throughout the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the jewels survived the [[First French Republic]], the [[French Directory|Directorate]], the [[First Empire]], the Restoration, the [[July Monarchy]], the [[Second French Republic]] and the [[Second Empire]]. However, the decision of [[Henri, Comte de Chambord]] not to accept the French Crown in the early 1870s ended not just the prospect of a royal restoration. It also led to the break-up and partial sale of the Crown Jewels.

In [[1875]] the [[Third French Republic]] came into being with the passage of a series of Organic Laws (collectively forming a constitution). The interim presidency was replaced by a full "President of the Republic".

While few expected a royal restoration, certainly after the failure of the ''[[Seize Mai]]'' attempted royalist [[coup]] by President [[Patrice MacMahon, duc de Magenta]], the continuing agitation of extreme right wing royalists, and the fear of a royalist ''coup d'état'', led radical deputies to propose the sale of the Crown Jewels, in the hope that their dispersal would undermine the royalist cause: "''Without a crown, no need for a king''" in the words of one member of the National Assembly. This controversial decision was implemented. All the jewels from the Crown Jewels were removed and sold, as were many of the crowns, diadems, rings and other items. Only a few of the crowns were kept for historic reasons, but with their original diamonds and gems replaced by coloured glass.

==Last royal ceremony in France: The funeral of [[Louis XVII]] in 2004==


One of the mysteries of the French Revolution was the question of what had happened to the [[Dauphin of France|Dauphin]], the [[heir apparent]] of King [[Louis XVI]], after the execution of the King and Queen. Though it was generally believed that he had died in prison, popular legend had spoken of the young prince being spirited away from his prison and living in exile.

In 2004, however it was finally confirmed that the legend was fictitious. In reality the young prince, called King [[Louis XVII of France]] by royalist supporters following his father's death, had died of [[tuberculosis]] in prison. The fact of his death was established using [[DNA]] evidence. The [[heart]] of the young man claimed by opponents to be the young Louis XVII had been secretly removed by a doctor just after his death. By comparing the DNA from the heart with DNA taken from strands of hair of [[Marie Antoinette]] that had been kept as a memento by royalists, it was possible to establish that the boy who died in prison was indeed the son of Louis and Marie Antoinette, the boy-king, Louis XVII.

The formal funeral for Louis XVII finally took place, albeit with his heart, not his body, in 2004. For the first time in over a century, and quite possibly the last time, a royal ceremony took place in France, complete with the [[fleur-de-lis]] standard and a royal crown.

{{Crowns}}

{{Crown Jewels}}

[[Category:House of Bonaparte|Bonapartes, The]]
[[Category:Crown jewels]]
[[Category:Crowns]]
[[Category:French monarchy]]
[[Category:History of Paris]]

[[fr:Diamants de la Couronne]]
[[zh:法国王冠珠宝]]

Finlaggan Castle

2008-06-17T18:05:02Z

TestPilot: clean up & spell check, typos fixed: sorrounding → surrounding using AWB

[[Image:Islands of Loch Finlaggan.jpg|thumb|left|Looking south-west down Loch Finlaggan Eilean Mòr nearer and Eilean na Comhairle more distant.]]
'''Finlaggan''' ({{oscoor|NR388680|NR388680}}, [[Scottish Gaelic]]: '''Port an Eilein''') is a historic site on the Eilean Mòr in [[Loch Finlaggan]]. Loch, island, and castle lie around 2 km to the north-west of [[Ballygrant]] on [[Islay]].

Finlaggan was the seat of the [[Lords of the Isles]] and of [[Clan Donald]]. The site has been the subject of recent archaeological investigations and hosted an episode of [[Channel 4]]'s documentary [[Time Team]].

Two of the three islands that lie in the stunning scenery surrounding loch Finlaggan,<ref>[http://www.scotlandontv.tv/scotland_on_tv/video.html?vxSiteId=60fdd544-9c52-4e17-be7e-57a2a2d76992&vxChannel=SeeScot%20Places&vxClipId=1380_SMG1757&vxBitrate=300 "A view from Finlaggan Loch video"]</ref> Eilean Mor (large island) and Eilean na Comhairle (council isle), were the ancient administration centre of the Lordship of the Isles during mostly the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries.

Still today, the islands contain remains of the buildings from where the Lords ruled the Hebrides and part of the west coast of Scotland, immensely contributing to the arts, culture and politics of Scotland.

The stone walls of a medieval chapel dedicated to St. Findlugan on Eilean Mor have been stabilised and several 16th century graves put on display and covered by large glass panels.

The Finlaggan Trust maintains the site and also refurbished a derelict cottage that has been converted into a comprehensive museum.<ref>[http://www.scotlandontv.tv/scotland_on_tv/video.html?vxSiteId=60fdd544-9c52-4e17-be7e-57a2a2d76992&vxChannel=History%20Places&vxClipId=1380_SMG1782&vxBitrate=300 Scotland on TV Video interview with Donald Bell from Finlaggan Trust at the site's information centre]</ref> The centre contains all kind of artefacts discovered during archaeological excavations: from a sheep wool quilted aketon or under armour, to an ancient cross related to the lords.

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
* [http://www.finlaggan.com/ Finlaggan Trust]

[[Category:Islay]]
[[Category:Castles in Argyll and Bute]]

{{Scotland-castle-stub}}
{{Argyll-geo-stub}}

Histon H2AX

2008-05-14T07:56:51Z

TestPilot: clean up & spell check , typos fixed: respons → responds using AWB

{{PBB_Controls
| update_page = yes
| require_manual_inspection = no
| update_protein_box = yes
| update_summary = yes
| update_citations = yes
}}


{{GNF_Protein_box
| image = PBB_Protein_H2AFX_image.jpg
| image_source = [[Protein Data Bank|PDB]] rendering based on 1aoi.
| PDB = {{PDB2|1aoi}}, {{PDB2|1eqz}}, {{PDB2|1hio}}, {{PDB2|1hq3}}, {{PDB2|1kx3}}, {{PDB2|1kx4}}, {{PDB2|1kx5}}, {{PDB2|1s32}}, {{PDB2|1tzy}}, {{PDB2|2aro}}, {{PDB2|2cv5}}, {{PDB2|2f8n}}, {{PDB2|2hio}}, {{PDB2|2nzd}}
| Name = H2A histone family, member X
| HGNCid = 4739
| Symbol = H2AFX
| AltSymbols =; H2A.X; H2A/X; H2AX
| OMIM = 601772
| ECnumber =
| Homologene = 68227
| MGIid = 102688
| GeneAtlas_image1 = PBB_GE_H2AFX_205436_s_at_tn.png
| GeneAtlas_image2 = PBB_GE_H2AFX_212525_s_at_tn.png
| Function = {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0003684 |text = damaged DNA binding}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0005515 |text = protein binding}}
| Component = {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0000786 |text = nucleosome}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0005634 |text = nucleus}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0005657 |text = replication fork}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0005694 |text = chromosome}}
| Process = {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0000724 |text = double-strand break repair via homologous recombination}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0006281 |text = DNA repair}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0006310 |text = DNA recombination}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0006334 |text = nucleosome assembly}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0007001 |text = chromosome organization and biogenesis (sensu Eukaryota)}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0007049 |text = cell cycle}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0007126 |text = meiosis}} {{GNF_GO|id=GO:0007283 |text = spermatogenesis}}
| Orthologs = {{GNF_Ortholog_box
| Hs_EntrezGene = 3014
| Hs_Ensembl = ENSG00000188486
| Hs_RefseqProtein = NP_002096
| Hs_RefseqmRNA = NM_002105
| Hs_GenLoc_db =
| Hs_GenLoc_chr = 11
| Hs_GenLoc_start = 118469799
| Hs_GenLoc_end = 118471369
| Hs_Uniprot = P16104
| Mm_EntrezGene = 15270
| Mm_Ensembl = ENSMUSG00000049932
| Mm_RefseqmRNA = NM_010436
| Mm_RefseqProtein = NP_034566
| Mm_GenLoc_db =
| Mm_GenLoc_chr = 9
| Mm_GenLoc_start = 44085689
| Mm_GenLoc_end = 44087066
| Mm_Uniprot = P27661
}}
}}
'''H2AFX''' is one of several [[gene]]s coding for [[histone H2A]]. In humans and other [[eukaryotes]], the [[DNA]] is wrapped around [[histone]]-groups, consisting of [[core histones]] H2A, H2B, H3 and H4. Thus, the [[H2AFX]] contributes to the histone-formation and therefore the structure of DNA.

H2AX becomes phosphorylated on serine 139, then called gamma-H2AX, as a reaction on DNA Double-strand breaks (DSB). The kinases of the PIKK-family ([[Ataxia telangiectasia mutated]], ATR and DNA-PKcs) are responsible for this phosphorylation, especially ATM. The modification can happen accidentally during replication fork collapse or in the response on ionizing radiation but also during controlled physiological processes such as V(D)J recombination. Gamma-H2AX is a sensitive target for looking at DSBs in cells. The role of the phosphorylated form of the histone in DNA repair is under discussion but it is known that because of the modification the DNA becomes less condensed. Delivering space for the recruitment of proteins necessary during repair of DSBs.

==References==
{{reflist}}
*[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=gene&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=full_report&list_uids=3014 ncbi]

==Further reading==
{{refbegin | 2}}
{{PBB_Further_reading
| citations =
*{{cite journal | author=Redon C, Pilch D, Rogakou E, ''et al.'' |title=Histone H2A variants H2AX and H2AZ. |journal=Curr. Opin. Genet. Dev. |volume=12 |issue= 2 |pages= 162-9 |year= 2002 |pmid= 11893489 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Fernandez-Capetillo O, Lee A, Nussenzweig M, Nussenzweig A |title=H2AX: the histone guardian of the genome. |journal=DNA Repair (Amst.) |volume=3 |issue= 8-9 |pages= 959-67 |year= 2005 |pmid= 15279782 |doi= 10.1016/j.dnarep.2004.03.024 }}
*{{cite journal | author=Mannironi C, Bonner WM, Hatch CL |title=H2A.X. a histone isoprotein with a conserved C-terminal sequence, is encoded by a novel mRNA with both DNA replication type and polyA 3' processing signals. |journal=Nucleic Acids Res. |volume=17 |issue= 22 |pages= 9113-26 |year= 1990 |pmid= 2587254 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Banerjee S, Smallwood A, Hultén M |title=ATP-dependent reorganization of human sperm nuclear chromatin. |journal=J. Cell. Sci. |volume=108 ( Pt 2) |issue= |pages= 755-65 |year= 1995 |pmid= 7769017 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Ivanova VS, Hatch CL, Bonner WM |title=Characterization of the human histone H2A.X gene. Comparison of its promoter with other H2A gene promoters. |journal=J. Biol. Chem. |volume=269 |issue= 39 |pages= 24189-94 |year= 1994 |pmid= 7929075 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Ivanova VS, Zimonjic D, Popescu N, Bonner WM |title=Chromosomal localization of the human histone H2A.X gene to 11q23.2-q23.3 by fluorescence in situ hybridization. |journal=Hum. Genet. |volume=94 |issue= 3 |pages= 303-6 |year= 1994 |pmid= 8076949 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Rogakou EP, Pilch DR, Orr AH, ''et al.'' |title=DNA double-stranded breaks induce histone H2AX phosphorylation on serine 139. |journal=J. Biol. Chem. |volume=273 |issue= 10 |pages= 5858-68 |year= 1998 |pmid= 9488723 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=El Kharroubi A, Piras G, Zensen R, Martin MA |title=Transcriptional activation of the integrated chromatin-associated human immunodeficiency virus type 1 promoter. |journal=Mol. Cell. Biol. |volume=18 |issue= 5 |pages= 2535-44 |year= 1998 |pmid= 9566873 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Rogakou EP, Boon C, Redon C, Bonner WM |title=Megabase chromatin domains involved in DNA double-strand breaks in vivo. |journal=J. Cell Biol. |volume=146 |issue= 5 |pages= 905-16 |year= 1999 |pmid= 10477747 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Rogakou EP, Nieves-Neira W, Boon C, ''et al.'' |title=Initiation of DNA fragmentation during apoptosis induces phosphorylation of H2AX histone at serine 139. |journal=J. Biol. Chem. |volume=275 |issue= 13 |pages= 9390-5 |year= 2000 |pmid= 10734083 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Paull TT, Rogakou EP, Yamazaki V, ''et al.'' |title=A critical role for histone H2AX in recruitment of repair factors to nuclear foci after DNA damage. |journal=Curr. Biol. |volume=10 |issue= 15 |pages= 886-95 |year= 2001 |pmid= 10959836 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Deng L, de la Fuente C, Fu P, ''et al.'' |title=Acetylation of HIV-1 Tat by CBP/P300 increases transcription of integrated HIV-1 genome and enhances binding to core histones. |journal=Virology |volume=277 |issue= 2 |pages= 278-95 |year= 2001 |pmid= 11080476 |doi= 10.1006/viro.2000.0593 }}
*{{cite journal | author=Chen HT, Bhandoola A, Difilippantonio MJ, ''et al.'' |title=Response to RAG-mediated VDJ cleavage by NBS1 and gamma-H2AX. |journal=Science |volume=290 |issue= 5498 |pages= 1962-5 |year= 2000 |pmid= 11110662 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Chadwick BP, Willard HF |title=Histone H2A variants and the inactive X chromosome: identification of a second macroH2A variant. |journal=Hum. Mol. Genet. |volume=10 |issue= 10 |pages= 1101-13 |year= 2001 |pmid= 11331621 |doi= }}
*{{cite journal | author=Burma S, Chen BP, Murphy M, ''et al.'' |title=ATM phosphorylates histone H2AX in response to DNA double-strand breaks. |journal=J. Biol. Chem. |volume=276 |issue= 45 |pages= 42462-7 |year= 2001 |pmid= 11571274 |doi= 10.1074/jbc.C100466200 }}
*{{cite journal | author=Ward IM, Chen J |title=Histone H2AX is phosphorylated in an ATR-dependent manner in response to replicational stress. |journal=J. Biol. Chem. |volume=276 |issue= 51 |pages= 47759-62 |year= 2002 |pmid= 11673449 |doi= 10.1074/jbc.C100569200 }}
*{{cite journal | author=Deng L, Wang D, de la Fuente C, ''et al.'' |title=Enhancement of the p300 HAT activity by HIV-1 Tat on chromatin DNA. |journal=Virology |volume=289 |issue= 2 |pages= 312-26 |year= 2001 |pmid= 11689053 |doi= 10.1006/viro.2001.1129 }}
*{{cite journal | author=Chen A, Kleiman FE, Manley JL, ''et al.'' |title=Autoubiquitination of the BRCA1*BARD1 RING ubiquitin ligase. |journal=J. Biol. Chem. |volume=277 |issue= 24 |pages= 22085-92 |year= 2002 |pmid= 11927591 |doi= 10.1074/jbc.M201252200 }}
*{{cite journal | author=Zhu H, Hunter TC, Pan S, ''et al.'' |title=Residue-specific mass signatures for the efficient detection of protein modifications by mass spectrometry. |journal=Anal. Chem. |volume=74 |issue= 7 |pages= 1687-94 |year= 2003 |pmid= 12033261 |doi= }}
}}
{{refend}}

{{biochemistry-stub}}

Henri Paul

2008-05-11T15:06:05Z

TestPilot: clean up & spell check , typos fixed: dependants → dependents using AWB

{{Infobox Person
| name = Henri Paul
| image = Henri Paul.jpg
| caption =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1956|7|3}}
| birth_place = [[Lorient|Lorient, Brittany, France]]
| education = Baccalaureat in mathematics and science at the Lyon St. Louis; prizes in classical piano, '''Interests:''' Flying - held a Private Pilot's License from [[27 June]], [[1976]]
| nationality = [[France|French]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|1997|8|31|1956|7|3}}
| death_place = Pont de l'Alma tunnel
| known_for = Crashing the car carrying [[Diana, Princess of Wales]] and [[Dodi Al Fayed]], causing their deaths and his own.
| employer = [[Hôtel Ritz Paris]] (owned by [[Mohamed Al Fayed]])
| occupation = Deputy Head of Security at [[Hôtel Ritz Paris]]
}}

'''Henri Paul''' ([[July 3]], [[1956]]–[[August 31]], [[1997]]) was the Deputy Head of Security at the [[Hôtel Ritz Paris]]. He was the driver at the time of the car accident at the [[Pont de l'Alma]] tunnel, Paris that killed him along with [[Diana, Princess of Wales]] and [[Dodi Fayed]]. [[Bodyguard]] [[Trevor Rees-Jones]] was the only survivor.

Subsequent official investigations conducted by French and British police concluded that the cause of the crash was Henri Paul who was intoxicated with alcohol and driving recklessly at high speed.<ref>''Diana inquest: Henri Paul's parents were told he wasn't drunk'' http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=485544&in_page_id=1770 Retrieved 22/10/07</ref>

==Background==
Henri Paul had worked for the Fayed family for 11 years. He received his private pilot's licence in June [[1974]] and was said to enjoy hiring aircraft to fly over to Lorient. On [[August 28]], [[1997]], two days before the car accident he successfully passed his annual pilot's physical examination. The examination includes a certification which tests for any alcohol problems (including a blood and liver test). Henri Paul's parents claim that this test would have shown if Henri Paul had problems with alcoholism.<ref>''Family of Diana Crash Driver Speak of Their Legal Battle'' http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/today/reports/archive/international/henripaul.shtml Retrieved 21/10/07</ref> The original document ''Certificat D'Aptitude Physique et Mentale'' was shown on ''[[Diana - Geheimnisse der Todesnacht]]'' German-Television [[ZDF]] in 1998. 

The Operation Paget Inquiry, however, received Europe-wide standards for pilots' medicals that were in force in 1997 from the [[Civil Aviation Authority of the United Kingdom|Civil Aviation Authority]] that suggest no specific medical test for alcoholism was undertaken and a self-certification of alcohol problems was required from individual pilots. Henri Paul made no certification of alcohol problems and none were externally apparent to the doctor who examined him. <ref>Chapter 4 of the Operation Paget Report, pages 176 & 373</ref>

As part of security training, Henri Paul was known to have been to [[Stuttgart]], [[Germany]] two times on specialist courses run by [[Mercedes-Benz]] on how to handle their cars; these included anti-terrorist and anti-kidnapping evasion techniques.<ref>''The Driver'' http://www.bbc.co.uk/politics97/diana/endingpaul.html Retrieved 23/10/07</ref>

==The accident==
On the night of [[August 31]], [[1997]] Henri Paul was (reportedly) under the influence of alcohol and trying to elude [[paparazzi]] photographers at high speed (approximately 60mph or double the speed limit) when the [[Mercedes-Benz W140|Mercedes S280]] he was driving crashed into a column supporting the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in [[Paris]], [[France]]. His [[blood alcohol content]] level was subsequently found to be between 1.73 g/L and 1.75 g/L, which is more than three times the legal drink-driving limit under French law. The accuracy and authenticity of the test results is disputed by Paul's parents Jean and Giselle Paul<ref>''Family of Diana Crash Driver Speak of Their Legal Battle'' http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/today/reports/archive/international/henripaul.shtml 21/10/07</ref> and Dodi's father [[Mohamed Al Fayed]].<ref>''Henri Paul's father raises dramatic new questions over Diana's death crash'' http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=487525&in_page_id=1770&ICO=NEWS&ICL=TOPART Retrieved 22/10/07</ref>

==Conspiracy allegations==
===Involvement with national security services===
Allegations have been made about Henri Paul in the years following his death concerning his fitness to drive on the night of the accident and his alleged involvement with Security Services in France, and possibly the UK. The claims were investigated by the [[Metropolitan Police]] in [[Operation Paget]] headed by [[Lord Stevens]] over the course of three years. Chapter four of the investigative report is entirely given to the allegations about Henri Paul.

The conclusions of the 2006 [[Operation Paget]] investigation were that Paul's involvement with the Security Services was limited to low level co-operation with the French [[Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire|DST]] when high profile guests stayed at the Ritz Hotel and he received no payment for this in line with French Government policy. It further noted such involvement with national security services is common among senior security staff at [[upmarket]] hotels in major world cities.

===Personal finances===
It was found after Paul's death he was in possession of a large sum of money on his person and had a large personal fortune that far surpassed his expected income held in fifteen separate bank accounts. It was alleged this could only have been as a result of payment from an illicit source, supposedly a national security service.

According to his best friend, Claude Garrec, the large quantity of cash found in his pockets, FF12,565 (approximately equivalent to £1,250 or US$2,500) could be attributed to a requirement of his job to run errands for wealthy guests at the Ritz Hotel when required. A large quantity of cash would need to be on hand to perform errands at short notice as wealthy people are known to often not carry cash. Paul also received large tips for performing these errands. His mother told of an occasion when Paul received FF5,000 (£500 or US$1,000) as a tip from a relative of an Arab Prince for shopping for some luxury textiles for her. Such four figure tips were not a rare occurrence for him during his eleven years at the Paris Ritz.

[[Operation Paget]] concluded this cash and the money in his bank accounts was most unlikely to have come from any national security service as there was no evidence in his bank accounts of attempts to disguise money coming from a clandestine source and there was no opportunity for him to begin to implement any plan instructed to him in return for payment on the night of the accident. Furthermore, he was a 41 year old single man with no dependents who had worked all his adult life and owned property which he let out to tenants and this was the probable explanation for the FF1,700,000 (approximately £170,000 or US$340,000) that made up his personal wealth at the time of his death. The large number of bank accounts he had his money deposited in is a common occurrence in France, where banks will routinely open several accounts for different purposes, all to serve the one customer. <ref>Chapter 4 of the Operation Paget Report, pages 177-187</ref>

===Personal circumstances and attitude to alcohol===
Friends of Henri Paul testified in statements to the French police that he did not have a remarkably high tolerance for alcohol and was never seen on social occasions to drink for several hours while showing obvious signs of drunkenness.<ref>Chapter 4 of the Operation Paget Report, pages 166-172</ref> In her statement to French police, his medical doctor Dominique Mélo who was also a friend explained: "''Henry drank like everyone else, but not to excess".[ ]"He did not have the clinical stigmata or the behaviour of a chronic alcoholic.''"

Henri Paul's doctor testified that in the two years leading up to his death he had depressive episodes about the break-up of a long term relationship and had sometimes taken to drinking at home outside a social context. She believed he was not alcohol-dependent but he was worried that he might become so and in about June 1996 she prescribed him the [[anti-depressant]] [[Prozac]], which is the trade name for [[fluoxetine]] and an anti-alcoholism medication [[Aotal]], also known as [[Acamprosate]] which causes a dislike of alcohol. Dr Melo said that sometimes he would not take his anti-alcoholism medication so that he could drink in reasonable quantities. An empty packet of Aotal tablets was found in the waste paper basket of Henri Paul's office at the Ritz Hotel. If the blood samples analysed were his, then the absence in them of Aotal means that he could not have taken any for at least a few days or traces of it would have shown up. No traces of the drug were found in any of the samples said to have come from Henri Paul after his death. Traces of the anti-depressants were found in post-mortem examinations of his blood. The inquest revealed that the autopsy also found Henri Paul's liver to be normal with no signs indicating a problem with alcoholism.<ref>[http://www.scottbaker-inquests.gov.uk/hearing_transcripts/031007am.htm parts 25-29 re: Henri Paul's medicaton and blood results]</ref>

===Switching of blood sample===
Due to the high level of carbon monoxide found in a blood sample attributed to Paul, allegations were made this sample had been switched with one from a suicide victim.

[[Operation Paget]] investigated the reliability of the post-mortem examinations using [[DNA]] comparison of the disputed blood sample by comparing a DNA profile from it with Henri Paul's mother's DNA profile. The test produced a result that there was maternal relationship between the two profiles to a probability of 99.9997%. The very high level of carbon monoxide (20.7%) in this blood sample was attributed to the area of the body it was taken from and to his living in a built up urban area and smoking of small cigars in the hours leading up to his death.<ref>Chapter 4 of the Operation Paget Report, pages 373-380</ref>

===Recent developments===
It was disclosed that in November 2006 Lord Stevens had a meeting with Henri Paul's parents and told them that their son was not drunk, and was found to have indisputably had two alcoholic drinks (this was verified by bodyguards Trevor Rees-Jones and Kieran Wingfield, two barmen in the bar, till records from the hotel bar and a drink bill ). Five weeks later the report stated that Henri Paul was twice over the British drink-drive limit and three times over the French limit. An expert cited in the report estimated that Paul had sunk the equivalent of ten small glasses of [[Ricard]], his favourite [[anise]]-flavoured French [[aperitif]], before driving. This contradicted Lord Steven's previous comments.<ref>[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/femail/article.html?in_article_id=483701&in_page_id=1879]
Daily Mail [[25 September]] [[2007]], Retrieved [[19 October]] [[2007]]</ref><ref>Chapter 4 of the Operation Paget Report, pages 219-221, a drink bill and 4 eyewitness-reports: "''Henri Paul'' (75 kg) ''ordered another Ricard'' (45%). (Barman) Philippe Doucin served him a'' (second) ''5cl measure ...''"(page 221); 5cl Ricard + 5cl Ricard = 0,1 litre = 0.43 g/L = 0,43‰ (permille) [[blood alcohol content]] level</ref>

An unexplained prescription only drug called [[albendazole]] (or [[Zentel]]) used to treat worm infestations was also found in hair samples from Henri Paul, this drug is said to be commonly given to homeless people living on the streets. Henri Paul's doctor denies prescribing this drug to Henri Paul.<ref>[http://www.scottbaker-inquests.gov.uk/hearing_transcripts/031007am.htm 'Zentel' - sections 32-34] accessed 01/11/07</ref>

Another issue raised in court by [[Lord Justice Scott Baker]] was the level of [[carbon monoxide]] found in one blood sample, which if true would have shown Henri Paul noticeably unwell. He told the jury: "You may conclude that there are some unsatisfactory features about aspects of the sampling and recording procedures".[ ]"Some of the results are puzzling."<ref>''Henri Paul blood results'' http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=485429&in_page_id=1770 Retrieved 21/10/07</ref>

===Fiat Uno===
There is also evidence that the Mercedes Henri Paul was driving that night was clipped by another car. The mystery car left paint scratches on the side of the Mercedes along with shards of plastic glass on the road. This was later identified as coming from a [[Fiat Uno]]. Despite searches by French police this car was not found. Mohamed Al Fayed alleges that the owner of the Fiat Uno was Jean-Paul 'James' Andanson, a French photojournalist. He had been one of the paparazzi photographing Diana and Dodi earlier in the summer, and Al Fayed claims he was working for the British secret service. Andanson, who had an alibi for the night of the crash, sold the Fiat Uno in November 1997.<ref>''Separating fact from fiction in the great Diana conspiracy'' http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2602590.ece Retrieved 21/10/07</ref> He committed [[suicide]] in May 2000, his body was found in a black, burnt-out BMW in a forest in the south of France.<ref>''The main players in a tragic story: what we now know'' http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/article2076155.ece Retrieved 22/10/07</ref> An official investigation concluded that he had committed suicide. Lord Baker said there was no evidence linking Andanson with the secret service.<ref>''Separating fact from fiction in the great Diana conspiracy'' http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2602590.ece Retrieved 21/10/07</ref>

==Television dramatisation==
Henri Paul was featured in the 2007 [[television]] [[docudrama]] ''[[Diana: Last Days of a Princess]]''.

== See also ==
* [[Death of Diana, Princess of Wales]]
* [[Operation Paget]]
* [[List of people who died in road accidents]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.theroyalist.net/content/view/1534/2/ Download: Lord Stevens' 832-page Operation Paget Report Into The Deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, Dodi Al Fayed & Henri Paul. Chapter 4 of the report is devoted to Henri Paul] [[14 December]] [[2006]]
* [http://www.britannia.com/news/articles/driver9-23.html Unknown secrets about Henri Paul]
* [http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9709/06/diana.probe/index.html Funeral for Diana's driver]
* [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,10654-2507339,00.html The life and poignant death of Diana's driver]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paul, Henri}}
[[Category:1956 births]]
[[Category:1997 deaths]]
[[Category:French people]]
[[Category:Diana, Princess of Wales]]
[[Category:Road accident deaths in France]]
[[Category:Conspiracy theories]]

[[nl:Henri Paul]]
[[pt:Henri Paul]]

Schwarze

2008-04-16T08:56:09Z

TestPilot: clean up & spell check , typos fixed: a a → a using AWB

{{pp-semi-protected|small=yes}}

{{redirect|Black man|the novel|Black Man}}
{{race}}
'''Black people''' is a term which is usually used to define a [[Race (classification of human beings)|racial group]] of [[Human|human beings]] with darker [[skin color]]. Some definitions of the term include only people of relatively recent [[Africa]]n descent (see [[African diaspora]]), while others extend the term to any of the populations characterized by dark skin color, a definition that also includes certain populations in [[Oceania]] and [[Southeast Asia]].<ref>Various isolated populations in Southeast Asia sometimes classified as black include the [[Austronesian]]s and [[Papuan]]s, the [[Andamanese]] islanders, the [[Semang]] people of the [[Malay peninsula]], the [[Aeta]] people of [[Luzon]], and some other small populations of indigenous peoples. </ref><ref>black. (n.d.). ''Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)''. Retrieved [[April 13]], [[2007]], from [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/black Dictionary.com website]</ref>

==The human race==
{{offtopic}}
[[Image:Kenyan man 2.jpg|200px|right|thumb|A [[Maasai]] man in [[Kenya]]]]
{{main|Human|Race and genetics}}
In the early twentieth century many scientists held the view that biologically distinct races existed. The races corresponded to the major continental regions of [[Africa]], [[Europe]], [[Asia]] and [[the Americas]]. These races were distinguished from each other based on a few visible traits such as skin color and hair texture. Black people were largely defined by their dark skin and sometimes curly hair. The belief at that time was that not only did the races differ in appearance but in behavior, intellect and origins. Some scientists such as [[Carleton S. Coon]] believed the different races to have evolved separately over millions of years and that racial differences were thus extremely significant.

Today most scholars have abandoned these views and see race as a social construct with no biological basis. Breakthroughs in genetics and the mapping of the [[human genome]] in the late twentieth century have helped dispel many of the earlier myths about race. At least 99.9% of any one person's [[DNA]] is exactly the same as any other person's, regardless of ethnicity.<ref>{{cite journal|last = Ho|first = Mae-Wan |authorlink = Mae-Wan Ho|title = The Human Genome Map, the Death of Genetic Determinism and Beyond |journal = ISIS Report|date= 14 February 2001|url=http://www.greens.org/s-r/25/25-19.html|publisher = The Institute of Science in Society}}</ref> Of the 0.1% variation, there is an 8% variation between ethnic groups within a race, such as between the [[French people|French]] and the [[Dutch people|Dutch]]. On average, only 7% of all human genetic variation lies between major human races such as those of Africa, Asia, Europe, and [[Oceania]]. 85% of all genetic variation lies within any local group. The proportion of genetic variation within continental groups (~93%) is therefore far greater than that between the various continental groups (~7%).<ref>{{cite journal|last = Pearce|first = Neil|coauthors = et al|title = Genetics, race, ethnicity, and health|journal = British Medical Journal|volume = 328|pages = 1070-1072|date= 1 May 2004| url =http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/328/7447/1070?etoc | doi = 10.1136/bmj.328.7447.1070 |publisher = BMJ Publishing Group Ltd}}</ref> Or to put it another way, "any two individuals within a particular population are about as different genetically as any two people selected from any two populations in the world"<ref>''Genetic Similarities Within and Between Human Populations'' (2007) by D. J. Witherspoon, S. Wooding, A. R. Rogers, E. E. Marchani, W. S. Watkins, M. A. Batzer, and L. B. Jorde*. ''Genetics'' '''176'''(1): 351–359. {{doi|10.1534/genetics.106.067355}}. Retrieved 18 August 2007.</ref>

Because of these facts, there is general agreement among biologists that human racial differences are too small to qualify races as separate [[sub-species]]. However there is still much controversy regarding the significance of these small differences. For example, some scholars argue that even though there is more variation within populations than between them, the small between-population variation may have implications in medical science.<ref>{{cite news| last = Wade| first = Nicholas| title = Race Is Seen as Real Guide to Track Roots of Disease| publisher = New York Times| date= July 30, 2002| url = http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9C01E0DC1038F933A05754C0A9649C8B63}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| last = Lewontin| first = R.C.| authorlink =Richard Lewontin| title = Confusions About Human Races| url=http://raceandgenomics.ssrc.org/Lewontin/}}</ref>

===Single origin hypothesis===
{{See also|Recent single origin hypothesis}}
Based from genetic evidence, contemporary [[world population]] is assumed to be descended from a relatively small population of ''[[Homo sapiens]]'' living in Africa some 70,000 years ago — in [[population bottleneck]] scenarios, this group may have been as small as 2,000 individuals.<ref>{{cite news | last =Whitehouse | first =David | author-link=David Whitehouse| title = When humans faced extinction| publisher = BBC| date= 9 June, 2003| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/2975862.stm}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title = Brush with extinction| publisher =ABC News Online| url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/indepth/featureitems/s876996.htm}}</ref> The differences in physical appearance between the various peoples of the world is as a result of adaptations to the different environments encountered by various populations subsequent to this split.

The African population exhibits a great degree of physical variation. Even though most sub-Saharan Africans share a skin color that is dark relative to many other peoples of the world, they do differ significantly in physical appearance. Examples include the [[Dinka]], some of the tallest people in the world and the [[Mbuti]], the shortest people in the world. Others such as the [[Khoisan]] people have an [[epicanthal fold]] similar to the peoples of Central Asia. A recent study found that Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest skin color diversity within population.<ref>
{{cite journal| last = Relethford| first = J.H.| title = Human Skin Color Diversity Is Highest in Sub-Saharan African Population| journal = Human Biology| volume = 72| pages = 773-80|url =http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=11126724| date = October 2000}}</ref>

==Dark skin==
{{further|[[Human skin color]] }}
[[Image:Albino boy tanzania.jpg|thumb|left|A black woman and her [[albinistic]] son from [[Tanzania]] ]]

The evolution of dark skin is tied with the question of loss of body hair.
By 1.2 million years ago, all people having descendants today had exactly the receptor protein of today's Africans; their skin was dark, and the intense sun killed off the progeny with any lighter skin that resulted from mutational variation in the receptor protein.<ref>Rogers, Alan R., David Iltis, and Stephen Wooding. 2004. "Genetic variation at the MC1R locus and the time since loss of human body hair." Current Anthropology 45 (1): 105-108.</ref> This is significantly earlier than the [[speciation]] of ''[[Homo sapiens]]'' from ''[[Homo erectus]]'' some 250,000 years ago.

Dark skin helps protect against [[skin cancer]] that develops as a result of [[ultraviolet|ultraviolet light]] radiation, causing mutations in the skin. Furthermore, dark skin prevents an essential B vitamin, [[folate]], from being destroyed. Therefore, in the absence of modern medicine and diet, a person with dark skin in the tropics would live longer, be more healthy and more likely to reproduce than a person with light skin. White Australians have some of the highest rates of skin cancer as evidence of this expectation.<ref>{{cite web| title = Australia Struggles with Skin Cancer| url=http://www.cancer.org/docroot/NWS/content/NWS_1_1x_Australia_Struggles_with_Skin_Cancer.asp}}</ref> Conversely, as dark skin prevents sunlight from penetrating the skin it hinders the production of [[vitamin D|vitamin D<sub>3</sub>]]. Hence when humans migrated to less sun-intensive regions in the north, low [[vitamin D|vitamin D<sub>3</sub>]] levels became a problem and lighter skin colors started appearing. The people of Europe, who have low levels of [[melanin]], naturally have an almost colorless skin pigmentation, especially when untanned. This low level of pigmentation allows the blood vessels to become visible and gives the characteristic pale pink color of white people. The difference in skin color between black and whites is however a minor genetic difference accounting for just one letter in 3.1 billion letters of DNA.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/15/AR2005121501728_pf.html "Scientists find DNA change accounting for white skin"]. ''[[Washington Post]]''.</ref>

Some scholars argue that based on cave paintings, Europeans may have been dark-skinned as late as 13,000 years ago. The painters depicted themselves as having darker complexions than the animals they hunted.<ref>[http://backintyme.com/essays/?p=4 Paleo-etiology of human skin tone]</ref> This hypothesis finds support from genetics with the discovery of the [[SLC24A5]] gene in 2005. The mutation resulting in light skin is currently estimated to have originated among Europeans some 6,000 to 12,000 years ago.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Gibbons A |title=American Association of Physical Anthropologists meeting. European skin turned pale only recently, gene suggests |journal=Science |volume=316 |issue=5823 |pages=364 |year=2007 |pmid=17446367 |doi=10.1126/science.316.5823.364a |url=http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/4784/eurospaleonlyrecentlypu0.jpg}}</ref>

==In Sub-Saharan Africa==
{{see|Demographics of Africa}}
[[Image:Sub-Saharan-Africa.png|right|thumb|Sub-Saharan Africa is colored green, while North Africa is gray.]]
[[Sub-Saharan Africa]] is the term used to describe African countries located south of the [[Sahara]]. It is used as a cultural and ecological distinction from [[North Africa]]. Because the indigenous people of this region are primarily dark skinned it is sometimes used as a [[politically correct]] term or [[euphemism]] for "Black Africa".<ref>{{cite journal| first = Lansana | last = Keita| title = Race, Identity and Africanity: A Reply to Eboussi Boulaga| journal = CODESRIA Bulletin, Nos | volume = 1 & 2| pages = 16| date= 2004| publisher = Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa}}</ref> Some criticize the use of the term in defining the part of Africa inhabited by black people because the Sahara cuts across countries such as [[Mauritania]], [[Mali]], [[Niger]], [[Chad]], and [[Sudan]], leaving some parts of them in North Africa and some in Sub-Saharan Africa.

[[Owen 'Alik Shahadah]] argues that the term sub-Saharan Africa has racist overtones:

{{quote|Sub-Saharan Africa is a racist byword for "primitive", a place which has escaped advancement. Hence, we see statements like “no written languages exist in Sub-Saharan Africa.” “Ancient Egypt was not a Sub-Saharan African civilization.” Sub-Sahara serves as an exclusion, which moves, jumps and slides around to suit negative generalization of Africa.<ref name=Shahadah/>}}

However, some black Africans prefer to be culturally distinguished from those who live in the north of the continent.<ref>{{cite book| last = Keith B. | first = Richburg| title = Out of America: A Black Man Confronts Africa| publisher = Harvest/HBJ Book| date = Reprint edition (July 1, 1998)| isbn = 0156005832 }}</ref>

===South Africa===
[[Image:Coloured-family.jpg|200px|thumb|left|Extended [[Coloured]] family with roots in [[Cape Town]], [[Kimberley]] and [[Pretoria]].]]

In [[South Africa]] during the [[History of South Africa in the apartheid era|apartheid era]], the population was classified into four groups: ''Black'', ''White'', ''[[Asia]]n'' (mostly [[India]]n), and ''[[Coloured]]''.  The Coloured group included people of mixed [[Bantu]], [[Khoisan]], and [[European ethnic groups|European]] descent (with some [[Cape Malays|Malay]] ancestry, especially in the [[Western Cape]]). The Coloured definition occupied an intermediary position between the Black and White definitions in South Africa.

The [[apartheid]] bureaucracy devised complex (and often arbitrary) criteria in the [[Population Registration Act]] to determine who belonged in which group. Minor officials administered tests to enforce the classifications. When it was unclear from a person's physical appearance whether a person was to be considered Colored or Black, the "pencil test" was employed. This involved inserting a pencil in a person's hair to determine if the hair was kinky enough for the pencil to get stuck.<ref>{{cite news | last = Nullis| first = Clare | title = Township tourism booming in South Africa| publisher = The Associated Press| date= 2007| url = http://www.canada.com/topics/travel/features/story.html?id=59ec6285-c9fb-41ab-93f9-419f62733f07&k=67896}}</ref>

During the apartheid era, the Coloureds were oppressed and discriminated against. However, they did have limited rights and overall had slightly better socioeconomic conditions than Blacks. In the post-apartheid era the government's policies of [[affirmative action]] have favored Blacks over Coloureds. Some South Africans categorized as Black openly state that Coloureds did not suffer as much as they did during apartheid. The popular saying by Coloured South Africans to illustrate this dilemma is:

{{quote|Not white enough under apartheid and not black enough under the ANC ([[African National Congress]])}}

Other than by appearance, Coloureds can be distinguished from Blacks by language. Most speak [[Afrikaans]] or English as a [[first language]], as opposed to [[Bantu languages]] such as [[Zulu language|Zulu]] or [[Xhosa]]. They also tend to have more European-sounding names than Bantu names.<ref>{{cite news | last = du Preez| first = Max| title = Coloureds - the most authentic SA citizens| publisher = The Star|date=April 13, 2006| url = http://www.thestar.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=3201857}}</ref>

==In the Middle East==
{{See also|Afro-Arab}}
Black African and [[Near East]]ern peoples have interacted since prehistoric times.<ref>[http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=70522 Mauritania: Fair elections haunted by racial imbalance]</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6510675.stm Remembering East African slave raids]</ref> Some historians estimate that as many as 14 million black slaves crossed the [[Red Sea]], [[Indian Ocean]], and [[Sahara Desert]] from 650 to 1900 CE.<ref>[http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-85410331.html The Unknown Slavery: In the Muslim world, that is -- and it's not over]</ref>

The [[Afro-Asiatic languages]], which include [[Semitic languages]] such as [[Arabic]] and [[Hebrew]], are believed by some scholars to have originated in [[Ethiopia]].<ref>[http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0011-3204%28199802%2939%3A1%3C139%3ATALPAI%3E2.0.CO%3B2-J&size=LARGE&origin=JSTOR-enlargePage The Afroasiatic Language Phylum: African in Origin, or Asian?] Daniel F. Mc Call. (JSTOR)</ref> This is because the region has very diverse language groups in close geographic proximity, often considered a telltale sign for a linguistic geographic origin.

In more recent times, about 1000 CE, interactions between blacks and Arabs resulted in the incorporation of several Arabic words into [[Swahili]], which became a useful ''[[lingua franca]]'' for merchants. Some of this because of the slave trade; the history of [[Islam and slavery]] shows that the [[Madh'hab|major juristic schools]] traditionally accepted the institution of [[slavery]].<ref name="Lewis">Lewis 1994, [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/med/lewis1.html Ch.1]</ref> As a result, Arab influence spread along the east coast of Africa and to some extent into the interior (see [[East Africa]]). [[Timbuktu]] was a trading outpost that linked [[west Africa]] with [[Berber people|Berber]], Arab, and Jewish traders throughout the [[Arab World]]. As a result of these interactions many Arab people in the [[Middle East]] have black ancestry and many blacks on the east coast of Africa and along the Sahara have Arab ancestry.<ref>[http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1180338 Extensive Female-Mediated Gene Flow from Sub-Saharan Africa into Near Eastern Arab Populations]</ref>

According to Dr. Carlos Moore, resident scholar at Brazil's [[Universidade do Estado da Bahia]], Afro-multiracials in the Arab world self-identify in ways that resemble [[Latin America]]. He claims that black-looking Arabs, much like black-looking [[Latin Americans]], consider themselves white because they have some distant white ancestry.<ref>{{cite web| last = Musselman| first = Anson | title = The Subtle Racism of Latin America| publisher = UCLA International Institute| url=http://www.international.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=4125}}</ref>

Moore also claims that a film about [[Egyptian President]] [[Anwar Sadat]] had to be canceled when Sadat discovered that an [[African-American]] had been cast to play him. In fact, the 1983 television movie ''Sadat'', starring [[Louis Gossett, Jr.]], was not canceled. The [[government of Egypt|Egyptian government]] refused to let the drama air in Egypt, partially on the grounds of the casting of Gossett.<ref>[http://www.hollywood.com/celebrity/Louis_Gossett_Jr/192411 Louis Gosset Jr.] Hollywood.com</ref> The objections, however, did not come from Sadat, who had been assassinated two years earlier.

Sadat's mother was a black [[Sudan]]ese woman and his father was a lighter-skinned [[Egyptians|Egyptian]]. In response to an advertisement for an acting position he remarked, "I am not white but I am not exactly black either. My blackness is tending to reddish".<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=PoW4pO4q9VwC&printsec=frontcover#PPP1,M1 Anwar Sadat: Visionary Who Dared By Joseph Finklestone] pages 5-7,31 ISBN 0714634875</ref>

[[Fathia Nkrumah]] was another Egyptian intimately tied with black Africa. She was the late wife of [[Ghana]]ian revolutionary [[Kwame Nkrumah]], whose marriage was seen as helping plant the seeds of cooperation between Egypt and other African countries as they struggled for independence from European colonization, which in turn helped advance the formation of the [[African Union]].<ref>[http://ausummit-accra.org.gh/index1.php?linkid=289&adate=04%2F07%2F2007&archiveid=140&page=1 African Union Summit]</ref>

In general, Arab had a more positive view of black women than black men, even if the women were of slave origin. More black women were enslaved than men, and, because the [[Qur'an]] was interpreted to permit [[Ma malakat aymanukum and sex|sexual relations between a male master and his female slave]] outside of marriage,<ref>See [[Tahfeem ul Qur'an]] by [[Maududi|Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi]], Vol. 2 pp. 112-113 footnote 44; Also see commentary on verses {{Quran-usc-range|23|1|6}}: Vol. 3, notes 7-1, p. 241; 2000, Islamic Publications</ref><ref>[[Tafsir ibn Kathir]] 4:24</ref> many [[mixed race]] children resulted. When an enslaved woman became pregnant with her Arab captor's child, she became “umm walad” or “mother of a child”, a status that granted her privileged rights. The child would have prospered from the wealth of the father and been given rights of inheritance.<ref name="Arab Slave Trade">{{cite web|url=http://www.arabslavetrade.com|publisher="[[Owen 'Alik Shahadah]]"|title="Slavery in Arabia"|}}</ref> Because of [[patrilineality]], the children were born free and sometimes even became successors to their ruling fathers, as was the case with Sultan [[Ahmad al-Mansur]], (whose mother was a [[Fulani]] concubine), who ruled [[Morocco]] from 1578-1608. Such tolerance, however, was not extended to wholly black persons, even when technically "free," and the notion that to be black meant to be a slave became a common belief.<ref>{{cite web| last = Hunwick| first = John| title = Arab Views of Black Africans and Slavery| url=http://www.yale.edu/glc/events/race/Hunwick.pdf}}</ref> The term "[[Abd (Arabic)|abd]]," ({{lang-ar
|عبد}},) "slave," remains a common term for black people in the Middle East, often though not always derogatory.<ref>{{cite news|| first = Theola
| last = Labbé
| coauthors = Omar Fekeiki
| title = A Legacy Hidden in Plain Sight
| work = Washington Post
| url = http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A6645-2004Jan10
| date = 2004-1-11
| accessdate = 2008-1-29
}}</ref>

==In the Americas==
Approximately 12 million Africans were shipped to [[the Americas]] during the [[Atlantic slave trade]] from 1492 to 1888. Today their descendants number approximately 150 million.<ref>[http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/galci/Archive.htm "Community Outreach" Seminar on Planning Process for SANTIAGO +5 ], ''Global Afro-Latino and Caribbean Initiative'', February 4, 2006</ref> Many have a multiracial background of African, Amerindian, European and Asian ancestry. The various regions developed complex social conventions with which their multi-ethnic populations were classified.

===United States===
[[Image:Malcolmxmartinlutherking.jpg|thumb|right|180px|[[Martin Luther King, Jr.]] (left) and [[Malcolm X]] (right) at the [[United States Capitol|U. S. Capitol]] on [[March 26]], [[1964]].]]
{{main|African American}}
{{see also|African Immigration to the United States}}

In the first 200 years that blacks had been in the [[United States]], they commonly referred to themselves as Africans. In Africa, people primarily identified themselves by tribe or ethnic group (closely allied to language) and not by skin color. Individuals would be [[Asante]], [[Yoruba]], [[Kikongo]] or [[Wolof]]. But when Africans were brought to [[the Americas]] they were forced to give up their tribal affiliations for fear of uprisings. The result was the Africans had to intermingle with other Africans from different tribal groups. This is significant as Africans came from a vast geographic region, the [[West Africa]]n coastline stretching from [[Senegal]] to [[Angola]] and in some cases from the south east coast such as [[Mozambique]]. A new identity and culture was born that incorporated elements of the various tribal groups and of European cultural heritage, resulting in fusions such as the [[Black church]] and [[AAVE|Black English]]. This new identity was now based on skin color and African ancestry rather than any one tribal group.<ref name=Shahadah>{{cite web| last = Shahadah| first = Owen 'Alik| authorlink =Owen 'Alik Shahadah| title =Linguistics for a new African reality| url=http://www.africanholocaust.net/news_ah/language%20new%20reality.htm}}</ref>

In March of 1807, [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|Britain]], which largely controlled the Atlantic, declared [[Abolition of the Slave Trade Act|the trans-atlantic slave trade illegal]], as did the United States. (The latter prohibition took effect [[January 1]], [[1808]], the earliest date on which [[United States Congress|Congress]] had the power to do so under [[wikisource:Constitution of the United States of America#Section 9|Article I, Section 9]] of the [[United States Constitution]].)

By that time, the majority of blacks were U.S.-born, so use of the term "African" became problematic. Though initially a source of pride, many blacks feared its continued use would be a hindrance to their fight for full citizenship in the US. They also felt that it would give ammunition to those who were advocating repatriating blacks back to Africa. In 1835 black leaders called upon black Americans to remove the title of "African" from their institutions and replace it with "[[Negro]]" or "Colored American". A few institutions however elected to keep their historical names such as [[African Methodist Episcopal Church]]. "Negro" and "colored" remained the popular terms until the late 1960s.<ref>[http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/1594200831/ African American Journeys to Africa page63-64]</ref>

The term ''black'' was used throughout but not frequently as it carried a certain stigma.
In his 1963 "[[I Have a Dream]]" speech,<ref>{{cite video|url=http://video.google.com/url?docid=1732754907698549493&esrc=sr1&ev=v&q=I+Have+a+Dream&vidurl=http://video.google.com/videoplay%3Fdocid%3D1732754907698549493%26q%3DI%2BHave%2Ba%2BDream&usg=AL29H20jaXzESJi0-5ByuawvRj8e-fNr-w| people = Martin Luther King, Jr.| title = I Have a Dream| medium = Google Video| location = Washington, D.C.|date=August 28, 1963 }}</ref> [[Martin Luther King, Jr.]] uses the terms ''Negro'' 15 times and ''black'' 4 times. Each time he uses ''black'' it is in parallel construction with ''white'' (e.g., black men and white men).<ref>{{cite journal| last = Tom W.| first = Smith| title = Changing Racial Labels: From "Colored" to "Negro" to "Black" to "African American"| journal = The Public Opinion Quarterly| volume = 56| pages = 496-514| url=http://www.soc.iastate.edu/soc522a/PDF%20readings/Smith.pdf|date = Winter, 1992| publisher = Oxford University Press.}}</ref> With the successes of the [[African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955-1968)|civil rights movement]] a new term was needed to break from the past and help shed the reminders of legalized discrimination. In place of ''Negro'', ''black'' was promoted as standing for racial pride, militancy and power. Some of the turning points included the use of the term "[[Black Power]]" by Kwame Toure ([[Stokely Carmichael]]) and the release of James Brown's song "[[Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud]]".

In 1988 [[Jesse Jackson]] urged Americans to use the term [[African American]] because the term has a historical cultural base. Since then African American and black have essentially a coequal status. There is still much controversy over which term is more appropriate. Some strongly reject the term African American in preference for black citing that they have little connection with Africa. Others believe the term black is inaccurate because African Americans have a variety of skin tones.<ref>{{cite news| last = McWhorter| first = John H.| title = Why I'm Black, Not African American| publisher = Los Angeles Times|date=September 8, 2004| url = http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/_latimes-why_im_black.htm}}</ref> Surveys show that when interacting with each other African Americans prefer the term black, as it is associated with intimacy and familiarity. The term "African American" is preferred for public and formal use.<ref>{{cite book| last = Miller| first = Pepper| coauthors = Herb Kemp| title = What's Black About? Insights to Increase Your Share of a Changing African-American Market| publisher = Paramount Market Publishing, Inc| date= 2006| isbn = 0972529098}}</ref> The appropriateness of this term is further confused, however, by increases in black immigrants from [[African immigration to the United States|Africa]] the Caribbean and Latin America. The more recent immigrants, may sometimes view themselves, and be viewed, as culturally distinct from native descendants of African slaves.<ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE5DB1F3EF93AA1575BC0A9629C8B63 "'African American' Becomes a Term for Debate"], New York Times, August 29, 2004.</ref>

The [[Race (United States Census)|U.S. census race definitions]] says a black is a person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "Black, African Am., or Negro," or who provide written entries such as African American, Afro American, [[Kenyan]], [[Nigerian]], or [[Haitian]]. However, the [[Census Bureau]] notes that these classifications are socio-political constructs and should not be interpreted as scientific or anthropological.<ref>[http://www.census.gov/mso/www/c2000basics/00Basics.pdf 2000 US Census basics]</ref>

A considerable portion of the [[U.S. population]] identified as ''black'' actually have some [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]] or [[European American]] ancestry. For instance, genetic studies of African American people show an ancestry that is on average 17-18% European.<ref>[http://www.isteve.com/2002_How_White_Are_Blacks.htm How White Are Blacks? How Black Are Whites? by Steve Sailer]</ref>

====One drop rule====
Historically the United States used a [[colloquial]] term, the ''[[one drop rule]]'', to designate a black as any person with any known African ancestry.<ref name=Davis>{{cite web| last = James| first = F. Davis| title = Who is Black? One Nation's Definition| url=http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/jefferson/mixed/onedrop.html| publisher = [[PBS]]}}</ref> The one drop rule was virtually unique to the United States and was applied almost exclusively to blacks. Outside of the US, definitions of who is black vary from country to country but generally, multiracial people are not required by society to identify themselves as black (cf. [[mulatto]] and related terms). The most significant consequence of the one drop rule was that many African Americans who had significant European ancestry, whose appearance was very European, would identify themselves as black.

The one drop rule may have originated as a means of increasing the number of black slaves<ref>[[Clarence Page]], [http://www.pbs.org/newshour/essays/page_5-1.html A Credit to His Races], ''[[The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer]]'', [[May 1]], [[1997]].</ref> and been maintained as an attempt to keep the white race pure,<ref>[http://backintyme.com/essays/?p=25 "Presenting the Triumph of the One-Drop Rule" ] by Frank Sweet</ref> but one of its [[unintended consequence]]s was uniting the African American community and preserving an African identity.<ref name=Davis/> Some of the most prominent civil rights activists were multiracial but yet stood up for equality for all. It is said that [[W.E.B. Du Bois]] could have easily passed for white yet he became the preeminent scholar in Afro-American studies.<ref>{{cite news| last = Nakao| first = Annie| title = Play explores corrosive prejudice within black community| publisher = San Francisco Chronicle| date=January 28 2004| url =http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2004/01/28/DDGL74I9TF1.DTL}}</ref> He chose to spend his final years in Africa and immigrated to [[Ghana]] where he died aged 95. [[Booker T. Washington]] had a white father,<ref>{{cite web| title = Mixed Historical Figures| url=http://www.mixedfolks.com/historical.htm}}</ref> and [[Malcolm X]] and [[Louis Farrakhan]] both had at least one white grandparent. That said, [[colorism]], or intraracial discrimination based on skin tone, does affect the black community. It is a sensitive issue or a taboo subject. Open discussions are often labeled as "airing dirty laundry".<ref>{{cite web| last = Crawford| first = Larry D.| title = Racism, Colorism and Power| url=http://www.nbufront.org/html/FRONTalView/ArticlesPapers/Crawford_RacismColorismPower.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal| first = Trina | last = Jones| title =Shades of Brown: The Law of Skin Color| journal = Duke Law Journal| volume = 49 | pages = 1487|url=http://www.law.duke.edu/shell/cite.pl?49+Duke+L.+J.+1487| date = October 1972| publisher = [[Duke University School of Law]]}}</ref>

Many people in the United States are rejecting the one drop rule and are questioning whether a person with one black parent should be considered black or [[Multiracial|biracial]]. Although politician [[Barack Obama]] self-identifies as black, 55 percent of whites and 61 percent of Hispanics classified him as biracial instead of black after being told that his mother is white. Blacks were less likely to acknowledge a multiracial category, with 66% labeling Obama as black.<ref>{{cite news| title = Obama and 'one drop of non-white blood'| publisher = BBS News|date=April 13 2007| url = http://bbsnews.net/article.php/20061222014017231}}</ref> Forty-two percent of African-Americans described [[Tiger Woods]] as black, as did 7% of white Americans.<ref>{{cite web| last = White| first =John Kennet| title =Barack Obama and the Politics of Race| place =Catholic University of America| url=http://www.mindstorminteractive.net/clients/idonline/index.htm}}</ref>

====Blackness====
The concept of [[blackness]] in the United States has been described as the degree to which one associates themselves with mainstream [[African American culture]] and values. This concept is not so much about skin color or tone but more about culture and behavior. [[Spike Lee]] may be considered authentically black by some for his contribution to black consciousness through film. [[Muhammad Ali]] may also be considered authentically black as a global symbol of the black identity.
[[Image:ObamaBarack.jpg|thumb|right|150px|[[Barack Obama]]]]
Blackness can be contrasted with "[[acting white]]" in which black individuals are said to behave more like mainstream white Americans than fellow blacks. This includes choice in fashion, the way one speaks or listening to stereotypically white music.<ref>[http://www.kent.edu/Magazine/Spring2007/ActingWhite.cfm Acting White. By Melissa Edler] Kent State Magazine.</ref>

The notion of blackness can also be extended to non-blacks. [[Toni Morrison]] once described [[Bill Clinton]] as the first black president.<ref>[http://dir.salon.com/story/books/int/2002/02/20/clinton/index.html Blacks and Bill Clinton]</ref> This was because of his warm relations with African Americans, his poor upbringing and also because he is a jazz musician. [[Christopher Hitchens]] was offended by the notion of Clinton as the first black president noting "we can still define blackness by the following symptoms: alcoholic mothers, under-the-bridge habits...the tendency to sexual predation and shameless perjury about the same"<ref>No One Left to Lie to by Christopher Hitchens, 1999, pg 47</ref> Some black activists were also offended, claiming Clinton used his knowledge of black culture to exploit blacks like no other president ever has<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go1637/is_200204/ai_n6880693 Find Articles 404 File not found]</ref> for political gain, while not serving black interests. They note his lack of action during the [[Rwanda genocide]],<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1182431,00.html US chose to ignore Rwandan genocide | Special reports | Guardian Unlimited]</ref> his [[welfare reform]] which led to the worst [[child poverty]] since the 1960s<ref>[http://www.wsws.org/articles/1999/jun1999/welf-j02.shtml Clinton's welfare reform has increased child poverty]</ref> along with the fact that number of blacks in jail increased during his administration.<ref>[http://www.counterpunch.org/gray1207.html Kevin Alexander Gray: Soul Brother? Clinton and Black Americans]</ref>

The question of blackness arose in the early stages of [[Barack Obama]]'s campaign for the [[United States presidential election, 2008|2008 presidential campaign]]. Some have questioned whether Obama, who is commonly described as the first black candidate with a serious chance of winning the presidency, is black enough, since his mother is [[white American]]. Obama refers to himself as black and African American using both terms interchangeably.<ref>[http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/02/11/60minutes/main2458530.shtml Transcript Excerpt: Sen. Barack Obama, Read A Transcript Excerpt Of Steve Kroft’s Interview With Sen. Obama - CBS News]</ref> Polls at the start of the campaign showed [[Hillary Clinton]] to be more popular amongst black voters than Obama. On the other hand, much of Obama's support is derived from white liberals.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/15/AR2007021501270.html Black Like Me?]</ref><ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/02/27/obama.black.vote/ Is black America ready to embrace Obama?]</ref><ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/opinion/11sun3.html?ex=1182916800&en=dcb064089b4834fe&ei=5070 Decoding the Debate Over the Blackness of Barack Obama] New York Times</ref> By early 2008 however, Obama's support in the black community began surging, with polls showing him leading Clinton by 50 points among black men. Even among black women (once Clinton's most loyal constituency), polls show Obama leading Clinton by 11 points.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/01/18/poll.2008/index.html?section=cnn_latest Poll: Obama makes big gains among black voters - CNN.com]</ref> Ultimately Obama would go on to capature about 90% of the black vote against Hillary Clinton.<ref>[http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080223/ap_on_el_pr/superdelegates_4]</ref>Illinois state senate president Emil Jones expressed anger when Bill Clinton disparaged Obama, noting that it was black people who saved Bill Clinton's presidency during impeachment. The Clintons owe the African American community, he argued, not the reverse, and suggested that perhaps to return the favour, the Clintons should support Obama.<ref>[http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0108/7845.html Racial tensions roil Democratic race - Ben Smith - Politico.com]</ref>

===Race in Brazil===
{{main|Race in Brazil}}
[[Image:Capoeira-in-the-street-2.jpg|thumb|200px|left|[[Capoeira]], an Afro-Brazilian [[martial art]].]]
Unlike in the United States, race in Brazil is based on skin color and physical appearance rather than ancestry. A Brazilian child was never automatically identified with the racial type of one or both parents, nor were there only two categories to choose from. Between a pure black and a very light mulatto over a dozen racial categories would be recognized in conformity with the combinations of hair color, hair texture, eye color, and skin color. These types grade into each other like the colors of the spectrum, and no one category stands significantly isolated from the rest. That is, race referred to appearance, not heredity.<ref name="skidmore">{{cite journal| first = Thomas E. | last = Skidmore | title = Fact and Myth: Discovering a Racial Problem in Brazil| journal = Working Paper| volume = 173|url=http://www.nd.edu/~kellogg/publications/workingpapers/WPS/173.pdf| date = April 1992}}</ref>

There is some disagreement among scholars over the effects of social status on racial classifications in Brazil. It is generally believed that upward mobility and education results in reclassification of individuals into lighter skinned categories. The popular claim is that in Brazil poor whites are considered black and wealthy blacks are considered white. Some scholars disagree arguing that whitening of one's social status may be open to people of mixed race, but a typically black person will consistently be identified as black regardless of wealth or social status.<ref name=Telles>{{cite book| last = Edward E. | first = Telles| title = Race in Another America: The Significance of Skin Color in Brazil| pages = 95-98| publisher = [[Princeton University Press]]| date= 2004| isbn =0691118663 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal| first = Edward E. | last = Telles| title = Racial Ambiguity Among the Brazilian Population| journal = Ethnic and Racial Studies|url=http://www.ccpr.ucla.edu/ccprwpseries/ccpr_012_01.pdf| volume = 25| pages = 415-441| date= 3 May 2002| publisher = California Center for Population Research}}</ref>

====Statistics====
{{see also|Race and genetics#Admixture in Latin America}}
{| class="wikitable" style="float: right; margin: 0 0 0.5em 1em;"
|+Demographics of Brazil
|-
! Year!! White !! Brown!! Black
|-
| 1835
| 24.4% || 18.2%||51.4%
|-
| 2000
| 53.7% ||38.5%||6.2%
|-
|}
From the year 1500 to 1850 an estimated 3.5 million Africans were forcibly shipped to Brazil.<ref name=Telles/> An estimated 80 million Brazilians, almost half the population, are at least in part descendants of these Africans. Brazil has the largest population of Afro-descendants outside of Africa. In contrast to the US there were no segregation or anti-[[miscegenation]] laws in Brazil. As a result miscegenation has affected a large majority of the Brazilian population. Even much of the white population has either African or Amerindian blood. According to the last census 54% identified themselves as white, 6.2% identified themselves as black and 39.5% identified themselves as [[Pardo]] (brown)- a broad multiracial category.<ref>{{cite web| title = CIA World Factbook: Brazil| url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/br.html#People}}</ref>

A philosophy of whitening emerged in Brazil in the 19th century. Until recently the government did not keep data on race. However statisticians estimate that in 1835 half the population was black, one fifth was Pardo (brown) and one fourth white. By 2000 the black population had fallen to only 6.2% and the Pardo had increased to 40% and white to 55%. Essentially most of the black population was absorbed into the multiracial category by miscegenation.<ref name="skidmore"/>. A recent study found that at least 29% of the middle class white Brazilian population had some recent African ancestry.<ref>[http://www.funpecrp.com.br/gmr/year2007/vol2-6/gmr0330_full_text.htm Sex-biased gene flow in African Americans but not in American Caucasians]</ref>

====Race relations====
Because of the ideology of miscegenation, Brazil has avoided the polarization of Society into black and white. The bitter and sometimes violent racial tensions that divide the US are notably absent in Brazil.
However the philosophy of the racial democracy in Brazil has drawn criticism from some quarters. Brazil has one of the largest gaps in income distribution in the world. The richest 10% of the population earn 28 times the average income of the bottom 40%. The richest 10 percent is almost exclusively white. One-third of the population lives under the poverty line of which blacks and other non-whites account for 70 percent of the poor.<ref>{{cite web| last = Barrolle| first = Melvin Kadiri| title = African 'Americans' in Brazil| publisher =New America Media| url=http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=5b8d531de860940110af2433244782c6}}</ref>

In the US blacks earn 75% of what whites earn, in Brazil non-whites earn less than 50% of what whites earn. Some have posited that Brazil does in fact practice the one drop rule when social economic factors are considered. This because the gap income between blacks and other non-whites is relatively small compared with the large gap between whites and non-whites. Other factors such as illiteracy and education level show the same patterns.<ref>{{cite web| last = Roland| first = Edna Maria Santos| title = The Economics of Racism: People of African Descent in Brazil| url=http://www.falapreta.org.br/durban/racism.doc}}</ref>
Unlike in the US where African Americans were united in the civil rights struggle, in Brazil the philosophy of whitening has helped divide blacks from other non-whites and prevented a more active civil rights movement.

Though Afro-Brazilians make up half the population there are very few black politicians. The city of [[Salvador, Bahia]] for instance is 80% Afro-Brazilian but has never had a black mayor. Critics indicate that in US cities like [[Detroit]] and [[New Orleans]] that have a black majority, have never had white mayors since first electing black mayors in the 1970s.<ref>Charles Whitaker, "[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1077/is_n4_v46/ai_9329550/pg_3 Blacks in Brazil: The Myth and the Reality]," ''[[Ebony (magazine)|Ebony]]'', February 1991</ref>

Non-white people also have limited media visibility. The Latin American media, in particular the Brazilian media, has been accused of hiding its black and indigenous population. For example the [[telenovelas]] or [[Soap Opera|soaps]] are said to be a hotbed of white, largely blonde and blue/green-eyed actors who resemble [[Scandinavia]]ns or other northern Europeans more than they resemble the typical whites of Brazil, who are mostly of [[Southern European]] descent.<ref>[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3069253/site/newsweek/%5B/url%5D Soap operas on Latin TV are lily white]</ref><ref>
[http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A19009-2000Aug1&notFound=true The Blond, Blue-Eyed Face of Spanish TV]</ref><ref>[http://www.boston.com/news/globe/living/articles/2004/08/19/pride_or_prejudice/ Skin tone consciousness in Asian and Latin American populations]</ref>

These patterns of discrimination against non-whites have led some to advocate for the use of the Portuguese term 'negro' to encompass non-whites so as to renew a black consciousness and identity, in effect an African descent rule.<ref>[http://www.newamerica.net/publications/articles/2006/brazil_separates_into_a_world_of_black_and_white Brazil Separates Into a World of Black and White], ''Los Angeles Times'', September 3, 2006</ref>

==In Asia and Australasia==
[[Image:Vanuatu blonde.jpg|thumb|right|160px| Pacific Islander boy: a [[Melanesian]] from [[Vanuatu]]<ref>[http://news.softpedia.com/news/Naturally-Blonde-Blacks-48181.shtml Naturally blonde blacks]</ref>]]
There are several groups of dark-skinned people who live in various parts of [[Asia]], [[Australia]] and [[Oceania]]. They include the [[Indigenous Australians]], the [[Melanesians]] (now divided into [[Austronesian]]-speaking populations and [[Papuan]]s, and including the great genetic diversity of [[New Guinea]]), the [[Andamanese]] people of the [[Andaman and Nicobar Islands]] of [[India]], the [[Semang]] people of the [[Malay peninsula]], the [[Aeta]] people of [[Luzon]], and various indigenous peoples sometimes collectively known as [[Negritos]].

By their external physical appearance ([[phenotype]]) such people resemble Africans with dark skin and sometimes tightly coiled hair. Genetically they are distant from Africans and are more closely related to the surrounding Asian populations in the same way that Africans are more closely linked genetically to Europeans despite differences in skin colour.<ref>{{cite journal| first = Kumarasamy | last = Thangaraj| coauthors = et al| title = Genetic Affinities of the Andaman Islanders, a Vanishing Human Population|url=http://hpgl.stanford.edu/publications/CB_2002_p1-18.pdf| journal =Current Biology | volume = 13, Number 2| pages = 86-93(8)| date= 21 January 2003}}</ref>

The [[Black War]] refers to a period of conflict between the [[Great Britain|British]] colonists and [[Tasmanian Aborigine]]s in [[Van Diemen's Land]] (now [[Tasmania]]) in the early years of the 1800s.

The Australian [[Aboriginal Flag]] was designed by [[Harold Thomas]], an artist and an Aboriginal, in 1971. The flag was designed to be an eye-catching rallying symbol for the Aboriginal people and a symbol of their race and identity. The black represents the Aboriginal people, the red the earth and their spiritual relationship to the land, and the yellow the sun, the giver of life.

==In Europe==

{{main|Afro-European}}

For many centuries throughout the [[Age of Discovery]] and the [[Colonialism|colonial empires]], black people came from the colonies to the "mother country", either voluntarily (sometimes for education) or under duress (sometimes as slaves). Even prior to that, the [[Arab slave trade]] brought large numbers of Africans to the furthest reaches of Europe; for example, [[Peter the Great]] took as a protégé [[Abram Petrovich Gannibal]], whose descendants number poet [[Alexandr Pushkin]] and [[Hugh Grosvenor, Earl Grosvenor|Hugh Grosvenor]], [[heir apparent]] to [[Gerald Grosvenor, 6th Duke of Westminster|Britain's wealthiest aristocrat]].<ref>[http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/specials/rich_list/ Sunday Times Rich List 2007 - Business]</ref> Most of the black people living in [[Europe]], however, have their origins in relatively recent waves of immigration. Since the decolonisation of the mid-twentieth century, substantial black populations have moved to certain countries in Europe; other European countries have very few black people.

The low birth rate prevalent in many European countries has been an important factor in encouraging many immigrants from outside the continent to help support the economies of aging populations.<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2242/is_1660_284/ai_n6141993 Europe's aging population]</ref> At present, black people have limited visibility in mainstream European society, except in a handful of roles such as sporting activities.

===Britain===
[[Image:NaomiCampbell.jpg|thumb|right|150px|[[Naomi Campbell]]]]
''See also: [[British African-Caribbean community]] and [[Black British]]''

According to [[National Statistics]], as of the 2001 census, there are over a million black people in the [[United Kingdom]]; 1% of the total population describe themselves as "Black Caribbean", 0.8% as "Black African", and 0.2% as "Black other".<ref>[http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=273 National Statistics Online]</ref> The largest single number comes from [[Nigeria]], just over 88 000<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/uk/05/born_abroad/countries/html/overview.stm BBC NEWS | UK | Born Abroad | Countries of birth]</ref>. Britain encouraged workers from the [[Caribbean]] after [[World War II]]; the first symbolic movement was those who came on the ship the ''[[Empire Windrush]]''. The preferred official [[umbrella term]] is "black and minority ethnic" (BME), but sometimes the term "black" is used on its own, to express unified opposition to racism, as in the [[Southall Black Sisters]], which started with a mainly [[British Asian]] constituency. Black Britons tend to live in the cities, whereas the white population is moving more to suburbs and the countryside (see [[white flight]]).

===Eastern Europe===
As African states [[decolonisation|became independent]] in the 1960s, the [[Soviet Union]] offered them the chance to study in Russia; over 40 years, 400,000 African students came, and many settled there.<ref>[http://www.mediarights.org/film/black_russians MediaRights: Film: Black Russians]</ref><ref>[http://www.africana.ru/Golden/info/black_russians_project_engl.htm Лили Голден и Лили Диксон. Телепроект "Черные русские": синопсис. Info on "Black Russians" film project in English]</ref> This extended beyond the Soviet Union to many countries of the [[Eastern bloc]].

===Russia===
A cultural classification of people as "black" exists in [[Russia]]. Certain groups of people who are ethnically different, and generally darker, than ethnic urbanite [[Russians]] (since many Russians from the countryside can be dark) are pejoratively referred to as "blacks" (''chernye''), and face specific sorts of [[social exclusion]] (see [[Racism in Russia]]). [[Romani people|Gypsies]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgians]], and [[Tatar]]s fall into this category.<ref> ''The Unmaking of Soviet Life: Everyday Economies After Socialism'' By Caroline Humphrey [[Cornell University]] 2002 p36-37 </ref> Those referred to as "black" are from the [[Post-Soviet states|former Soviet republics]], predominantly [[peoples of the Caucasus]], e.g. [[Chechens]]<ref>http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/63/333.html Lisa Taylor, Emergency—Explosion of State and Popular Racism follows Moscow Blasts, International Solidarity with Workers in Russia (ISWoR), 13 September 1999.</ref>. Although "Caucasian" is used in [[American English]] to mean "[[white people]]", in [[Russian language|Russian]] -- and [[List of dialects of the English language|most other varieties of English]] -- it only refers to the [[Caucasus]], not European people in general.

==Debates on historical populations==
===Race of ancient Egyptians===
{{main|Race of ancient Egyptians}}
{{see also|Egyptians}}
[[Image:Egyptian races.jpg|thumb|250px|1820 drawing of a fresco of the tomb of [[Seti I]], depicting (from left): Libyan, Nubian, Asiatic, Egyptian.<ref>[http://personalwebs.coloradocollege.edu/~ctorresrouff/walkerlabpubs/buzon2006current.pdf Biological and Ethnic Identity in New Kingdom Nubia]</ref>]]
A controversy over the skin color and ethnic origins of the [[ancient Egypt]]ians was sparked as part of the [[Afrocentrism|Afrocentric]] debate.<ref>[http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/afrocent_roth.html Building bridges to Afrocentrism]</ref> [[Afrocentrism|Afrocentrist]] scholars such as [[Cheikh Anta Diop]] contend that [[ancient Egypt]] was primarily a "black civilization". One source cited in support of their argument is [[Herodotus]], who wrote around 450 B.C. that "Colchians, Ethiopians and Egyptians have thick lips, broad nose, woolly hair and they are burnt of skin."<ref>{{cite web |title=Huge Ancient Egyptian Photo Gallery| url=http://www.freemaninstitute.com/RTGhistory.htm}}</ref> However, Classical scholar [[Frank M. Snowden, Jr.|Frank Snowden, Jr.]] cautions against the reliance on accounts by ancient writers to describe the physical characteristics of other ancient peoples, as they held different connotations from those of modern-day terminology in the West. He also points out that other ancient writers clearly distinguished between Egyptians and Ethiopians.<ref>{{cite book | last=Snowden, Jr. | first=Frank M. | editor=Mary R. Lefkowitz and Guy MacLean Rogers (eds.) | title=Black Athena Revisited | location=Chapel Hill | publisher=University of North Carolina Press | year=1996 | pages=113-14 | quote=....the Afrocentrists are mistaken in assuming that the the terms ''Afri'' (Africans) and various color adjectives for dark pigmentation as used by Greeks and Romans are always the classical equivalents of Negores or blacks in modern usage.... That the pigmentation of the Egyptians was seen as lighter than that of Ethiopians is also attested by the adjective ''subfusucli'' ("somewhat dark") which Ammianus Marcellinus (22.16.23) chose to describe the Egyptians....}}</ref>

Keita and Boyce confront this issue in a 1996 article entitled, "The Geographical Origins and Population Relationships of Early Ancient Egyptians". As anthropologists, they point out the danger in relying on ancient interpretation to reveal for us the biological make up of a population. In any case they contend, the relevant data indicates greater similarity between Egyptians and Ethiopians than the former group with the ancient Greeks.<ref>{{cite book | last=Keita, Boyce | first=Shomarka, A.J.| editor=Theodore Celenko(ed) | title=Egypt in Africa | location=Chapel Hill | publisher=Indianapolis Museum of Art | year=1996 | pages=25-27 | quote=....''The descriptions and terms of ancient Greek writers have sometimes been used to comment on Egyptian origins. This is problematic since the ancient writers were not doing population biology. However, we can examine one issue. The Greeks called all groups south of Egypt "Ethiopians." Were the Egyptians more related to any of these "Ethiopians" than to the Greeks? As noted, cranial and limb studies have indicated greater similarity to Somalis, Kushites and Nubians, all "Ethiopians" in ancient Greek terms.''....}}</ref>

Ancient Egyptians are often portrayed in modern media as Caucasians, and many blacks, Afrocentrists in particular, have been critical of this.<ref>{{cite web| title = The Identity Of Ancient| url=http://www.calumet.purdue.edu/mcnair/cynthia_research.pdf}}</ref> According to [[Egyptology|Egyptologists]], ancient Egypt was a multicultural society of Middle Eastern, Northeast African, and Saharan influences.<ref>[http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/afrocent_roth.html Building bridges to Afrocentrism]</ref><ref>[http://homelink.cps-k12.org/teachers/filiopa/files/AC383EB269C648AAAA659593B9FC358C.pdf Were the Ancient Egyptians black or white]</ref> Anthropological and archaeological evidence shows that an [[Africoid]] element was evident in ancient Egypt,<ref>{{cite video| people = [[Basil Davidson]]| title=http://www.lincoln.edu/history/his307/davidson/1/dif3.wmv The Nile]}}</ref> which was predominant in [[Abydos, Egypt|Abydos]] in the [[First dynasty of Egypt]].<ref>Studies and Comments on Ancient Egyptian Biological Relationships, by S.O.Y. Keita, History in Africa, 20: 129-154 (1993)</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last=Keita | first=S.O.Y. | title=Further studies of crania from ancient northern Africa: an analysis of crania from First Dynasty Egyptian tombs. | journal=American Journal of Physical Anthropology | year=1992 | month=March | volume=87 | issue= 3 | pages=245–254 | url=http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/abstract/110482899/ABSTRACT?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0 | accessdate= 2007-09-23 | quote=The predominant craniometric pattern in the [[Abydos, Egypt|Abydos]] [First Dynasty] royal tombs is "southern" (tropical African variant)... However, lower Egyptian, Maghrebian, and European patterns are observed also, thus making for great diversity... The centroid values of the various upper Egyptian series viewed collectively are seen to vary over time. The general trend from Badari to Nakada times, and then from the Nakadan to the First Dynasty epochs demonstrate change toward the northern-Egyptian centroid value on Function I with similar values on Function 11. This might represent an average change from an Africoid (Keita, 1990) to a northern-Egyptian-Maghreb modal pattern.... This northern modal pattern, which can be called coastal northern African, is noted in general terms to be intermediate, by the centroid scores of Function I, to equatorial African and northern European phenotypes.}}</ref>

===Biblical perspective===
{{further|[[Hamitic]]}}
According to some historians, the tale in [[Curse of Ham|Genesis 9]] in which Noah cursed the descendants of his son Ham with servitude was a seminal moment in defining black people, as the story was passed on through generations of Jewish, Christian and Islamic scholars.<ref>Bernard Lewis, Race and Slavery in the Middle East: An Historical Enquiry, (Oxford University Press, 1982), pp. 28-117</ref> According to columnist Felicia R. Lee, "Ham came to be widely portrayed as black; blackness, servitude and the idea of racial hierarchy became inextricably linked." Some people believe that the tradition of dividing humankind into three major races is partly rooted in tales of Noah's three sons repopulating the Earth after the [[Noah's Flood|Deluge]] and giving rise to three separate races.<ref>{{cite web| title = The Descendants of Noah| url=http://www.bible-truth.org/GEN10.HTM}}</ref>

The biblical passage, [[Book of Genesis]] 9:20-27, which deals with the [[sons of Noah]], however, makes no reference to race. The reputed [[curse of Ham]] is not on [[Sons of Noah|Ham]], but on [[Canaan]], one of Ham's sons. This is not a racial but geographic referent. The Canaanites, typically associated with the region of the Levant (Palestine, Lebanon, etc) were later subjugated by the Hebrews when they left bondage in Egypt according to the Biblical narrative.<ref>{{cite book| last = Redford| first = Donald B. | title = Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times| pages = 23-87| publisher = [[Princeton University Press]]| date= 1993| isbn = 0691000867 }}</ref><ref name=Goldenberg>{{cite book| last = Goldenberg| first = David M.| title = The Curse of Ham: Race and Slavery in Early Judaism, Christianity, and Islam| publisher = [[Princeton University Press]]| date = New Ed edition (July 18, 2005)| isbn = 0691123705 }}</ref> The alleged inferiority of Hamitic descendants also is not supported by the Biblical narrative, nor claims of three races in relation to Noah's sons. Shem for example seems a linguistic not racial referent. In short the Bible does not define blacks, nor assign them to racial hierarchies.<ref name=Goldenberg/>

Historians believe that by the 19th century, the belief that blacks were descended from Ham was used by southern United States whites to justify slavery.<ref name=FRLee>Felicia R. Lee, ''[http://www.racematters.org/noahscurseslaverysrationale.htm Noah's Curse Is Slavery's Rationale]'', Racematters.org, November 1, 2003</ref> According to Benjamin Braude, a professor of history at Boston College:

{{quote|in 18th- and 19th century Euro-America, Genesis 9:18-27 became the curse of Ham, a foundation myth for collective degradation, conventionally trotted out as God's reason for condemning generations of dark-skinned peoples from Africa to slavery.<ref name=FRLee/>}}

Author David M. Goldenberg contends that the Bible is not a racist document. According to Goldenberg, such [[racist]] interpretations came from post-biblical writers of antiquity like [[Philo]] and [[Origen]], who equated blackness with darkness of the soul.<ref>Goldenberg, D. M. (2005) ''The Curse of Ham: Race & Slavery in Early Judaism, Christian'', Princeton University Press</ref>

==Footnotes==
{{reflist|2}}

==See also==
* [[Black pride]], [[Black Power]], [[Black nationalism]], [[Black separatism]], [[Black supremacy]]
* [[Stereotypes of blacks]]

==External links==
* [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/vor?type=phrase&alts=0&group=typecat&lookup=Champaign%2072.13.3&collection=Perseus:collection:Greco-Roman Negro warrior, Ancient Greek Alabastron, 500 BC]
* [http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Ethiopian_soldier_Louvre_MNC476.jpg Ethiopian warrior, Ancient Greek Alabastron, 480-470 BC]
{{sisterlinks}}

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Geschichte der Biologie

2008-03-19T03:35:36Z

TestPilot: clean up & spell check , typos fixed: authoritive → authoritative using AWB

[[Image:Erasmus Darwin Temple of Nature.jpg|thumb|right|320px|The frontispiece to [[Erasmus Darwin]]'s evolution-themed poem ''The Temple of Nature'' shows a goddess pulling back the veil from nature (in the person of [[Artemis]]). Allegory and metaphor have often played an important role in the history of biology.]]

The '''history of biology''' traces the study of the [[life|living world]] from ancient to modern times. Although the concept of ''[[biology]]'' as a single coherent field arose in the 19th century, the biological sciences emerged from [[history of medicine|traditions of medicine]] and [[natural history]] reaching back to [[Aristotle]] and [[Galen]] in the ancient [[Greco-Roman world]], which were then further developed in the Middle Ages by [[Islamic medicine|Muslim physicians]] and scholars such as [[al-Jahiz]], [[Avicenna]], [[Ibn Zuhr|Avenzoar]] and [[Ibn al-Nafis]]. During the European [[Renaissance]] and early modern period, biological thought was revolutionized in Europe by a renewed interest in [[empiricism]] and the discovery of many novel organisms. Prominent in this movement were [[Vesalius]] and [[William Harvey|Harvey]], who used experimentation and careful observation in physiology, and naturalists such as [[Carolus Linnaeus|Linnaeus]] and [[Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon|Buffon]] who began to [[Scientific classification|classify the diversity of life]] and the [[fossil record]], as well as the development and behavior of organisms. [[Microscopy]] revealed the previously unknown world of microorganisms, laying the groundwork for [[cell theory]]. The growing importance of [[natural theology]], partly a response to the rise of [[mechanical philosophy]], encouraged the growth of natural history (although it entrenched the [[argument from design]]).

Over the 18th and 19th centuries, biological sciences such as [[botany]] and [[zoology]] became increasingly professional [[scientific discipline]]s. [[Lavoisier]] and other physical scientists began to connect the animate and inanimate worlds through physics and chemistry. Explorer-naturalists such as [[Alexander von Humboldt]] investigated the interaction between organisms and their environment, and the ways this relationship depends on geography—laying the foundations for [[biogeography]], [[ecology]] and [[ethology]]. Naturalists began to reject [[essentialism]] and consider the importance of [[extinction]] and the [[history of evolutionary thought|mutability of species]]. [[Cell theory]] provided a new perspective on the fundamental basis of life. These developments, as well as the results from [[embryology]] and [[paleontology]], were synthesized in {{aps|Charles Darwin}}s theory of [[evolution]] by [[natural selection]]. The end of the 19th century saw the fall of [[spontaneous generation]] and the rise of the [[germ theory of disease]], though the mechanism of [[biological inheritance|inheritance]] remained a mystery.

In the early 20th century, the rediscovery of [[Gregor Mendel|Mendel's]] work led to the rapid development of [[genetics]] by [[Thomas Hunt Morgan]] and his students, and by the 1930s the combination of [[population genetics]] and natural selection in the "[[Modern evolutionary synthesis|neo-Darwinian synthesis]]". New disciplines developed rapidly, especially after [[James D. Watson|Watson]] and [[Francis Crick|Crick]] proposed the structure of [[DNA]]. Following the establishment of the [[Central Dogma]] and the cracking of the [[genetic code]], biology was largely split between ''organismal biology''—the fields that deal with whole organisms and groups of organisms—and the fields related to ''[[cell biology|cellular]] and [[molecular biology]]''. By the late 20th century, new fields like [[genomics]] and [[proteomics]] were reversing this trend, with organismal biologists using molecular techniques, and molecular and cell biologists investigating the interplay between genes and the environment, as well as the genetics of natural populations of organisms.

{{histOfScience}}

== Etymology of "biology"==
The word ''biology'' is formed by combining the [[Greek (language)|Greek]] βίος (bios), meaning "life", and the suffix '-logy', meaning "science of", "knowledge of", "study of", based on the Greek verb λεγειν, 'legein' = "to select", "to gather" (cf. the noun λόγος, 'logos' = "word"). The term ''biology'' in its modern sense appears to have been introduced independently by [[Karl Friedrich Burdach]] (in 1800), [[Gottfried Reinhold Treviranus]] (''Biologie oder Philosophie der lebenden Natur'', 1802) and [[Jean-Baptiste Lamarck]] (''Hydrogéologie'', 1802).<ref>Junker ''Geschichte der Biologie'', p8.</ref><ref>Coleman, ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century'', pp 1–2.</ref> The word itself appears in the title of Volume 3 of {{aps|Michael Christoph Hanov}}s ''Philosophiae naturalis sive physicae dogmaticae: Geologia, biologia, phytologia generalis et dendrologia'', published in 1766.

Before ''biology'', there were several terms used for the study of animals and plants. ''[[Natural history]]'' referred to the descriptive aspects of biology, though it also included [[mineralogy]] and other non-biological fields; from the Middle Ages through the Renaissance, the unifying framework of natural history was the ''scala naturae'' or [[Great Chain of Being]]. ''[[Natural philosophy]]'' and ''[[natural theology]]'' encompassed the conceptual and metaphysical basis of plant and animal life, dealing with problems of why organisms exist and behave the way they do, though these subjects also included what is now [[geology]], [[physics]], [[chemistry]], and [[astronomy]]. Physiology and (botanical) pharmacology were the province of medicine. ''Botany'', ''zoology'', and (in the case of fossils) ''geology'' replaced ''natural history'' and ''natural philosophy'' in the 18th and 19th centuries before ''biology'' was widely adopted.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp36–37</ref><ref>Coleman, ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century'', pp 1–3.</ref>

== Ancient and medieval knowledge ==
===Early cultures===
{{see also|History of the world|History of agriculture|History of medicine}}
The [[earliest humans]] must have had and passed on knowledge about [[plants]] and [[animals]] to increase their chances of survival. This may have included knowledge of human and animal anatomy and aspects of animal behavior (such as migration patterns). However, the first major turning point in biological knowledge came with the [[Neolithic Revolution]] about 10,000 years ago. Humans first domesticated plants for farming, then [[livestock]] animals to accompany the resulting sedentary societies.<ref>Magner, ''A History of the Life Sciences'', pp 2–3</ref>

The ancient cultures of [[Mesopotamia]], [[Ancient Egypt|Egypt]], the [[History of India|Indian subcontinent]], and [[History of China|China]] (among others) had sophisticated systems of philosophical, religious, and technical knowledge that encompassed the living world, and [[creation myth]]s often centered on some aspect of [[life]]. However, the roots of modern biology are usually traced back to the [[secular]] tradition of [[ancient Greek philosophy]].<ref>Magner, ''A History of the Life Sciences'', pp 3–9</ref>

[[Image:161Theophrastus 161 frontespizio.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Frontispiece to a 1644 version of the expanded and illustrated edition of ''[[Historia Plantarum]]'' (ca. 1200), which was originally written around 200 BC]]

===Ancient Greek traditions===
{{see also|Ancient Greek medicine}}
The [[Pre-Socratic philosophy|pre-Socratic philosophers]] asked many questions about life but produced little systematic knowledge of specifically biological interest—though the attempts of the [[atomists]] to explain life in purely physical terms would recur periodically through the history of biology. However, the medical theories of [[Hippocrates]] and his followers, especially [[humorism]], had a lasting impact.<ref>Magner, ''A History of the Life Sciences'', pp 9–27</ref>

The philosopher [[Aristotle]] was the most influential scholar of the living world from [[classical antiquity]]. Though his early work in natural philosophy was speculative, Aristotle's later biological writings were more empirical, focusing on biological causation and the diversity of life. He made countless observations of nature, especially the habits and [[Abstraction|attributes]] of [[plant]]s and [[animal]]s in the world around him, which he devoted considerable attention to [[categorization|categorizing]]. In all, Aristotle classified 540 animal species, and dissected at least 50. He believed that intellectual purposes, [[formal cause]]s, guided all natural processes.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 84–90, 135; Mason, ''A History of the Sciences'', p 41–44 </ref>

Aristotle, and nearly all Western scholars after him until the 18th century, believed that creatures were arranged in a graded scale of perfection rising from plants on up to humans: the ''scala naturae'' or [[Great Chain of Being]].<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 201–202; see also: Lovejoy, ''The Great Chain of Being''</ref> Aristotle's successor at the [[Lyceum]], [[Theophrastus]], wrote a series of books on botany—the ''[[Historia Plantarum|History of Plants]]''—which survived as the most important contribution of antiquity to botany, even into the [[Middle Ages]]. Many of Theophrastus' names survive into modern times, such as ''carpos'' for fruit, and ''pericarpion'' for seed vessel. [[Pliny the Elder]] was also known for his knowledge of plants and nature, and was the most prolific compiler of zoological descriptions.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 90–91; Mason, ''A History of the Sciences'', p 46</ref>

A few scholars in the [[Hellenistic period]] under the [[Ptolemaic dynasty|Ptolemies]]—particularly [[Herophilos|Herophilus of Chalcedon]] and [[Erasistratus|Erasistratus of Chios]]—amended Aristotle's physiological work, even performing experimental dissections and vivisections.<ref> Barnes, ''Hellenistic Philosophy and Science'', p 383–384</ref> [[Galen|Claudius Galen]] became the most important authority on medicine and anatomy. Though a few ancient [[atomism|atomists]] such as [[Lucretius]] challenged the [[teleology|teleological]] Aristotelian viewpoint that all aspects of life are the result of design or purpose, teleology (and after the rise of Christianity, [[natural theology]]) would remain central to biological thought essentially until the 18th and 19th centuries. [[Ernst W. Mayr]] argued that "Nothing of any real consequence happened in biology after Lucretius and Galen until the Renaissance."<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 90–94; quotation from p 91</ref> The ideas of the Greek traditions of natural history and medicine survived, but they were generally taken unquestioningly in [[Middle Ages|medieval Europe]].<ref>Annas, ''Classical Greek Philosophy'', p 252</ref>

===Medieval knowledge===
{{see also|Islamic medicine|Byzantine medicine|Medieval medicine}}
[[Image:ibn al-nafis page.jpg|300px|thumb|A biomedical work by [[Ibn al-Nafis]], an early adherent of experimental dissection who discovered the [[pulmonary circulation]] and [[coronary circulation]].]]

The decline of the [[Roman Empire]] led to the disappearance or destruction of much knowledge, though physicians still incorporated many aspects of the Greek tradition into training and practice. In [[Byzantium]] and the [[Islamic]] world, many of the Greek works were translated into [[Arabic]] and many of the works of Aristotle were preserved.<ref name=Mayr-91-94>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 91–94</ref>

Medieval [[Islamic medicine|Muslim physicians]], [[Islamic science|scientists]] and [[Early Islamic philosophy|philosophers]] made significant contributions to biological knowledge between the 8th and 13th centuries during what is known as the "[[Islamic Golden Age]]" or "[[Muslim Agricultural Revolution]]". In [[zoology]], for example, the [[Afro-Arab]] scholar [[al-Jahiz]] (781-869) described early [[evolution]]ary ideas<ref>Mehmet Bayrakdar, "Al-Jahiz And the Rise of Biological Evolutionism", ''The Islamic Quarterly'', Third Quarter, 1983, [[London]].</ref> such as the [[The Origin of Species#Struggle for existence, and natural selection|struggle for existence]].<ref>Conway Zirkle (1941), Natural Selection before the "Origin of Species", ''Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society'' '''84''' (1): 71-123.</ref> He also introduced the idea of a [[food chain]],<ref>Frank N. Egerton, "A History of the Ecological Sciences, Part 6: Arabic Language Science - Origins and Zoological", ''Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America'', April 2002: 142-146 [143]</ref> and was an early adherent of [[environmental determinism]].<ref>Lawrence I. Conrad (1982), "Taun and Waba: Conceptions of Plague and Pestilence in Early Islam", ''Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient'' '''25''' (3), pp. 268-307 [278].</ref> In [[anatomy]] and [[physiology]], the [[Persian people|Persian]] physician [[Muhammad ibn Zakarīya Rāzi|Rhazes]] (865-925) carried out an early [[experiment]] to discredit the [[Galen]]ic theory of [[humorism]].<ref name=Stolyarov>G. Stolyarov II (2002), "Rhazes: The Thinking Western Physician", ''The Rational Argumentator'', Issue VI.</ref>

In [[Biomedical research|experimental medicine]], the Persian physician [[Avicenna]] (980-1037) introduced [[clinical trial]]s and [[clinical pharmacology]] in ''[[The Canon of Medicine]]'',<ref name=Brater-449>D. Craig Brater and Walter J. Daly (2000), "Clinical pharmacology in the Middle Ages: Principles that presage the 21st century", ''Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics'' '''67''' (5), p. 447-450 [449].</ref> which remained an authoritative text in European medical education up until the 17th century.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/topic-92902/The-Canon-of-Medicine The Canon of Medicine (work by Avicenna)], [[Encyclopædia Britannica]]</ref><ref>Amber Haque (2004), "Psychology from Islamic Perspective: Contributions of Early Muslim Scholars and Challenges to Contemporary Muslim Psychologists", ''Journal of Religion and Health'' '''43''' (4), p. 357-377 [375].</ref> The [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]] physician [[Ibn Zuhr|Avenzoar]] (1091-1161) was an early adherent of experimental [[dissection]] and [[autopsy]], which he carried out to prove that the skin disease [[scabies]] was caused by a [[parasite]], a discovery which upset the theory of humorism.<ref name=Hutchinson>[http://encyclopedia.farlex.com/Islamic+medicine Islamic medicine], ''[[Hutchinson Encyclopedia]]''.</ref> He also introduced experimental [[surgery]],<ref name=Rabie2006>Rabie E. Abdel-Halim (2006), "Contributions of Muhadhdhab Al-Deen Al-Baghdadi to the progress of medicine and urology", ''Saudi Medical Journal'' '''27''' (11): 1631-1641.</ref> where [[animal testing]] is used to experiment with surgical techniques prior to using them on humans.<ref name=Rabie2005>Rabie E. Abdel-Halim (2005), "Contributions of Ibn Zuhr (Avenzoar) to the progress of surgery: A study and translations from his book Al-Taisir", ''Saudi Medical Journal 2005; Vol. 26 (9): 1333-1339''.</ref> During a [[famine]] in [[Egypt]] in 1200, [[Abd-el-latif]] observed and examined a large number of [[skeleton]]s, and he discovered that Galen was incorrect regarding the formation of the [[bone]]s of the lower [[jaw]] and [[sacrum]].<ref name=Emilie>Emilie Savage-Smith (1996), "Medicine", in Roshdi Rashed, ed., ''[[Encyclopedia of the History of Arabic Science]]'', Vol. 3, p. 903-962 [951-952]. [[Routledge]], London and New York.</ref>

In [[botany]] and [[pharmacy]], the [[Arab]]ian biologist [[Ibn al-Baitar]] (d. 1248) wrote a pharmaceutical encyclopedia describing 1,400 [[plant]]s, [[food]]s, and [[drug]]s, 300 of which were his own original discoveries. A [[Latin]] translation of his work was useful to European biologists and pharmacists in the 18th and 19th centuries.<ref>Diane Boulanger (2002), "The Islamic Contribution to Science, Mathematics and Technology", ''OISE Papers'', in ''STSE Education'', Vol. 3.</ref> The Arabian physician [[Ibn al-Nafis]] (1213-1288) was another early adherent of experimental dissection and autopsy,<ref name=Oataya>Dr. Sulaiman Oataya (1982), "Ibn ul Nafis has dissected the human body", ''Symposium on Ibn al-Nafis'', Second International Conference on Islamic Medicine: Islamic Medical Organization, Kuwait ([[cf.]] [http://www.islamset.com/isc/nafis/index.html Ibn ul-Nafis has Dissected the Human Body], ''Encyclopedia of Islamic World'').</ref> who in 1242, discovered the [[pulmonary circulation]]<ref name=Dabbagh>S. A. Al-Dabbagh (1978). "Ibn Al-Nafis and the pulmonary circulation", ''[[The Lancet]]'' '''1''', p. 1148.</ref> and [[coronary circulation]],<ref>Husain F. Nagamia (2003), "Ibn al-Nafīs: A Biographical Sketch of the Discoverer of Pulmonary and Coronary Circulation", ''Journal of the International Society for the History of Islamic Medicine'' '''1''', p. 22–28.</ref><ref>Matthijs Oudkerk (2004), ''Coronary Radiology'', "Preface", [[Springer Science+Business Media]], ISBN 3540436405.</ref> which form the basis of the [[circulatory system]].<ref>Chairman's Reflections (2004), "Traditional Medicine Among Gulf Arabs, Part II: Blood-letting", ''Heart Views'' '''5''' (2), p. 74-85 [80].</ref> He also described the concept of [[metabolism]],<ref name=Roubi>Dr. Abu Shadi Al-Roubi (1982), "Ibn Al-Nafis as a philosopher", ''Symposium on Ibn al-Nafis'', Second International Conference on Islamic Medicine: Islamic Medical Organization, Kuwait ([[cf.]] [http://www.islamset.com/isc/nafis/drroubi.html Ibn al-Nafis As a Philosopher], ''Encyclopedia of Islamic World'').</ref> and discredited the incorrect Galenic and [[Avicennism|Avicennian]] theories on the four humours, [[Pulse|pulsation]],<ref>Nahyan A. G. Fancy (2006), "Pulmonary Transit and Bodily Resurrection: The Interaction of Medicine, Philosophy and Religion in the Works of Ibn al-Nafīs (d. 1288)", p. 3 & 6, ''Electronic Theses and Dissertations'', [[University of Notre Dame]].[http://etd.nd.edu/ETD-db/theses/available/etd-11292006-152615]</ref> bones, [[muscle]]s, [[intestine]]s, [[Sensory system|sensory organs]], [[Bile|bilious]] [[Canal (anatomy)|canals]], [[esophagus]] and [[stomach]].<ref name=Oataya>Dr. Sulaiman Oataya (1982), "Ibn ul Nafis has dissected the human body", ''Symposium on Ibn al-Nafis'', Second International Conference on Islamic Medicine: Islamic Medical Organization, Kuwait ([[cf.]] [http://www.islamset.com/isc/nafis/index.html Ibn ul-Nafis has Dissected the Human Body], ''Encyclopedia of Islamic World'').</ref>

[[Image:Frederick II and eagle.jpg|thumb|''[[De arte venandi]]'', by [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor]], was an influential medieval natural history text that explored bird [[Morphology (biology)|morphology]].]]

During the [[High Middle Ages]], a few European scholars such as [[Hildegard of Bingen]], [[Albertus Magnus]] and [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor|Frederick II]] expanded the natural history canon. The [[History of European research universities|rise of European universities]], though important for the development of physics and philosophy, had little impact on biological scholarship.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 91–94: {{quote|"As far as biology as a whole is concerned, it was not until the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century that the universities became centers of biological research."}}</ref>

==Renaissance and early modern developments==
{{see also|History of anatomy|Scientific Revolution}}
The [[European Renaissance]] brought expanded interest in both empirical natural history and physiology. In 1543, [[Andreas Vesalius]] inaugurated the modern era of Western medicine with his seminal [[human anatomy]] treatise ''[[De humani corporis fabrica]]'', which was based on dissection of corpses. Vesalius was the first in a series of anatomists who gradually replaced [[scholasticism]] with [[empiricism]] in physiology and medicine, relying on first-hand experience rather than authority and abstract reasoning. Via [[herbalism]], medicine was also indirectly the source of renewed empiricism in the study of plants. [[Otto Brunfels]], [[Hieronymus Bock]] and [[Leonhart Fuchs]] wrote extensively on wild plants, the beginning of a nature-based approach to the full range of plant life.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 94–95, 154–158</ref> [[Bestiaries]]—a genre that combines both the natural and figurative knowledge of animals—also became more sophisticated, especially with the work of [[William Turner]], [[Pierre Belon]], [[Guillaume Rondelet]], [[Conrad Gessner]], and [[Ulisse Aldrovandi]].<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 166–171</ref>

Artists such as [[Albrecht Dürer]] and [[Leonardo da Vinci]], often working with naturalists, were also interested in the bodies of animals and humans, studying physiology in detail and contributing to the growth of anatomical knowledge.<ref>Magner, ''A History of the Life Sciences'', pp 80–83</ref> The traditions of [[alchemy]] and [[natural magic]], especially in the work of [[Paracelsus]], also laid claim to knowledge of the living world. Alchemists subjected organic matter to chemical analysis and experimented liberally with both biological and mineral [[pharmacology]].<ref>Magner, ''A History of the Life Sciences'', pp 90–97</ref> This was part of a larger transition in world views (the rise of the [[mechanical philosophy]]) that continued into the 17th century, as the traditional metaphor of ''nature as organism'' was replaced by the ''nature as machine'' metaphor.<ref>Merchant, ''The Death of Nature'', chapters 1, 4, and 8</ref>
<br clear=all />

===Seventeenth and eighteenth centuries===
{{see also|History of plant systematics}}

[[Image:Musei Wormiani Historia.jpg|thumb|left|[[Cabinet of curiosities|Cabinets of curiosities]], such as that of [[Ole Worm]], were centers of biological knowledge in the early modern period, bringing organisms from across the world together in one place. Before the [[Age of Exploration]], naturalists had little idea of the sheer scale of biological diversity.]]

Extending the work of Vesalius into experiments on still living bodies (of both humans and animals), [[William Harvey]] and other natural philosophers investigated the roles of blood, veins and arteries. Harvey's ''[[De motu cordis]]'' in 1628 was the beginning of the end for Galenic theory, and alongside [[Santorio Santorio]]'s studies of metabolism, it served as an influential model of quantitative approaches to physiology.<ref>Magner, ''A History of the Life Sciences'', pp 103–113</ref>

In the early 17th century, the micro-world of biology was just beginning to open up. A few lensmakers and natural philosophers had been creating crude [[microscope]]s since the late 16th century, and [[Robert Hooke]] published the seminal ''[[Micrographia]]'' based on observations with his own compound microscope in 1665. But it was not until [[Antony van Leeuwenhoek|Antony van Leeuwenhoek's]] dramatic improvements in lensmaking beginning in the 1670s—ultimately producing up to 200-fold magnification with a single lens—that scholars discovered [[spermatozoa]], [[bacteria]], [[infusoria]] and the sheer strangeness and diversity of microscopic life. Similar investigations by [[Jan Swammerdam]] led to new interest in [[entomology]] and built the basic techniques of microscopic dissection and [[staining]].<ref>Magner, ''A History of the Life Sciences'', pp 133–144</ref>

[[Image:Cork Micrographia Hooke.png|thumb|right|upright|In ''[[Micrographia]]'', Robert Hooke had applied the word ''cell'' to biological structures such as this piece of [[Cork cambium|cork]], but it was not until the 19th century that scientists considered cells the universal basis of life.]]

As the microscopic world was expanding, the macroscopic world was shrinking. Botanists such as [[John Ray]] worked to incorporate the flood of newly discovered organisms shipped from across the globe into a coherent taxonomy, and a coherent theology ([[natural theology]]).<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 162–166</ref> Debate over another flood, the [[Noachian flood|Noachian]], catalyzed the development of [[paleontology]]; in 1669 [[Nicholas Steno]] published an essay on how the remains of living organisms could be trapped in layers of sediment and mineralized to produce [[fossil]]s. Although Steno's ideas about fossilization were well known and much debated among natural philosophers, an organic origin for all fossils would not be accepted by all naturalists until the end of the 18th century due to philosophical and theological debate about issues such as the age of the earth and [[extinction]].<ref> Rudwick, ''The Meaning of Fossils'', pp 41–93 </ref>

[[Scientific classification|Systematizing]], naming and classifying dominated natural history throughout much of the 17th and 18th centuries. [[Carolus Linnaeus]] published a basic [[taxonomy]] for the natural world in 1735 (variations of which have been in use ever since), and in the 1750s introduced [[Binomial nomenclature|scientific names]] for all his species.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', chapter 4</ref> While Linnaeus conceived of species as unchanging parts of a designed hierarchy, the other great naturalist of the 18th century, [[Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon]], treated species as artificial categories and living forms as malleable—even suggesting the possibility of [[common descent]]. Though he was opposed to evolution, Buffon is a key figure in the history of evolutionary thought; his work would influence the evolutionary theories of both [[Lamarck]] and [[Charles Darwin|Darwin]].<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', chapter 7</ref>

The discovery and description of new species and the collection of specimens became a passion of scientific gentlemen and a lucrative enterprise for entrepreneurs; many naturalists traveled the globe in search of scientific knowledge and adventure.<ref>See Raby, ''Bright Paradise''</ref>

==Nineteenth century: the emergence of biological disciplines==
Up through the nineteenth century, the scope of biology was largely divided between medicine, which investigated questions of form and function (i.e., physiology), and natural history, which was concerned with the diversity of life and interactions among different forms of life and between life and non-life. By 1900, much of these domains overlapped, while natural history and (and its counterpart [[natural philosophy]]) had largely given way to more specialized scientific disciplines—[[cytology]], [[bacteriology]], [[morphology (biology)|morphology]], [[embryology]], [[geography]], and [[geology]].

[[Image:Humboldt1805-chimborazo.jpg|thumb|left|In the course of his travels, [[Alexander von Humboldt]] mapped the distribution of plants across landscapes and recorded a variety of physical conditions such as pressure and temperature.]]

===Natural history and natural philosophy===
{{see also|Humboldtian science}}
Widespread travel by naturalists in the early- to mid-nineteenth century resulted in a wealth of new information about the diversity and distribution of living organisms. Of particular importance was the work of [[Alexander von Humboldt]], which analyzed the relationship between organisms and their environment (i.e., the domain of [[natural history]]) using the quantitative approaches of [[natural philosophy]] (i.e., [[physics]] and [[chemistry]]). Humboldt's work laid the foundations of [[biogeography]] and inspired several generations of scientists.<ref>Bowler, ''The Earth Encompassed'', pp 204–211</ref>

====Geology and paleontology====
{{see also|History of geology|History of paleontology}}
The emerging discipline of geology also brought natural history and natural philosophy closer together; the establishment of the [[stratigraphy|stratigraphic column]] linked the spacial distribution of organisms to their temporal distribution, a key precursor to concepts of evolution. [[Georges Cuvier]] and others made great strides in [[comparative anatomy]] and [[paleontology]] in the late 1790s and early 1800s. In a series of lectures and papers that made detailed comparisons between living mammals and [[fossil]] remains Cuvier was able to establish that the fossils were remains of species that had become [[extinct]]—rather than being remains of species still alive elsewhere in the world, as had been widely believed.<ref>Rudwick, ''The Meaning of Fossils'', pp 112–113</ref> Fossils discovered and described by [[Gideon Mantell]], [[William Buckland]], [[Mary Anning]], and [[Richard Owen]] among others helped establish that there had been an 'age of reptiles' that had preceded even the prehistoric mammals. These discoveries captured the public imagination and focused attention on the history of life on earth.<ref>Bowler, ''The Earth Encompassed'', pp 211–220</ref> Most of these geologists held to [[catastrophism]], but [[Charles Lyell|Charles Lyell's]] influential ''Principles of Geology'' (1830) popularised [[James Hutton|Hutton's]] [[uniformitarianism (science)|uniformitarianism]], a theory that explained the geological past and present on equal terms.<ref>Bowler, ''The Earth Encompassed'', pp 237–247</ref>

====Evolution and biogeography====
[[Image:Darwins first tree.jpg|right|thumb|[[Charles Darwin]]'s first sketch of an evolutionary tree from his ''First Notebook on Transmutation of Species'' (1837)]]
{{see also|History of evolutionary thought}}
The most significant evolutionary theory before Darwin's was that of [[Jean-Baptiste Lamarck]]; based on the [[inheritance of acquired characteristics]] (an inheritance mechanism that was widely accepted until the 20th century), it described a chain of development stretching from the lowliest microbe to humans.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 343–357</ref> The British naturalist [[Charles Darwin]], combining the biogeographical approach of Humboldt, the uniformitarian geology of Lyell, [[Thomas Malthus|Thomas Malthus's]] writings on population growth, and his own morphological expertise, created a more successful evolutionary theory based on [[natural selection]]; similar evidence lead [[Alfred Russel Wallace]] to independently reach the same conclusions.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', chapter 10: "Darwin's evidence for evolution and common descent"; and chapter 11: "The causation of evolution: natural selection"; Larson, ''Evolution'', chapter 3</ref>

The 1859 publication of Darwin's theory in ''[[On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life]]'' is often considered the central event in the history of modern biology. Darwin's established credibility as a naturalist, the sober tone of the work, and most of all the sheer strength and volume of evidence presented, allowed ''Origin'' to succeed where previous evolutionary works such as the anonymous ''[[Vestiges of Creation]]'' had failed. Most scientists were convinced of evolution and [[common descent]] by the end of the 19th century. However, natural selection would not be accepted as the primary mechanism of evolution until well into the 20th century, as most contemporary theories of heredity seemed incompatible with the inheritance of random variation.<ref>Larson, ''Evolution'', chapter 5: "Ascent of Evolutionism"; see also: Bowler, ''The Eclipse of Darwinism''; Secord, ''Victorian Sensation''</ref>

Wallace, following on earlier work by [[A.P. de Candolle|de Candolle]], [[Alexander von Humbolt|Humbolt]] and Darwin, made major contributions to [[zoogeography]]. Because of his interest in the transmutation hypothosis, he paid particular attention to the geographical distribution of closely allied species during his field work first in [[South America]] and then in the [[Malay archipelago]]. While in the archipelago he identified the [[Wallace line]], which runs through the [[spice islands]] dividing the fauna of the archipelago between an Asian zone and a [[New Guinea]]/Australian zone. His key question, as to why the fauna of islands with such similar climates should be so different, could only be answered by considering their origin. In 1876 he wrote ''The geographical distribution of animals'', which was the standard reference work for over half a century, and a sequel, ''Island Life'', in 1880 that focused on island biogeography. He extended the 6 zone system developed by [[Philip Sclater]] for describing the geographical distribution of birds to animals of all kinds. His method of tabulating data on animal groups in geographic zones highlighted the discontinuities; and his appreciation of evolution allowed him to propose rational explanations, which had not been done before.<ref> Larson, ''Evolution'', pp 72-73, 116–117; see also: Browne, ''The Secular Ark''.</ref><ref> Bowler ''Evolution: The History of an Idea'' p. 174</ref>

The scientific study of [[heredity]] grew rapidly in the wake of Darwin's ''Origin of Species'' with the work of [[Francis Galton]] and the [[biometry|biometrician]]s. The origin of [[genetics]] is usually traced to the 1866 work of the [[monk]] [[Gregor Mendel]], who would later be credited with the [[laws of inheritance]]. However, his work was not recognized as significant until 35 years afterward. In the meantime, a variety of theories of inheritance (based on [[pangenesis]], [[orthogenesis]], or other mechanisms) were debated and investigated vigorously.<ref>Mayr, ''The Growth of Biological Thought'', pp 693–710</ref> [[Embryology]] and [[ecology]] also became central biological fields, especially as linked to evolution and popularized in the work of [[Ernst Haeckel]]. Most of the 19th century work on heredity, however, was not in the realm of natural history, but that of experimental physiology.

===Physiology===
Over the course of the 19th century, the scope of physiology expanded greatly, from a primarily medically-oriented field to a wide-ranging investigation of the physical and chemical processes of life—including plants, animals, and even microorganisms in addition to man. ''Living things as machines'' became a dominant metaphor in biological (and social) thinking.<ref>Coleman, ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century'', chapter 6; on the machine metaphor, see also: Rabinbach, ''The Human Motor''</ref>

[[Image:Tableau Louis Pasteur.jpg|thumb|left|Innovative [[laboratory glassware]] and experimental methods developed by [[Louis Pasteur]] and other biologists contributed to the young field of [[bacteriology]] in the late 19th century.]]
====Cell theory, embryology and germ theory====

Advances in [[microscopy]] also had a profound impact on biological thinking. In the early 19th century, a number of biologists pointed to the central importance of the [[cell (biology)|cell]]. In 1838 and 1839, [[Matthias Jakob Schleiden|Schleiden]] and [[Theodor Schwann|Schwann]] began promoting the ideas that (1) the basic unit of organisms is the cell and (2) that individual cells have all the characteristics of [[life]], though they opposed the idea that (3) all cells come from the division of other cells. Thanks to the work of [[Robert Remak]] and [[Rudolf Virchow]], however, by the 1860s most biologists accepted all three tenets of what came to be known as [[cell theory]].<ref>Sapp, ''Genesis'', chapter 7; Coleman, ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century'', chapters 2</ref>

Cell theory led biologists to re-envision individual organisms as interdependent assemblages of individual cells. Scientists in the rising field of [[cytology]], armed with increasingly powerful microscopes and new [[staining]] methods, soon found that even single cells were far more complex than the homogeneous fluid-filled chambers described by earlier microscopists. [[Robert Brown]] had described the [[Cell nucleus|nucleus]] in 1831, and by the end of the 19th century cytologists identified many of the key cell components: [[chromosome]]s, [[centrosome]]s [[mitochondria]], [[chloroplast]]s, and other structures made visible through staining. Between 1874 and 1884 [[Walther Flemming]] described the discrete stages of mitosis, showing that they were not [[Artifact (observational)|artifacts]] of staining but occurred in living cells, and moreover, that chromosomes doubled in number just before the cell divided and a daughter cell was produced. Much of the research on cell reproduction came together in [[August Weismann]]'s theory of heredity: he identified the nucleus (in particular chromosomes) as the hereditary material, proposed the distinction between [[somatic cell]]s and [[germ cell]]s (arguing that chromosome number must be halved for germ cells, a precursor to the concept of [[meiosis]]), and adopted [[Hugo de Vries]]'s theory of [[pangene]]s. Weismannism was extremely influential, especially in the new field of experimental [[embryology]].<ref>Sapp, ''Genesis'', chapter 8; Coleman, ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century'', chapter 3</ref>

By the mid 1850s the [[miasma theory of disease]] was largely superseded by the [[germ theory of disease]], creating extensive interest in microorganisms and their interactions with other forms of life. By the 1880s, [[bacteriology]] was becoming a coherent discipline, especially through the work of [[Robert Koch]], who introduced methods for growing pure cultures on [[Agar plate|agar gels]] containing specific nutrients in [[Petri dish]]es. The long-held idea that living organisms could easily originate from nonliving matter ([[spontaneous generation]]) was attacked in a series of experiments carried out by [[Louis Pasteur]], while debates over [[vitalism]] vs. [[mechanism (philosophy)|mechanism]] (a perennial issue since the time of Aristotle and the Greek atomists) continued apace.<ref>Magner, ''A History of the Life Sciences'', pp 254–276</ref>

====Rise of organic chemistry and experimental physiology====
In chemistry, one central issue was the distinction between organic and inorganic substances, especially in the context of organic transformations such as [[Fermentation (biochemistry)|fermentation]] and [[putrefaction]]. Since Aristotle these had been considered essentially biological (''[[vitalism|vital]]'') processes. However, [[Friedrich Wöhler]], [[Justus Liebig]] and other pioneers of the rising field of [[organic chemistry]]—building on the work of Lavoisier—showed that the organic world could often be analyzed by physical and chemical methods. In 1828 Wöhler showed that the organic substance [[urea]] could be created by chemical means that do not involve life, providing a powerful argument against [[vitalism]]. Cell extracts ("ferments") that could effect chemical transformations were discovered, beginning with [[diastase]] in 1833, and by the end of the 19th century the concept of [[enzymes]] was well established, though equations of [[chemical kinetics]] would not be applied to enzymatic reactions until the early 20th century.<ref>Fruton, ''Proteins, Enzymes, Genes'', chapter 4; Coleman, ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century'', chapter 6</ref>

Physiologists such as [[Claude Bernard]] explored (through vivisection and other experimental methods) the chemical and physical functions of living bodies to an unprecedented degree, laying the groundwork for [[endocrinology]] (a field that developed quickly after the discovery of the first [[hormone]], [[secretin]], in 1902), [[biomechanics]], and the study of [[nutrition]] and [[digestion]]. The importance and diversity of experimental physiology methods, within both medicine and biology, grew dramatically over the second half of the 19th century. The control and manipulation of life processes became a central concern, and experiment was placed at the center of biological education.<ref>Rothman and Rothman, ''The Pursuit of Perfection'', chapter 1; Coleman, ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century'', chapter 7</ref>

==Twentieth century biological sciences==
At the beginning of the 20th century, biological research was largely a professional endeavour. Most work was still done in the [[natural history]] mode, which emphasized morhphological and phylogenetic analysis over experiment-based causal explanations. However, anti-[[vitalism|vitalist]] experimental physiologists and embryologists, especially in Europe, were increasingly influential. The tremendous success of experimental approaches to development, heredity, and metabolism in the 1900s and 1910s demonstrated the power of experimentation in biology. In the following decades, experimental work replaced natural history as the dominant mode of research.<ref>See: Coleman, ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century''; Kohler, ''Landscapes and Labscapes''; Allen, ''Life Science in the Twentieth Century''</ref>

===Ecology and environmental science===
{{see also|History of ecology}}

In the early 20th century, naturalists were faced with increasing pressure to add rigor and preferably experimentation to their methods, as the newly prominent laboratory-based biological disciplines had done. Ecology had emerged as a combination of biogeography with the [[biogeochemical cycle]] concept pioneered by chemists; field biologists developed quantitative methods such as the [[quadrat]] and adapted laboratory instruments and cameras for the field to further set their work apart from traditional natural history. Zoologists and botanists did what they could to mitigate the unpredictability of the living world, performing laboratory experiments and studying semi-controlled natural environments such as gardens; new institutions like the [[Carnegie Station for Experimental Evolution]] and the [[Marine Biological Laboratory]] provided more controlled environments for studying organisms through their entire life cycles.<ref>Kohler, ''Landscapes and Labscapes'', chapters 2, 3, 4</ref>

The [[ecological succession]] concept, pioneered in the 1900s and 1910s by [[Henry Chandler Cowles]] and [[Frederic Clements]], was important in early plant ecology. [[Alfred Lotka|Alfred Lotka's]] [[predator-prey equations]], [[G. Evelyn Hutchinson|G. Evelyn Hutchinson's]] studies of the biogeography and biogeochemical structure of lakes and rivers ([[limnology]]) and [[Charles Sutherland Elton|Charles Elton's]] studies of animal [[food chain]]s were pioneers among the succession of quantitative methods that colonized the developing ecological specialties. Ecology became an independent discipline in the 1940s and 1950s after [[Eugene P. Odum]] synthesized many of the concepts of [[ecosystem ecology]], placing relationships between groups of organisms (especially material and energy relationships) at the center of the field.<ref>Hagen, ''An Entangled Bank'', chapters 2–5</ref>

In the 1960s, as evolutionary theorists explored the possibility of multiple [[units of selection]], ecologists turned to evolutionary approaches. In [[population ecology]], debate over [[group selection]] was brief but vigorous; by 1970, most biologists agreed that natural selection was rarely effective above the level of individual organisms. The evolution of ecosystems, however, became a lasting research focus. Ecology expanded rapidly with the rise of the environmental movement; the [[International Biological Program]] attempted to apply the methods of [[big science]] (which had been so successful in the physical sciences) to ecosystem ecology and pressing environmental issues, while smaller-scale independent efforts such as [[island biogeography]] and the [[Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest]] helped redefine the scope of an increasingly diverse discipline.<ref>Hagen, ''An Entangled Bank'', chapters 8–9</ref>

===Classical genetics, the modern synthesis, and evolutionary theory===
{{see also|History of genetics|History of model organisms|Modern evolutionary synthesis}}

[[Image:Morgan crossover 1.jpg|thumb|right|[[Thomas Hunt Morgan|Thomas Hunt Morgan's]] illustration of [[crossing over]], part of the Mendelian-chromosome theory of heredity]]
1900 marked the so-called ''rediscovery of Mendel'': [[Hugo de Vries]], [[Carl Correns]], and [[Erich von Tschermak]] independently arrived at [[Mendel's laws]] (which were not actually present in Mendel's work).<ref>Randy Moore, "[http://acube.org/volume_27/v27-2p13-24.pdf The 'Rediscovery' of Mendel's Work]", ''Bioscene'', Volume 27(2), May 2001.</ref> Soon after, cytologists (cell biologists) proposed that [[chromosome]]s were the hereditary material. Between 1910 and 1915, [[Thomas Hunt Morgan]] and the "[[Drosophilists]]" in his fly lab forged these two ideas—both controversial—into the "Mendelian-chromosome theory" of heredity.<ref> T. H. Morgan, A. H. Sturtevant, H. J. Muller, C. B. Bridges (1915) [http://www.esp.org/books/morgan/mechanism/facsimile/title3.html ''The Mechanism of Mendelian Heredity''] Henry Holt and Company. </ref> They quantified the phenomenon of genetic linkage and postulated that genes reside on chromosomes like beads on string; they hypothesized [[crossing over]] to explain linkage and constructed [[genetic map]]s of the fruit fly ''[[Drosophila melanogaster]]'', which became a widely used [[model organism]].<ref>Garland Allen, ''Thomas Hunt Morgan: The Man and His Science'' (1978), chapter 5; see also: Kohler, ''Lords of the Fly'' and Sturtevant, ''A History of Genetics''</ref>

Hugo de Vries tried to link the new genetics with evolution; building on his work with heredity and [[Hybrid (biology)|hybridization]], he proposed a theory of [[mutationism]], which was widely accepted in the early 20th century. [[Lamarckism]] also had many adherents. [[Darwinism]] was seen as incompatible with the continuously variable traits studied by [[biometry|biometricians]], which seemed only partially heritable. In the 1920s and 1930s—following the acceptance of the Mendelian-chromosome theory— the emergence of the discipline of [[population genetics]], with the work of [[R.A. Fisher]], [[J.B.S. Haldane]] and [[Sewall Wright]], unified the idea of evolution by [[natural selection]] with [[Mendelian inheritance|Mendelian genetics]], producing the [[modern synthesis]]. The [[inheritance of acquired characters]] was rejected, while mutationism gave way as genetic theories matured.<ref>Smocovitis, ''Unifying Biology'', chapter 5; see also: Mayr and Provine (eds.), ''The Evolutionary Synthesis''</ref>

In the second half of the century the ideas of population genetics began to be applied in the new discipline of the genetics of behavior, [[sociobiology]], and, especially in humans, [[evolutionary psychology]]. In the 1960s [[W.D. Hamilton]] and others developed [[game theory]] approaches to explain [[altruism]] from an evolutionary perspective through [[kin selection]]. The possible origin of higher organisms through [[endosymbiosis]], and contrasting approaches to molecular evolution in the [[gene-centered view of evolution|gene-centered view]] (which held selection as the predominant cause of evolution) and the [[neutral theory of molecular evolution|neutral theory]] (which made [[genetic drift]] a key factor) spawned perennial debates over the proper balance of [[adaptationism]] and contingency in evolutionary theory.<ref>Gould, ''The Structure of Evolutionary Theory'', chapter 8; Larson, ''Evolution'', chapter 12</ref>

In the 1970s [[Stephen Jay Gould]] and [[Niles Eldredge]] proposed the theory of [[punctuated equilibrium]] which holds that stasis is the most prominent feature of the fossil record, and that most evolutionary changes occur rapidly over relatively short periods of time.<ref> Larson, ''Evolution'', pp 271–283</ref> In 1980 [[Luis Alvarez]] and [[Walter Alvarez]] proposed the hypothesis that an [[impact event]] was responsible for the [[Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event]].<ref> Zimmer, ''Evolution'', pp 188–195</ref> Also in the early 1980s, statistical analysis of the fossil record of marine organisms published by [[Jack Sepkoski]] and [[David M. Raup]] lead to a better appreciation of the importance of [[mass extinction events]] to the history of life on earth.<ref> Zimmer, ''Evolution'', pp 169–172 </ref>

===Biochemistry, microbiology, and molecular biology===
{{see also|History of biochemistry|History of molecular biology}}

By the end of the 19th century all of the major pathways of [[drug metabolism]] had been discovered, along with the outlines of protein and fatty acid metabolism and urea synthesis.<ref>Caldwell, "Drug metabolism and pharmacogenetics"; Fruton, ''Proteins, Enzymes, Genes'', chapter 7</ref> In the early decades of the twentieth century, the minor components of foods in human nutrition, the [[vitamins]], began to be isolated and synthesized. Improved laboratory techniques such as [[chromatography]] and [[electrophoresis]] led to rapid advances in physiological chemistry, which—as ''biochemistry''—began to achieve independence from its medical origins. In the 1920s and 1930s, biochemists—led by [[Hans Adolf Krebs|Hans Krebs]] and [[Carl Ferdinand Cori|Carl]] and [[Gerty Cori]]—began to work out many of the central [[metabolic pathways]] of life: the [[citric acid cycle]], [[glycogenesis]] and [[glycolysis]], and the synthesis of [[steroid]]s and [[porphyrin]]s. Between the 1930s and 1950s, [[Fritz Lipmann]] and others established the role of [[Adenosine triphosphate|ATP]] as the universal carrier of energy in the cell, and [[mitochondria]] as the powerhouse of the cell. Such traditionally biochemical work continued to be very actively pursued throughout the 20th century and into the 21st.<ref>Fruton, ''Proteins, Enzymes, Genes'', chapters 6 and 7</ref>

====Origins of molecular biology====
Following the rise of classical genetics, many biologists—including a new wave of physical scientists in biology—pursued the question of the gene and its physical nature. [[Warren Weaver]]—head of the science division of the [[Rockefeller Foundation]]—issued grants to promote research that applied the methods of physics and chemistry to basic biological problems, coining the term ''[[molecular biology]]'' for this approach in 1938; many of the significant biological breakthroughs of the 1930s and 1940s were funded by the Rockefeller Foundation.<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapter 8; Kay, ''The Molecular Vision of Life'', Introduction, Interlude I, and Interlude II</ref>

[[Image:TMV.jpg|thumb|left|[[Wendell Meredith Stanley|Wendell Stanley's]] crystallization of [[tobacco mosaic virus]] as a pure [[nucleoprotein]] in 1935 convinced many scientists that heredity might be explained purely through physics and chemistry.]]

Like biochemistry, the overlapping disciplines of [[bacteriology]] and [[virology]] (later combined as ''microbiology''), situated between science and medicine, developed rapidly in the early 20th century. [[Félix d'Herelle]]'s isolation of [[bacteriophage]] during [[World War I]] initiated a long line of research focused of phage viruses and the bacteria they infect.<ref>See: Summers, ''Félix d'Herelle and the Origins of Molecular Biology''</ref>

The development of standard, genetically uniform organisms that could produce repeatable experimental results was essential for the development of [[molecular genetics]]. After early work with ''Drosophila'' and [[maize]], the adoption of simpler [[model system]]s like the bread mold ''[[Neurospora crassa]]'' made it possible to connect genetics to biochemistry, most importantly with [[George Wells Beadle|Beadle]] and [[Edward Lawrie Tatum|Tatum's]] "one gene, one enzyme" hypothesis in 1941. Genetics experiments on even simpler systems like [[tobacco mosaic virus]] and [[bacteriophage]], aided by the new technologies of [[electron microscope|electron microscopy]] and [[ultracentrifuge|ultracentrifugation]], forced scientists to re-evaluate the literal meaning of ''life''; virus heredity and reproducing [[nucleoprotein]] cell structures outside the nucleus ("plasmagenes") complicated the accepted Mendelian-chromosome theory.<ref>Creager, ''The Life of a Virus'', chapters 3 and 6; Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapter 2</ref>

[[Image:Crick's 1958 central dogma.svg|thumb|The "[[central dogma of molecular biology]]" (originally a "dogma" only in jest) was proposed by Francis Crick in 1958.<ref>Crick, Francis. "[http://www.euchromatin.org/Crick01.htm Central Dogma of Molecular Biology]", ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'', vol. 227, pp. 561–563 (August 8, 1970)</ref> This is Crick's reconstruction of how he conceived of the central dogma at the time. The solid lines represent (as it seemed in 1958) known modes of information transfer, and the dashed lines represent postulated ones.]]

[[Oswald Avery]] showed in 1943 that [[DNA]] was likely the genetic material of the chromosome, not its protein; the issue was settled decisively with the 1952 [[Hershey-Chase experiment]]—one of many contribution from the so-called [[phage group]] centered around physicist-turned-biologist [[Max Delbrück]]. In 1953 [[James D. Watson]] and [[Francis Crick]], building on the work of [[Maurice Wilkins]] and [[Rosalind Franklin]], suggested that the structure of DNA was a double helix. In their famous paper "[[Molecular structure of Nucleic Acids]]", Watson and Crick noted coyly, "It has not escaped our notice that the specific pairing we have postulated immediately suggests a possible copying mechanism for the genetic material."<ref>Watson, James D. and Francis Crick. "[http://www.nature.com/nature/dna50/watsoncrick.pdf Molecular structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid]", ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'', vol. 171, , no. 4356, pp 737–738</ref> After the 1958 [[Meselson-Stahl experiment]] confirmed the [[semiconservative replication]] of DNA, it was clear to most biologists that nucleic acid sequence must somehow determine [[Peptide sequence|amino acid sequence]] in proteins; physicist [[George Gamow]] proposed that a fixed [[genetic code]] connected proteins and DNA. Between 1953 and 1961, there were few known biological sequences—either DNA or protein—but an abundance of proposed code systems, a situation made even more complicated by expanding knowledge of the intermediate role of [[RNA]]. To actually decipher the code, it took an extensive series of experiments in biochemistry and bacterial genetics, between 1961 and 1966—most importantly the work of [[Marshall W. Nirenberg|Nirenberg]] and [[Har Gobind Khorana|Khorana]].<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapters 3, 4, 11, and 12; Fruton, ''Proteins, Enzymes, Genes'', chapter 8; on the Meselson-Stahl experiment, see: Holmes, ''Meselson, Stahl, and the Replication of DNA''</ref>

[[Image:Myoglobindiffraction.png|thumb|left|[[Myoglobin]] was used extensively for early crystallographic studies of protein structure, because of its availability from [[Sperm Whale]]s.]]

====Expansion of molecular biology====
In addition to the Division of Biology at [[Caltech]], the [[Laboratory of Molecular Biology]] (and its precursors) at [[Cambridge University|Cambridge]], and a handful of other institutions, the [[Pasteur Institute]] became a major center for molecular biology research in the late 1950s.<ref>On Caltech molecular biology, see Kay, ''The Molecular Vision of Life'', chapters 4–8; on the Cambridge lab, see de Chadarevian, ''Designs for Life''; on comparisons with the Pasteur Institute, see Creager, "Building Biology across the Atlantic"</ref> Scientists at Cambridge, led by [[Max Perutz]] and [[John Kendrew]], focused on the rapidly developing field of [[structural biology]], combining [[X-ray crystallography]] with [[molecular model]]ling and the new computational possibilities of [[History of computing hardware|digital computing]] (benefiting both directly and indirectly from the [[military funding of science]]). A number of biochemists led by [[Fred Sanger]] later joined the Cambridge lab, bringing together the study of [[macromolecule|macromolecular]] structure and function.<ref>de Chadarevian, ''Designs for Life'', chapters 4 and 7</ref> At the Pasteur Institute, [[François Jacob]] and [[Jacques Monod]] followed the 1959 [[Arthur Pardee#The PaJaMo experiment|PaJaMo experiment]] with a series of publications regarding the [[lac operon|''lac'']] [[operon]] that established the concept of [[gene regulation]] and identified what came to be known as [[messenger RNA]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Pardee A |title=PaJaMas in Paris |journal=Trends Genet. |volume=18 |issue=11 |pages=585-7 |year=2002 |pmid=12414189}}</ref> By the mid-1960s, the intellectual core of molecular biology—a model for the molecular basis of metabolism and reproduction— was largely complete.<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapter 14</ref>

The late 1950s to the early 1970s was a period of intense research and institutional expansion for molecular biology, which had only recently become a somewhat coherent discipline. In what organismic biologist [[E. O. Wilson]] called "The Molecular Wars", the methods and practitioners of molecular biology spread rapidly, often coming to dominate departments and even entire disciplines.<ref>Wilson, ''Naturalist'', chapter 12; Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology, chapter 15</ref> Molecularization was particularly important in [[genetics]], [[immunology]], [[embryology]], and [[neurobiology]], while the idea that life is controlled by a "[[genetic program]]"—a metaphor Jacob and Monod introduced from the emerging fields of [[cybernetics]] and [[computer science]]—became an influential perspective throughout biology.<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapter 15; Keller, ''The Century of the Gene'', chapter 5</ref> Immunology in particular became linked with molecular biology, with innovation flowing both ways: the [[clonal selection theory]] developed by [[Niels Jerne]] and [[Frank Macfarlane Burnet]] in the mid 1950s helped shed light on the general mechanisms of protein synthesis.<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology, pp 126–132, 213–214</ref>

Resistance to the growing influence of molecular biology was especially evident in [[evolutionary biology]]. Protein sequencing had great potential for the quantitative study of evolution (through the [[molecular clock hypothesis]]), but leading evolutionary biologists questioned the relevance of molecular biology for answering the big questions of evolutionary causation. Departments and disciplines fractured as organismic biologists asserted their importance and independence: [[Theodosius Dobzhansky]] made the famous statement that "[[nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution]]" as a response to the molecular challenge. The issue became even more critical after 1968; [[Motoo Kimura|Motoo Kimura's]] [[neutral theory of molecular evolution]] suggested that [[natural selection]] was not the ubiquitous cause of evolution, at least at the molecular level, and that molecular evolution might be a fundamentally different process from [[Morphology (biology)|morphological]] evolution. (Resolving this "molecular/morphological paradox" has been a central focus of molecular evolution research since the 1960s.)<ref>Dietrich, "Paradox and Persuasion", pp 100–111</ref>

===Biotechnology, genetic engineering, and genomics===
{{see also|History of biotechnology}}

[[Biotechnology]] in the general sense has been an important part of biology since the late 19th century. With the industrialization of [[brewing]] and [[agriculture]], chemists and biologists became aware of the great potential of human-controlled biological processes. In particular, [[Industrial fermentation|fermentation]] proved a great boon to chemical industries. By the early 1970s, a wide range of biotechnologies were being developed, from drugs like [[penicillin]] and [[steroids]] to foods like ''[[Chlorella]]'' and single-cell protein to [[gasohol]]—as well as a wide range of [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrid]] [[high-yield crop]]s and agricultural technologies, the basis for the [[Green Revolution]].<ref>Bud, ''The Uses of Life'', chapters 2 and 6</ref>

[[Image:E coli at 10000x, original.jpg|thumb|left|Carefully engineered strains of the bacterium ''[[Escherichia coli]]'' are crucial tools in biotechnology as well as many other biological fields.]]
====Recombinant DNA====
Biotechnology in the modern sense of [[genetic engineering]] began in the 1970s, with the invention of [[recombinant DNA]] techniques. [[Restriction enzyme]]s were discovered and characterized in the late 1960s, following on the heels of the isolation, then duplication, then synthesis of viral [[genes]]. Beginning with the lab of [[Paul Berg]] in 1972 (aided by ''[[EcoRI]]'' from [[Herbert Boyer|Herbert Boyer's]] lab, building on work with [[ligase]] by [[Arthur Kornberg|Arthur Kornberg's]] lab), molecular biologists put these pieces together to produce the first [[transgenic organisms]]. Soon after, others began using [[plasmid]] [[Vector (biology)|vectors]] and adding genes for [[antibiotic resistance]], greatly increasing the reach of the recombinant techniques.<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapters 15 and 16</ref>

Wary of the potential dangers (particularly the possibility of a prolific bacteria with a viral cancer-causing gene), the scientific community as well as a wide range of scientific outsiders reacted to these developments with both enthusiasm and fearful restraint. Prominent molecular biologists led by Berg suggested a temporary moratorium on recombinant DNA research until the dangers could be assessed and policies could be created. This moratorium was largely respected, until the participants in the 1975 [[Asilomar Conference on Recombinant DNA]] created policy recommendations and concluded that the technology could be used safely.<ref>Bud, ''The Uses of Life'', chapter 8; Gottweis, ''Governing Molecules'', chapter 3; Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapter 16</ref>

Following Asilomar, new genetic engineering techniques and applications developed rapidly. [[DNA sequencing]] methods improved greatly (pioneered by [[Fred Sanger]] and [[Walter Gilbert]]), as did [[oligonucleotide]] synthesis and [[transfection]] techniques.<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapter 16</ref> Researchers learned to control the expression of [[transgene]]s, and were soon racing—in both academic and industrial contexts—to create organisms capable of expressing human genes for the production of human hormones. However, this was a more daunting task than molecular biologists had expected; developments between 1977 and 1980 showed that, due to the phenomena of split genes and [[splicing (genetics)|splicing]], higher organisms had a much more complex system of [[gene expression]] than the bacteria models of earlier studies.<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapter 17</ref> The first such race, for synthesizing human [[insulin]], was won by [[Genentech]]. This marked the beginning of the biotech boom (and with it, the era of [[gene patents]]), with an unprecedented level of overlap between biology, industry, and law.<ref>Krimsky, ''Biotechnics and Society'', chapter 2; on the race for insulin, see: Hall, ''Invisible Frontiers''; see also: Thackray (ed.), ''Private Science''</ref>

====Molecular systematics and genomics====
{{see also|History of molecular evolution}}
[[Image:Cycler.jpg|thumb|upright|Inside of a 48-well [[thermal cycler]], a device used to perform [[polymerase chain reaction]] on many samples at once.]]

By the 1980s, protein sequencing had already transformed methods of [[scientific classification]] of organisms (especially [[cladistics]]) but biologists soon began to use RNA and DNA sequences as [[Trait (biology)|characters]]; this expanded the significance of [[molecular evolution]] within evolutionary biology, as the results of [[molecular systematics]] could be compared with traditional evolutionary trees based on [[morphology (biology)|morphology]]. Following the pioneering ideas of [[Lynn Margulis]] on [[endosymbiotic theory]], which holds that some of the [[organelles]] of [[eukaryotic]] cells originated from free living [[prokaryotic]] organisms through [[symbiotic]] relationships, even the overall division of the tree of life was revised. Into the 1990s, the five domains (Plants, Animals, Fungi, Protists, and Monerans) became three (the [[Archaea]], the [[Bacteria]], and the [[Eukarya]]) based on [[Carl Woese|Carl Woese's]] pioneering [[molecular systematics]] work with [[16S rRNA]] sequencing.<ref>Sapp, ''Genesis'', chapters 18 and 19</ref>

The development and popularization of the [[polymerase chain reaction]] (PCR) in mid 1980s (by [[Kary Mullis]] and others at [[Cetus Corp.]]) marked another watershed in the history of modern biotechnology, greatly increasing the ease and speed of genetic analysis. Coupled with the use of [[expressed sequence tags]], PCR led to the discovery of many more genes than could be found through traditional biochemical or genetic methods and opened the possibility of sequencing entire genomes.<ref>Morange, ''A History of Molecular Biology'', chapter 20; see also: Rabinow, ''Making PCR''</ref>

The unity of much of the [[morphogenesis]] of organisms from fertilized egg to adult began to be unraveled after the discovery of the [[homeobox]] genes, first in fruit flies, then in other insects and animals, including humans. These developments led to advances in the field of [[evolutionary developmental biology]] towards understanding how the various [[body plan]]s of the animal phyla have evolved and how they are related to one another.<ref>Gould, ''The Structure of Evolutionary Theory'', chapter 10</ref>

The [[Human Genome Project]]—the largest, most costly single biological study ever undertaken—began in 1988 under the leadership of [[James D. Watson]], after preliminary work with genetically simpler model organisms such as ''[[E. coli]]'', ''[[S. cerevisiae]]'' and ''[[C. elegans]]''. [[Shotgun sequencing]] and gene discovery methods pioneered by [[Craig Venter]]—and fueled by the financial promise of [[gene patents]] with [[Celera Genomics]]— led to a public-private sequencing competition that ended in compromise with the first draft of the human DNA sequence announced in 2000.<ref>Davies, ''Cracking the Genome'', Introduction; see also: Sulston, ''The Common Thread''</ref>
<br clear=all />

==Notes==
{{reflist|2}}

==References==
<div class="references-small">
* Allen, Garland E. ''Thomas Hunt Morgan: The Man and His Science''. Princeton University Press: Princeton, 1978. ISBN 0-691-08200-6
* Allen, Garland E. ''Life Science in the Twentieth Century''. Cambridge University Press, 1975.
* Annas, Julia ''Classical Greek Philosophy''. In Boardman, John; Griffin, Jasper; Murray, Oswyn (ed.) ''The Oxford History of the Classical World''. Oxford University Press: New York, 1986. ISBN 0-19-872112-9
* Barnes, Jonathan ''Hellenistic Philosophy and Science''. In Boardman, John; Griffin, Jasper; Murray, Oswyn (ed.) ''The Oxford History of the Classical World''. Oxford University Press: New York, 1986. ISBN 0-19-872112-9
* [[Peter J. Bowler|Bowler, Peter J.]] ''The Earth Encompassed: A History of the Environmental Sciences''. W. W. Norton & Company: New York, 1992. ISBN 0-393-32080-4
* [[Peter J. Bowler|Bowler, Peter J.]] ''The Eclipse of Darwinism: Anti-Darwinian Evolution Theories in the Decades around 1900''. The Johns Hopkins University Press: Baltimore, 1983. ISBN 0-8018-2932-1
* [[Peter J. Bowler|Bowler, Peter J.]] ''Evolution:The History of an Idea''. University of California Press, 2003. ISBN 0-52023693-9.
* [[Janet Browne|Browne, Janet]]. ''The Secular Ark: Studies in the History of Biogeography''. Yale University Press: New Have, 1983. ISBN 0300024606
* Bud, Robert. ''The Uses of Life: A History of Biotechnology''. Cambridge University Press: London, 1993. ISBN 0521382408
* Caldwell, John. "Drug metabolism and pharmacogenetics: the British contribution to fields of international significance." ''British Journal of Pharmacology'', Vol. 147, Issue S1 (January 2006), pp S89–S99.
* Coleman, William ''Biology in the Nineteenth Century: Problems of Form, Function, and Transformation''. Cambridge University Press: New York, 1977. ISBN 0-521-29293-X
* Creager, Angela N. H. ''The Life of a Virus: Tobacco Mosaic Virus as an Experimental Model, 1930–1965''. University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 2002. ISBN 0-226-12025-2
* Creager, Angela N. H. "Building Biology across the Atlantic," essay review in ''Journal of the History of Biology'', Vol. 36, No. 3 (September 2003), pp. 579–589.
* de Chadarevian, Soraya. ''Designs for Life: Molecular Biology after World War II''. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 2002. ISBN 0521570786
* Dietrich, Michael R. "Paradox and Persuasion: Negotiating the Place of Molecular Evolution within Evolutionary Biology," in ''Journal of the History of Biology'', Vol. 31 (1998), pp. 85–111.
* Davies, Kevin. ''Cracking the Genome: Inside the Race to Unlock Human DNA''. The Free Press: New York, 2001. ISBN 0-7432-0479-4
* Fruton, Joseph S. ''Proteins, Enzymes, Genes: The Interplay of Chemistry and Biology''. Yale University Press: New Haven, 1999. ISBN 0-300-07608-8
* Gottweis, Herbert. ''Governing Molecules: The Discursive Politics of Genetic Engineering in Europe and the United States''. MIT Press: Cambridge, MA, 1998. ISBN 0-262-07189-4
* [[Stephen Jay Gould|Gould, Stephen Jay]]. ''The Structure of Evolutionary Theory''. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press: Cambridge, 2002. ISBN 0-674-00613-5
* Hagen, Joel B. ''An Entangled Bank: The Origins of Ecosystem Ecology''. Rutgers University Press: New Brunswick, 1992. ISBN 0-8135-1824-5
* Hall, Stephen S. ''Invisible Frontiers: The Race to Synthesize a Human Gene''. Atlantic Monthly Press: New York, 1987. ISBN 0-87113-147-1
* Holmes, Frederic Lawrence. ''Meselson, Stahl, and the Replication of DNA: A History of "The Most Beautiful Experiment in Biology"''. Yale University Press: New Haven, 2001. ISBN 0300085400
* Junker, Thomas. ''Geschichte der Biologie''. C. H. Beck: München, 2004.
* Kay, Lily E. ''The Molecular Vision of Life: Caltech, The Rockefeller Foundation, and the Rise of the New Biology''. Oxford University Press: New York, 1993. ISBN 0-19-511143-5
* Kohler, Robert E. ''Lords of the Fly: ''Drosophila'' Genetics and the Experimental Life''. Chicago University Press: Chicago, 1994. ISBN 0-226-45063-5
* Kohler, Robert E. ''Landscapes and Labscapes: Exploring the Lab-Field Border in Biology''. University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 2002. ISBN 0-226-45009-0
* Krimsky, Sheldon. ''Biotechnics and Society: The Rise of Industrial Genetics''. Praeger Publishers: New York, 1991. ISBN 0-275-93860-3
* [[Edward J. Larson|Larson, Edward J.]] ''Evolution: The Remarkable History of a Scientific Theory''. The Modern Library: New York, 2004. ISBN 0-679-64288-9
* {{cite web| author=Lennox, James |url=http://setis.library.usyd.edu.au/stanford/entries/aristotle-biology/ |title=Aristotle's Biology |work=[http://setis.library.usyd.edu.au/stanford/ Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy] |date=2006-02-15 |accessyear=2006 |accessmothday= October 28}}
* [[Arthur Oncken Lovejoy|Lovejoy, Arthur O.]] ''The Great Chain of Being: A Study of the History of an Idea''. Harvard University Press, 1936. Reprinted by Harper & Row, ISBN 0-674-36150-4, 2005 paperback: ISBN 0-674-36153-9.
* Magner, Lois N. ''A History of the Life Sciences'', third edition. Marcel Dekker, Inc.: New York, 2002. ISBN 0-8247-0824-5
* Mason, Stephen F. ''A History of the Sciences''. Collier Books: New York, 1956.
* [[Ernst Mayr|Mayr, Ernst]]. ''The Growth of Biological Thought: Diversity, Evolution, and Inheritance''. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press: Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1982. ISBN 0-674-36445-7
* Mayr, Ernst and William B. Provine, eds. ''The Evolutionary Synthesis: Perspectives on the Unification of Biology''. Harvard University Press: Cambridge, 1998. ISBN 0-674-27226-9
* Morange, Michel. ''A History of Molecular Biology'', translated by Matthew Cobb. Harvard University Press: Cambridge, 1998. ISBN 0-674-39855-6
* Rabinbach, Anson. ''The Human Motor: Energy, Fatigue, and the Origins of Modernity''. University of California Press, 1992. ISBN 0520078276
* Rabinow, Paul. ''Making PCR: A Story of Biotechnology''. University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 1996. ISBN 0-226-70146-8
* [[Martin J. S. Rudwick|Rudwick, Martin J.S.]] ''The Meaning of Fossils''. The University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 1972. ISBN 0-226-73103-0
* Raby, Peter. ''Bright Paradise: Victorian Scientific Travellers''. Princeton University Press: Princeton, 1997. ISBN 0-691-04843-6
* Rothman, Sheila M. and David J. Rothman. ''The Pursuit of Perfection: The Promise and Perils of Medical Enhancement''. Vintage Books: New York, 2003. ISBN 0-679-75835-6
* Sapp, Jan. ''Genesis: The Evolution of Biology''. Oxford University Press: New York, 2003. ISBN 0-19-515618-8
* Secord, James A. ''Victorian Sensation: The Extraordinary Publication, Reception, and Secret Authorship of ''Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation. University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 2000. ISBN 0-226-74410-8
* [[John Sulston|Sulston, John]]. ''The Common Thread: A Story of Science, Politics, Ethics and the Human Genome''. National Academy Press, 2002. ISBN 0309084091
* Smocovitis, Vassiliki Betty. ''Unifying Biology: The Evolutionary Synthesis and Evolutionary Biology''. Princeton University Press: Princeton, 1996. ISBN 0-691-03343-9
* Summers, William C. ''Félix d'Herelle and the Origins of Molecular Biology'', Yale University Press: New Haven, 1999. ISBN 0-300-07127-2
* [[Alfred Sturtevant|Sturtevant, A. H.]] ''[http://www.esp.org/books/sturt/history/readbook.html A History of Genetics]''. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press: Cold Spring Harbor, 2001. ISBN 0879696079
* Thackray, Arnold, ed. ''Private Science: Biotechnology and the Rise of the Molecular Sciences''. University of Pennsylvania Press: Philadelphia, 1998. ISBN 0812234286
* [[E. O. Wilson|Wilson, Edward O.]] ''Naturalist''. Island Press, 1994.
* Zimmer, Carl. ''Evolution: the triumph of an idea''. HarperCollins: New York, 2001. ISBN 0-06-113840-1

</div>

==External links==
*[http://www.ishpssb.org/ International Society for History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology] - professional history of biology organization
*[http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ac22 History of Biology] - Historyworld article
*[http://www.bioexplorer.net/History_of_Biology/ History of Biology] at Bioexplorer.Net - a collection of history of biology links
*[http://en.citizendium.org/wiki/Biology Biology] - historically-oriented article on Citizendium
*[http://www.archive.org/details/historyofbiology00mialrich Miall, L. C. (1911) History of biology.] Watts & Co. London
{{History of biology}}

{{featured article}}

[[Category:History of biology| ]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:History of science|Biology, history of]]

[[de:Geschichte der Biologie]]
[[es:Historia de la biología]]
[[fr:Histoire de la biologie]]
[[he:היסטוריה של הביולוגיה]]
[[ja:生物学史]]
[[pl:Historia biologii]]
[[pt:História da biologia]]
[[sk:Dejiny biológie]]

Hühnerkanone

2008-03-11T14:40:26Z

TestPilot: clean up & spell check , typos fixed: regulary → regularly using AWB

The (misnamed) '''NASA Chicken Gun''' is one of several large diameter compressed air cannon used by the [[Federal Aviation Administration]] and [[US Air Force]] to test the strength of [[Aircraft]] [[Windshield]]s and the safety of [[Jet engines]]. A common danger to aircraft is that they collide with birds in flight. Most parts of an aircraft are strong enough to resist such a [[bird strike]]. Jet engines may sustain serious damage, however, and cockpit windows are necessarily made of transparent materials and are a vulnerable spot. The "Range S-3" gun was designed to conduct tests to determine the risk.

The Chicken Gun is designed to simulate high speed bird impacts. It is named after its unusual projectile: a whole dead standard sized chicken, as would be used for cooking. This has been found to accurately simulate a fairly large bird. The test target is fixed in place on a test stand, and the cannon is used to fire the chicken into the engine, windshield, or other test structure.

The gun is driven from a compressed air tank. In the 1970s Goodyear Aerospace in Litchfield Park, AZ, used a gun with a ceramic diaphragm to seal the compressed air in the tank from the gun's barrel. To fire the gun, a solenoid-driven needle struck and ruptured the diaphragm, allowing the compressed air to drive the chicken (in its container - a cylindrical cardboard ice cream carton) down the barrel. At the muzzle, a metal ring stopped the carton, but allowed the chicken to pass through. Slow-motion cameras photographed the chicken impacting a fighter windshield in the test bed. These cameras were started in time with the breaking of the diaphragm.

There is a longstanding urban legend about the gun being loaned to some other agency, who fired frozen chickens instead of thawed chickens. Research indicates that this is apparently a [http://www.snopes.com/science/cannon.htm myth].

Guns are operated by the FAA and the [[US Air Force]] rather than NASA, as is commonly believed.

==The British Connection==
The first recorded use of a chicken gun was by the Royal Aeronautical (Aircraft) Establishment (RAE) in Farnborough, UK in 1961, as cited in this Canadian NRC article: http://www.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/highlights/2007/0701chicken_e.html

==Pop Culture==
The chicken gun was first used in the mid 1950's at Dehavilland Aircraft Hatfield UK. It was fired with a correct count down from a 'pill box' housed in the woods at DeHavilland's. The chickens were killed shortly before firing and obtained from a local farm also at the edge of the woods. Two DeHavilland employees (Vic and Robbie from DeHavilland Propellers Ltd.)witnessed this regularly as they were each building a boat in the old hangers there. After firing the jet engines were taken away and examined for damage. High speed cameras recorded the complete action. Robbie was actually a film camera employee so knew the hi-tech emphasis on the project.

On ''[[MythBusters]]'' a chicken gun was used in various experiments. The experiments conducted used both frozen and thawed chickens to test the cockpit window of a private aircraft.

The 1970s test of the British High Speed Train windscreens used the Farnborough chicken gun and expertise, not NASA based expertise, busting the Mythbusters myth relating to NASA telling the British "defrost the chickens first"

==External references:==
[http://www.arnold.af.mil/aedc/test.htm Arnold Air Force Base Test Department] (broken link)

[http://www.arnold.af.mil/aedc/testhighlights/stats.pdf (PDF) Arnold AFB test facilities capabilities, including range S3, Bird Impact Range]

[http://www.fodnews.com/duck_site.html Article on the US Air Force gun at FODNews.com]

[http://www.snopes.com/science/cannon.htm Snopes entry on frozen chicken myth]

[[Category:aviation]]

James Faulkner

2008-03-10T13:51:48Z

TestPilot: clean up & spell check , typos fixed: protrayed → portrayed using AWB

{{Infobox actor voice
| name = James Faulkner
| image = Replace this image male.svg
| image_caption =
| image_size =
| landscape =
| birthname = James Sebastian Faulkner
| alias = James Faulkner
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1948|7|18}}
| birth_place = [[Hampstead]], [[London]]
| death_date =
| death_place =
| occupation = Actor
| spouse = Kate
| parents =
| children = Guy and Leo
| URL = http://www.jamesfaulkner.info/
}}
'''James Faulkner''' (born [[18 July]] [[1948]]) is an [[England|English]] actor. Known for his many various appearance on television and in movies.

Faulkner made his big screen debut as [[Josef Strauss]] in ''[[The Great Waltz]]'' in 1972. He appeared in other films such as ''[[Whispering Death]]'', played Lt [[Teignmouth Melvill]] in ''[[Zulu Dawn]]'' that he co-produced, and appeared as Uncle Geoffrey in both ''[[Bridget Jones]]'' films. He has also portrayed Agent Smith in the movie ''[[Hitman (2007 film)|Hitman]]''. He was also the pricipar antagonist Baron Mullins in the short-lived US/UK television show, [[Covington Cross]].

==External links==
*[http://www.jamesfaulkner.info/ The Official James Faulkner Website]
*{{ann name|id=14950|name=James Faulkner}}
*{{imdb name|0269077}}
*[http://www.crystalacids.com/database/person/1319/james-faulkner/ James Faulkner] at the CrystalAcids Anime Voice Actor Database

{{DEFAULTSORT:Faulkner, James}}
[[Category:1948 births]]
[[Category:English film actors]]
[[Category:English television actors]]
[[Category:English voice actors]]
[[Category:Living people]]

{{UK-screen-actor-stub}}

Proteinstrukturvorhersage

2006-11-17T06:25:10Z

TestPilot: /* Software */ biggest project first, then second and etc

'''[[Protein structure]] prediction''' is one of the most significant technologies pursued by [[bioinformatics|computational structural biology]] and [[theoretical chemistry]]. It has the aim of determining the three-dimensional structure of [[protein]]s from their [[amino acid]] sequences. In more formal terms, this is expressed as the prediction of protein [[tertiary structure]] from [[primary structure]]. Given the usefulness of known protein structures in such valuable tasks as [[rational drug design]] this is a highly active field of research.

Every two years, the performance of current methods is assessed in the [[CASP]] experiment.

== Overview ==

The practical role of protein structure prediction is now more important than ever. Massive amounts of protein sequence data may be derived from modern large-scale [[DNA]] sequencing efforts such as the [[Human Genome Project]]. Despite community-wide efforts in [[structural genomics]], the output of experimentally determined protein structures - typically by time-consuming and relatively expensive [[X-ray crystallography]] or [[Protein NMR|NMR spectroscopy]] - is lagging far behind the output of protein sequences.

A number of factors exist that make protein structure prediction a very difficult task, including:
* The number of possible structures that proteins may possess is extremely large, as highlighted by the [[Levinthal paradox]].
* The physical basis of protein structural stability is not fully understood.
* The tertiary structure of a native protein may not be readily formed without the aid of ''[[trans]]''-acting factors. For example, proteins known as ''[[chaperone]]s'' are required for some proteins to properly fold; other proteins cannot fold properly without modifications such as [[glycosylation]].
* A particular sequence may be able to assume multiple conformations depending on its environment, and the biologically active conformation may not be the most [[thermodynamics|thermodynamically]] favorable.
* Direct simulation of [[protein folding]] via methods such as [[molecular dynamics]] is not generally tractable for both practical and theoretical reasons. However, the distributed computing projects [[Folding@home]] are tackling such simulation difficulties.

Despite the above hindrances, much progress is being made by the many research groups that are interested in the task. Prediction of structures for small proteins is now a perfectly realistic goal. A wide range of approaches are routinely applied for such predictions. These approaches may be classified into two broad classes; ''[[ab initio]]'' modelling and comparative modelling.

== ''Ab initio'' protein modelling ==

''Ab initio''- or ''[[de novo]]''- protein modelling methods seek to build three-dimensional protein models "from scratch", i.e., based on physical principles rather than (directly) on previously solved structures. There are many possible procedures that either attempt to mimic [[protein folding]] or apply some [[stochastic]] method to search possible solutions (i.e. [[global optimization]] of a suitable energy function). These procedures tend to require vast computational resources, and have thus only been carried out for tiny proteins. To attempt to predict protein structure ''de novo'' for larger proteins, we will need better algorithms and larger computational resources like those afforded by either powerful supercomputers (such as [[Blue Gene]] or [[MDGRAPE-3]]) or distributed computing (see [[Human Proteome Folding Project]]). Although these computational barriers are vast, the potential benefits of structural genomics (by predicted or experimental methods) make ''ab initio'' structure prediction an active research field.

== Comparative protein modelling ==

Comparative protein modelling uses previously solved structures as starting points, or templates. This is effective because it appears that although the number of actual proteins is vast, there is a limited set of [[tertiary structure|tertiary]] [[structural motif]]s to which most proteins belong. It has been suggested that there are only around 2000 distinct protein folds in nature, though there are many millions of different proteins.

These methods may also be split into two groups:
* '''[[Homology modelling]]''' is based on the reasonable assumption that two [[Homology (biology)#Homology of sequences in genetics|homologous]] proteins will share very similar structures. Because a protein's fold is more evolutionarily conserved than its amino acid sequence, a target sequence can be modeled with reasonable accuracy on a very distantly related template, provided that the relationship between target and template can be discerned through [[sequence alignment]]. It has been suggested that the primary bottleneck in comparative modelling arises from difficulties in alignment rather than from errors in structure prediction given a known-good alignment<ref name="zhang">Zhang Y and Skolnick J. (2005). The protein structure prediction problem could be solved using the current PDB library. ''Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA'' 102(4):1029-34. {{Entrez Pubmed|15653774}}</ref>. Unsurprisingly, homology modelling is most accurate when the target and template have similar sequences.

* [[Protein threading|'''Protein threading''']]<ref name="bowie">Bowie JU, Luthy R, Eisenberg D. (1991). A method to identify protein sequences that fold into a known three-dimensional structure. ''Science'' 253(5016):164-70. {{Entrez Pubmed|1853201}}</ref> scans the amino acid sequence of an unknown structure against a database of solved structures. In each case, a scoring function is used to assess the compatibility of the sequence to the structure, thus yielding possible three-dimensional models. This type of method is also known as '''3D-1D fold recognition''' due to its compatibility analysis between three-dimensional structures and linear protein sequences. This method has also given rise to methods performing an '''inverse folding search''' by evaluating the compatibility of a given structure with a large database of sequences, thus predicting which sequences have the potential to produce a given fold.

== Side chain geometry prediction ==
Even structure prediction methods that are reasonably accurate for the peptide backbone often get the orientation and packing of the amino acid [[side chain]]s wrong. Methods that specifically address the problem of predicting side chain geometry include [[dead-end elimination]] and the [[self-consistent mean field (biology)|self-consistent mean field]] method. Both discretize the continuously varying [[dihedral angle]]s that determine a side chain's orientation relative to the backbone into a set of [[rotamer]]s with fixed dihedral angles. The methods then attempt to identify the set of rotamers that minimize the model's overall energy. Such methods are most useful for analyzing the protein's [[hydrophobic]] core, where side chains are more closely packed; they have more difficulty addressing the looser constraints and higher flexibility of surface residues<ref name="voigt">Voigt CA, Gordon DB, Mayo SL. (2000). Trading accuracy for speed: A quantitative comparison of search algorithms in protein sequence design. ''J Mol Biol'' 299(3):789-803.{{Entrez Pubmed|10835284}}</ref>.

== Software ==
[http://www.salilab.org/modeller/ MODELLER] is a popular software tool for producing homology models using methodology derived from [[protein NMR|NMR spectroscopy]] data processing. [http://swissmodel.expasy.org//SWISS-MODEL.html SwissModel] provides an automated web server for basic homology modeling. A common software tool for protein threading is [http://www.sbg.bio.ic.ac.uk/~3dpssm/ 3D-PSSM]. The basic algorithm for threading is described in <ref name="bowie" /> and is fairly straightforward to implement.

A very recent review of currently popular software for structure prediction can be found at <ref name="nayeem">Nayeem A, Sitkoff D, Krystek S Jr. (2006). A comparative study of available software for high-accuracy homology modeling: From sequence alignments to structural models. ''Protein Sci'' 15:808-824.{{Entrez Pubmed|16600967}}</ref>. A partial list of web servers and available tools is maintained [http://ncisgi.ncifcrf.gov/~ravichas/HomMod/ here].

Several [[distributed computing]] projects concerning protein structure prediction have also been implemented, such as the [[Rosetta@home]], [[Human Proteome Folding Project]], [[Predictor@home]] and [[TANPAKU]].

== Protein-Protein Complexes ==

In the case of [[protein complex|complexes of two or more proteins]], where the structures of the proteins are known or can be predicted with high accuracy, [[protein-protein docking]] methods can be used to predict the structure of the complex. Information of the effect of mutations at specific sites on the affinity of the complex helps to understand the complex structure and to guide docking methods.

==See also==
* [[Protein structure prediction software]]
* [[Protein-protein interaction prediction]]

== References ==
<references />

----
Bonneau R, Baliga NS, Deutsch EW, Shannon P, Hood L. (2004) Comprehensive de novo structure prediction in a systems-biology context for the archaea Halobacterium sp. NRC-1.Genome Biology. 5(8):R52-68

{{Protein structure determination}}

{{Template:Protein methods}}

[[Category:Bioinformatics]]
[[Category:Protein structure]]
[[Category:Protein methods]]

[[es:Predicción de estructura de proteínas]]
[[ja:タンパク質構造予測]]

Proteinstrukturvorhersage

2006-11-17T02:55:50Z

TestPilot: == Ongoing projects ==

'''[[Protein structure]] prediction''' is one of the most significant technologies pursued by [[bioinformatics|computational structural biology]] and [[theoretical chemistry]]. It has the aim of determining the three-dimensional structure of [[protein]]s from their [[amino acid]] sequences. In more formal terms, this is expressed as the prediction of protein [[tertiary structure]] from [[primary structure]]. Given the usefulness of known protein structures in such valuable tasks as [[rational drug design]] this is a highly active field of research.

Every two years, the performance of current methods is assessed in the [[CASP]] experiment.

== Overview ==

The practical role of protein structure prediction is now more important than ever. Massive amounts of protein sequence data may be derived from modern large-scale [[DNA]] sequencing efforts such as the [[Human Genome Project]]. Despite community-wide efforts in [[structural genomics]], the output of experimentally determined protein structures - typically by time-consuming and relatively expensive [[X-ray crystallography]] or [[Protein NMR|NMR spectroscopy]] - is lagging far behind the output of protein sequences.

A number of factors exist that make protein structure prediction a very difficult task, including:
* The number of possible structures that proteins may possess is extremely large, as highlighted by the [[Levinthal paradox]].
* The physical basis of protein structural stability is not fully understood.
* The tertiary structure of a native protein may not be readily formed without the aid of ''[[trans]]''-acting factors. For example, proteins known as ''[[chaperone]]s'' are required for some proteins to properly fold; other proteins cannot fold properly without modifications such as [[glycosylation]].
* A particular sequence may be able to assume multiple conformations depending on its environment, and the biologically active conformation may not be the most [[thermodynamics|thermodynamically]] favorable.
* Direct simulation of [[protein folding]] via methods such as [[molecular dynamics]] is not generally tractable for both practical and theoretical reasons. However, the distributed computing projects [[Folding@home]] are tackling such simulation difficulties.

Despite the above hindrances, much progress is being made by the many research groups that are interested in the task. Prediction of structures for small proteins is now a perfectly realistic goal. A wide range of approaches are routinely applied for such predictions. These approaches may be classified into two broad classes; ''[[ab initio]]'' modelling and comparative modelling.

Distributed computing projects that attempt to solve the protein prediction problem include [[Rosetta@home]] and [[Predictor@home]]

== ''Ab initio'' protein modelling ==

''Ab initio''- or ''[[de novo]]''- protein modelling methods seek to build three-dimensional protein models "from scratch", i.e., based on physical principles rather than (directly) on previously solved structures. There are many possible procedures that either attempt to mimic [[protein folding]] or apply some [[stochastic]] method to search possible solutions (i.e. [[global optimization]] of a suitable energy function). These procedures tend to require vast computational resources, and have thus only been carried out for tiny proteins. To attempt to predict protein structure ''de novo'' for larger proteins, we will need better algorithms and larger computational resources like those afforded by either powerful supercomputers (such as [[Blue Gene]] or [[MDGRAPE-3]]) or distributed computing (see [[Human Proteome Folding Project]]). Although these computational barriers are vast, the potential benefits of structural genomics (by predicted or experimental methods) make ''ab initio'' structure prediction an active research field.

== Comparative protein modelling ==

Comparative protein modelling uses previously solved structures as starting points, or templates. This is effective because it appears that although the number of actual proteins is vast, there is a limited set of [[tertiary structure|tertiary]] [[structural motif]]s to which most proteins belong. It has been suggested that there are only around 2000 distinct protein folds in nature, though there are many millions of different proteins.

These methods may also be split into two groups:
* '''[[Homology modelling]]''' is based on the reasonable assumption that two [[Homology (biology)#Homology of sequences in genetics|homologous]] proteins will share very similar structures. Because a protein's fold is more evolutionarily conserved than its amino acid sequence, a target sequence can be modeled with reasonable accuracy on a very distantly related template, provided that the relationship between target and template can be discerned through [[sequence alignment]]. It has been suggested that the primary bottleneck in comparative modelling arises from difficulties in alignment rather than from errors in structure prediction given a known-good alignment<ref name="zhang">Zhang Y and Skolnick J. (2005). The protein structure prediction problem could be solved using the current PDB library. ''Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA'' 102(4):1029-34. {{Entrez Pubmed|15653774}}</ref>. Unsurprisingly, homology modelling is most accurate when the target and template have similar sequences.

* [[Protein threading|'''Protein threading''']]<ref name="bowie">Bowie JU, Luthy R, Eisenberg D. (1991). A method to identify protein sequences that fold into a known three-dimensional structure. ''Science'' 253(5016):164-70. {{Entrez Pubmed|1853201}}</ref> scans the amino acid sequence of an unknown structure against a database of solved structures. In each case, a scoring function is used to assess the compatibility of the sequence to the structure, thus yielding possible three-dimensional models. This type of method is also known as '''3D-1D fold recognition''' due to its compatibility analysis between three-dimensional structures and linear protein sequences. This method has also given rise to methods performing an '''inverse folding search''' by evaluating the compatibility of a given structure with a large database of sequences, thus predicting which sequences have the potential to produce a given fold.

== Side chain geometry prediction ==
Even structure prediction methods that are reasonably accurate for the peptide backbone often get the orientation and packing of the amino acid [[side chain]]s wrong. Methods that specifically address the problem of predicting side chain geometry include [[dead-end elimination]] and the [[self-consistent mean field (biology)|self-consistent mean field]] method. Both discretize the continuously varying [[dihedral angle]]s that determine a side chain's orientation relative to the backbone into a set of [[rotamer]]s with fixed dihedral angles. The methods then attempt to identify the set of rotamers that minimize the model's overall energy. Such methods are most useful for analyzing the protein's [[hydrophobic]] core, where side chains are more closely packed; they have more difficulty addressing the looser constraints and higher flexibility of surface residues<ref name="voigt">Voigt CA, Gordon DB, Mayo SL. (2000). Trading accuracy for speed: A quantitative comparison of search algorithms in protein sequence design. ''J Mol Biol'' 299(3):789-803.{{Entrez Pubmed|10835284}}</ref>.

== Software ==
[http://www.salilab.org/modeller/ MODELLER] is a popular software tool for producing homology models using methodology derived from [[protein NMR|NMR spectroscopy]] data processing. [http://swissmodel.expasy.org//SWISS-MODEL.html SwissModel] provides an automated web server for basic homology modeling. A common software tool for protein threading is [http://www.sbg.bio.ic.ac.uk/~3dpssm/ 3D-PSSM]. The basic algorithm for threading is described in <ref name="bowie" /> and is fairly straightforward to implement.

A very recent review of currently popular software for structure prediction can be found at <ref name="nayeem">Nayeem A, Sitkoff D, Krystek S Jr. (2006). A comparative study of available software for high-accuracy homology modeling: From sequence alignments to structural models. ''Protein Sci'' 15:808-824.{{Entrez Pubmed|16600967}}</ref>. A partial list of web servers and available tools is maintained [http://ncisgi.ncifcrf.gov/~ravichas/HomMod/ here].

== Ongoing projects ==
Since 2000, several [[distributed computing]] projects concerning protein structure prediction have been implemented, [[Folding@home]], [[Human Proteome Folding Project]], [[Predictor@home]], [[Rosetta@home]] and TANPAKU.

== Protein-Protein Complexes ==

In the case of [[protein complex|complexes of two or more proteins]], where the structures of the proteins are known or can be predicted with high accuracy, [[protein-protein docking]] methods can be used to predict the structure of the complex. Information of the effect of mutations at specific sites on the affinity of the complex helps to understand the complex structure and to guide docking methods.

==See also==
* [[Protein structure prediction software]]
* [[Protein-protein interaction prediction]]

== References ==
<references />

----
Bonneau R, Baliga NS, Deutsch EW, Shannon P, Hood L. (2004) Comprehensive de novo structure prediction in a systems-biology context for the archaea Halobacterium sp. NRC-1.Genome Biology. 5(8):R52-68

{{Protein structure determination}}

{{Template:Protein methods}}

[[Category:Bioinformatics]]
[[Category:Protein structure]]
[[Category:Protein methods]]

[[es:Predicción de estructura de proteínas]]
[[ja:タンパク質構造予測]]

Proteinstrukturvorhersage

2006-11-17T02:39:13Z

TestPilot: comma

'''[[Protein structure]] prediction''' is one of the most significant technologies pursued by [[bioinformatics|computational structural biology]] and [[theoretical chemistry]]. It has the aim of determining the three-dimensional structure of [[protein]]s from their [[amino acid]] sequences. In more formal terms, this is expressed as the prediction of protein [[tertiary structure]] from [[primary structure]]. Given the usefulness of known protein structures in such valuable tasks as [[rational drug design]] this is a highly active field of research.

Every two years, the performance of current methods is assessed in the [[CASP]] experiment.

== Overview ==

The practical role of protein structure prediction is now more important than ever. Massive amounts of protein sequence data may be derived from modern large-scale [[DNA]] sequencing efforts such as the [[Human Genome Project]]. Despite community-wide efforts in [[structural genomics]], the output of experimentally determined protein structures - typically by time-consuming and relatively expensive [[X-ray crystallography]] or [[Protein NMR|NMR spectroscopy]] - is lagging far behind the output of protein sequences.

A number of factors exist that make protein structure prediction a very difficult task, including:
* The number of possible structures that proteins may possess is extremely large, as highlighted by the [[Levinthal paradox]].
* The physical basis of protein structural stability is not fully understood.
* The tertiary structure of a native protein may not be readily formed without the aid of ''[[trans]]''-acting factors. For example, proteins known as ''[[chaperone]]s'' are required for some proteins to properly fold; other proteins cannot fold properly without modifications such as [[glycosylation]].
* A particular sequence may be able to assume multiple conformations depending on its environment, and the biologically active conformation may not be the most [[thermodynamics|thermodynamically]] favorable.
* Direct simulation of [[protein folding]] via methods such as [[molecular dynamics]] is not generally tractable for both practical and theoretical reasons. However, the distributed computing projects [[Folding@home]] are tackling such simulation difficulties.

Despite the above hindrances, much progress is being made by the many research groups that are interested in the task. Prediction of structures for small proteins is now a perfectly realistic goal. A wide range of approaches are routinely applied for such predictions. These approaches may be classified into two broad classes; ''[[ab initio]]'' modelling and comparative modelling.

Distributed computing projects that attempt to solve the protein prediction problem include [[Rosetta@home]] and [[Predictor@home]]

== ''Ab initio'' protein modelling ==

''Ab initio''- or ''[[de novo]]''- protein modelling methods seek to build three-dimensional protein models "from scratch", i.e., based on physical principles rather than (directly) on previously solved structures. There are many possible procedures that either attempt to mimic [[protein folding]] or apply some [[stochastic]] method to search possible solutions (i.e. [[global optimization]] of a suitable energy function). These procedures tend to require vast computational resources, and have thus only been carried out for tiny proteins. To attempt to predict protein structure ''de novo'' for larger proteins, we will need better algorithms and larger computational resources like those afforded by either powerful supercomputers (such as [[Blue Gene]] or [[MDGRAPE-3]]) or distributed computing (see [[Human Proteome Folding Project]]). Although these computational barriers are vast, the potential benefits of structural genomics (by predicted or experimental methods) make ''ab initio'' structure prediction an active research field.

== Comparative protein modelling ==

Comparative protein modelling uses previously solved structures as starting points, or templates. This is effective because it appears that although the number of actual proteins is vast, there is a limited set of [[tertiary structure|tertiary]] [[structural motif]]s to which most proteins belong. It has been suggested that there are only around 2000 distinct protein folds in nature, though there are many millions of different proteins.

These methods may also be split into two groups:
* '''[[Homology modelling]]''' is based on the reasonable assumption that two [[Homology (biology)#Homology of sequences in genetics|homologous]] proteins will share very similar structures. Because a protein's fold is more evolutionarily conserved than its amino acid sequence, a target sequence can be modeled with reasonable accuracy on a very distantly related template, provided that the relationship between target and template can be discerned through [[sequence alignment]]. It has been suggested that the primary bottleneck in comparative modelling arises from difficulties in alignment rather than from errors in structure prediction given a known-good alignment<ref name="zhang">Zhang Y and Skolnick J. (2005). The protein structure prediction problem could be solved using the current PDB library. ''Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA'' 102(4):1029-34. {{Entrez Pubmed|15653774}}</ref>. Unsurprisingly, homology modelling is most accurate when the target and template have similar sequences.

* [[Protein threading|'''Protein threading''']]<ref name="bowie">Bowie JU, Luthy R, Eisenberg D. (1991). A method to identify protein sequences that fold into a known three-dimensional structure. ''Science'' 253(5016):164-70. {{Entrez Pubmed|1853201}}</ref> scans the amino acid sequence of an unknown structure against a database of solved structures. In each case, a scoring function is used to assess the compatibility of the sequence to the structure, thus yielding possible three-dimensional models. This type of method is also known as '''3D-1D fold recognition''' due to its compatibility analysis between three-dimensional structures and linear protein sequences. This method has also given rise to methods performing an '''inverse folding search''' by evaluating the compatibility of a given structure with a large database of sequences, thus predicting which sequences have the potential to produce a given fold.

== Side chain geometry prediction ==
Even structure prediction methods that are reasonably accurate for the peptide backbone often get the orientation and packing of the amino acid [[side chain]]s wrong. Methods that specifically address the problem of predicting side chain geometry include [[dead-end elimination]] and the [[self-consistent mean field (biology)|self-consistent mean field]] method. Both discretize the continuously varying [[dihedral angle]]s that determine a side chain's orientation relative to the backbone into a set of [[rotamer]]s with fixed dihedral angles. The methods then attempt to identify the set of rotamers that minimize the model's overall energy. Such methods are most useful for analyzing the protein's [[hydrophobic]] core, where side chains are more closely packed; they have more difficulty addressing the looser constraints and higher flexibility of surface residues<ref name="voigt">Voigt CA, Gordon DB, Mayo SL. (2000). Trading accuracy for speed: A quantitative comparison of search algorithms in protein sequence design. ''J Mol Biol'' 299(3):789-803.{{Entrez Pubmed|10835284}}</ref>.

== Software ==
[http://www.salilab.org/modeller/ MODELLER] is a popular software tool for producing homology models using methodology derived from [[protein NMR|NMR spectroscopy]] data processing. [http://swissmodel.expasy.org//SWISS-MODEL.html SwissModel] provides an automated web server for basic homology modeling. A common software tool for protein threading is [http://www.sbg.bio.ic.ac.uk/~3dpssm/ 3D-PSSM]. The basic algorithm for threading is described in <ref name="bowie" /> and is fairly straightforward to implement.

A very recent review of currently popular software for structure prediction can be found at <ref name="nayeem">Nayeem A, Sitkoff D, Krystek S Jr. (2006). A comparative study of available software for high-accuracy homology modeling: From sequence alignments to structural models. ''Protein Sci'' 15:808-824.{{Entrez Pubmed|16600967}}</ref>. A partial list of web servers and available tools is maintained [http://ncisgi.ncifcrf.gov/~ravichas/HomMod/ here].

== Protein-Protein Complexes ==

In the case of [[protein complex|complexes of two or more proteins]], where the structures of the proteins are known or can be predicted with high accuracy, [[protein-protein docking]] methods can be used to predict the structure of the complex. Information of the effect of mutations at specific sites on the affinity of the complex helps to understand the complex structure and to guide docking methods.

==See also==
* [[Protein structure prediction software]]
* [[Protein-protein interaction prediction]]

== References ==
<references />

----
Bonneau R, Baliga NS, Deutsch EW, Shannon P, Hood L. (2004) Comprehensive de novo structure prediction in a systems-biology context for the archaea Halobacterium sp. NRC-1.Genome Biology. 5(8):R52-68

{{Protein structure determination}}

{{Template:Protein methods}}

[[Category:Bioinformatics]]
[[Category:Protein structure]]
[[Category:Protein methods]]

[[es:Predicción de estructura de proteínas]]
[[ja:タンパク質構造予測]]

Leben auf dem Mars

2006-01-17T02:28:17Z

TestPilot: /* Modern findings */

:''For the David Bowie song, see [[Life on Mars?]]. For the TV series, see [[Life on Mars (television)]].''

Scientists have long speculated about the possibility of '''life on Mars''' due to that planet's proximity and similarity to [[Earth]]. It remains an open question whether life exists on Mars now, or existed there in the past.

== History of the debate ==

Of all the planets of the [[Solar system]] (other than Earth), [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] was the first one whose solid surface was observed with certainty, and its physical features determined with any accuracy.

The most obvious peculiarity of its surface—its polar ice-caps—were seen in the mid-17th century, but they were first proven to grow and shrink alternately, in the summer and winter of each hemisphere, by [[William Herschel]] in the latter part of the 18th century. By the mid-19th century, astronomers knew that [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] had certain similarities to Earth. They knew that the length of a day on Mars was almost the same as a day on [[Earth]], and they also knew that its [[axial tilt]] was similar to Earth's, which meant it experienced seasons just as Earth does - but of nearly double
the length owing to its much longer year. These facts gave the impulse to the idea of Mars as a true earth on a smaller scale, which the recognition of darker [[albedo feature]]s as water, and brighter ones as land, further increased. It was therefore natural to suppose that it must be inhabited, and that we should some day obtain evidence of the fact.

Speculation about life on Mars exploded in the late 19th century, following telescopic observation of apparent [[Martian canal|canals]] — which were later found to be optical illusions. In [[1854]], [[William Whewell]], a fellow of [[Trinity College, Cambridge|Trinity College]], [[Cambridge University]] who popularized the word ''scientist,'' theorized that Mars had seas, land and possibly life forms. In [[1895]], American astronomer [[Percival Lowell]] published his book ''Mars,'' followed by ''Mars and its Canals'' in [[1906]], proposing that the canals were the work of a long-gone civilization. This idea led British writer [[H. G. Wells]] to write ''[[The War of the Worlds (novel)|The War of the Worlds]]'' in [[1897]], telling of an invasion by aliens from Mars who were fleeing the planet’s desiccation.

Better telescope imagery, and especially the photos taken by the [[Mariner 4]] probe in [[1965]] showed an arid Mars without rivers, oceans or visible plants. Intense [[UV radiation]] made the planet extremely hostile to life. Although the [[Viking program|Viking]] lander's tests for microbes in [[1976]] were inconclusive, most scientists hold that their findings can be explained on the basis of chemical reactions alone. Observations made in the late 1990's by the [[Mars Global Surveyor]] confirmed the suspicion that Mars, unlike Earth, no longer possessed a substantial [[Magnetosphere|global magnetic field]], thus allowing potentially life-threatening [[Cosmic ray|cosmic radiation]] to reach the planet's surface. Scientists also speculate that the lack of shielding due to Mars' diminished global magnetic field helped the [[solar wind]] blow away much of Mars' atmosphere over the course of several billion years.

==Modern findings==

[[Image: ALH84001_structures.jpg|right|thumb|The electron microscope revealed bacteria-like structures in meteorite fragment ALH84001]]

In recent years speculation has grown again, however – prodded by a study of the [[ALH84001]] [[meteorite]] which concluded that it contained [[fossil]]ized [[microbes]]. Other scientists have subsequently sought to explain these findings on the basis of chemical processes. Both remain highly controversial within the scientific community.

Another glimmer of hope for past and present life on Mars has been revealed with the ongoing research into [[extremophile]]s on Earth which survive under the harshest conditions. Some scientists have proposed a biological origin for the annual appearance and disappearance of dark dune spots near the polar regions of mars (see PDF references [http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2003/pdf/1134.pdf] and [http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2005/pdf/1128.pdf] from the 2003 and 2005 Lunar and Planetary Science Conference).

Evidence for present water under the surface of Mars has been discovered in the form of flood-like gullies in June [[2000]]. [http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast29jun_1m.htm] Deep subsurface [[water]] deposits near the planet's liquid core might form a present-day habitat for life.

[[Image:History of water on Mars.jpeg|thumb|right|A series of artist's conceptions of hypothetical past water coverage on Mars.]]

No Mars probe since Viking has tested the Martian soil directly for signs of life. NASA's recent missions have focused on another question: whether Mars held lakes or oceans of liquid water on its surface in the ancient past. Many scientists have long held this to be almost self-evident based on various geological landforms on the planet, but others have proposed different explanations -- wind erosion, carbon dioxide oceans, etc. Thus, the mission of the [[Mars Exploration Rover Mission|Mars Exploration Rovers]] of 2004 was not to look for life (not even in the form of [[fossil]]s), but for evidence of liquid water on the surface of Mars in the planet's ancient past.

In [[March 2004]], NASA announced that its rover ''[[Opportunity rover|Opportunity]]'' had discovered evidence that Mars was, in the ancient past, a wet planet. This has raised hopes that evidence of past life might be found on the planet today. Later that same month, the orbiting [[ESA]] probe [[Mars Express]] confirmed the presence of [[methane]] in the martian atmosphere, which had earlier been suggested by observations of the [[UKIRT|UKIRT Infrared telescope]] on Hawaii and the [[Gemini South]] observatory in Chile in 2003. As methane cannot persist in the Martian atmosphere for more than a few hundred years, this suggests that either Mars has recently been [[Volcano|volcanically]] active, or that some kind of [[extremophile]] life form similar to some present on Earth is metabolising carbon dioxide and hydrogen and producing methane. A NASA scientist has also said that there are no known ways for ammonia to be present in the Martian atmosphere that do not involve life [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3896335.stm].

In January 2005, two [[NASA]] scientists reported that they had found strong evidence of present life on [[Mars]] (Berger, 2005). The two scientists, Carol Stoker and Larry Lemke of NASA’s Ames Research Center, based their claims on methane signatures found in Mars’ atmosphere that resemble the methane production of some forms of primitive life on Earth, as well as their own study of primitive life near the [[Rio Tinto river]] in Spain. NASA officials soon denied the scientists’ claims, and Stoker herself backed off from her initial assertations (www.spacetoday.net, 2005). However, only a few days after Stoker and Lemke made their claims, scientists from the [[European Space Agency]] reported that their own measurements of methane on Mars suggested an organic origin (Michelson, 2005).

Though such findings are still very much in debate, support among scientists for the belief in the existence of life on Mars seems to be growing. In an informal survey of scientists attending the conference at which the European Space Agency presented its findings, 75 percent of the scientists at the conference reported to believe that life once existed on Mars; 25 percent reported a belief that life currently exists there (Michelson, 2005).

==Fringe viewpoints==

Among the more extreme beliefs held in mainstream academia is that of Dr. [[Courtney Brown]], an associate professor of political science at [[Emory University]], who has written two books saying an ancient race of humanoid Martians are living below the surface of Mars. He believes they survived a catastrophic natural disaster on their planet eons ago, destroying their atmosphere. Dr. Brown bases his conclusions on data he supposedly gathered by [[remote viewing]].

==See also==
*[[Planetary habitability]]
*[[Face on Mars]]
*[[Martian canals]]
*[[List of artificial objects on Mars]]
*[[Astronomy on Mars]]

==External links ==

*[http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/overview/ NASA - The Mars Exploration Program]
*[http://www.phenomenamagazine.com/0/editorial.asp?aff_id=0&this_cat=Area%2051&action=page&type_id=&cat_id=&obj_id=123 Arthur C. Clarke sees life on Mars]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3560867.stm Scientists have discovered that Mars once had saltwater oceans]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3577551.stm BBC News: Methane on Mars could signal life]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3896335.stm BBC News: Ammonia on Mars could mean life]
*[http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/mars_microorganisms_040803.html Scientists say that life on Mars is likely today]
*[http://www.space.com/news/science_top10_041216.html Ancient salty sea on Mars wins as the most important scientific achievement of 2004 - Journal Science]
*[http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/snc/nasa1.html Mars meteor found on Earth provides evidence that suggests microbial life once existed on Mars]

==References==
* [[Alfred Russel Wallace|Wallace, Alfred Russel]]. ''Is Mars habitable? A critical examination of Professor Percival Lowell's book "Mars and its canals," with an alternative explanation, by Alfred Russel Wallace, F.R.S., etc.'' London, Macmillan and co., 1907.
* Berger, Brian (2005). [http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/mars_life_050216.html Exclusive: NASA Researchers Claim Evidence of Present Life on Mars]. Posted Feb. 16, 2005.
*spacetoday.net (2005). [http://www.spacetoday.net/Summary/2804 NASA denies Mars life reports]. Posted Feb 19, 2005.
*Michelson, Marcel (2005). [http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/space_mars_dc European Scientists Believe in Life on Mars]. Posted Feb 25, 2005.

[[Category:Astrobiology]]
[[Category:Mars]]

[[nl:Leven op Mars]]

Leben auf dem Mars

2006-01-17T02:25:25Z

TestPilot: wikilink

:''For the David Bowie song, see [[Life on Mars?]]. For the TV series, see [[Life on Mars (television)]].''

Scientists have long speculated about the possibility of '''life on Mars''' due to that planet's proximity and similarity to [[Earth]]. It remains an open question whether life exists on Mars now, or existed there in the past.

== History of the debate ==

Of all the planets of the [[Solar system]] (other than Earth), [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] was the first one whose solid surface was observed with certainty, and its physical features determined with any accuracy.

The most obvious peculiarity of its surface—its polar ice-caps—were seen in the mid-17th century, but they were first proven to grow and shrink alternately, in the summer and winter of each hemisphere, by [[William Herschel]] in the latter part of the 18th century. By the mid-19th century, astronomers knew that [[Mars (planet)|Mars]] had certain similarities to Earth. They knew that the length of a day on Mars was almost the same as a day on [[Earth]], and they also knew that its [[axial tilt]] was similar to Earth's, which meant it experienced seasons just as Earth does - but of nearly double
the length owing to its much longer year. These facts gave the impulse to the idea of Mars as a true earth on a smaller scale, which the recognition of darker [[albedo feature]]s as water, and brighter ones as land, further increased. It was therefore natural to suppose that it must be inhabited, and that we should some day obtain evidence of the fact.

Speculation about life on Mars exploded in the late 19th century, following telescopic observation of apparent [[Martian canal|canals]] — which were later found to be optical illusions. In [[1854]], [[William Whewell]], a fellow of [[Trinity College, Cambridge|Trinity College]], [[Cambridge University]] who popularized the word ''scientist,'' theorized that Mars had seas, land and possibly life forms. In [[1895]], American astronomer [[Percival Lowell]] published his book ''Mars,'' followed by ''Mars and its Canals'' in [[1906]], proposing that the canals were the work of a long-gone civilization. This idea led British writer [[H. G. Wells]] to write ''[[The War of the Worlds (novel)|The War of the Worlds]]'' in [[1897]], telling of an invasion by aliens from Mars who were fleeing the planet’s desiccation.

Better telescope imagery, and especially the photos taken by the [[Mariner 4]] probe in [[1965]] showed an arid Mars without rivers, oceans or visible plants. Intense [[UV radiation]] made the planet extremely hostile to life. Although the [[Viking program|Viking]] lander's tests for microbes in [[1976]] were inconclusive, most scientists hold that their findings can be explained on the basis of chemical reactions alone. Observations made in the late 1990's by the [[Mars Global Surveyor]] confirmed the suspicion that Mars, unlike Earth, no longer possessed a substantial [[Magnetosphere|global magnetic field]], thus allowing potentially life-threatening [[Cosmic ray|cosmic radiation]] to reach the planet's surface. Scientists also speculate that the lack of shielding due to Mars' diminished global magnetic field helped the [[solar wind]] blow away much of Mars' atmosphere over the course of several billion years.

==Modern findings==

[[Image: ALH84001_structures.jpg|right|thumb|The electron microscope revealed bacteria-like structures in meteorite fragment ALH84001]]

In recent years speculation has grown again, however – prodded by a study of the [[ALH84001]] [[meteorite]] which concluded that it contained [[fossil]]ized [[microbes]]. Other scientists have subsequently sought to explain these findings on the basis of chemical processes. Both remain highly controversial within the scientific community.

Another glimmer of hope for past and present life on Mars has been revealed with the ongoing research into [[extremophile]]s on Earth which survive under the harshest conditions. Some scientists have proposed a biological origin for the annual appearance and disappearance of dark dune spots near the polar regions of mars (see PDF references [http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2003/pdf/1134.pdf] and [http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2005/pdf/1128.pdf] from the 2003 and 2005 Lunar and Planetary Science Conference).

Evidence for present water under the surface of Mars has been discovered in the form of flood-like gullies in June [[2000]]. [http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast29jun_1m.htm] Deep subsurface [[water]] deposits near the planet's liquid core might form a present-day habitat for life.

[[Image:History of water on Mars.jpeg|thumb|right|A series of artist's conceptions of hypothetical past water coverage on Mars.]]

No Mars probe since Viking has tested the Martian soil directly for signs of life. NASA's recent missions have focused on another question: whether Mars held lakes or oceans of liquid water on its surface in the ancient past. Many scientists have long held this to be almost self-evident based on various geological landforms on the planet, but others have proposed different explanations -- wind erosion, carbon dioxide oceans, etc. Thus, the mission of the [[Mars Exploration Rover Mission|Mars Exploration Rovers]] of 2004 was not to look for life (not even in the form of [[fossil]]s), but for evidence of liquid water on the surface of Mars in the planet's ancient past.

In [[March 2004]], NASA announced that its rover ''[[Opportunity rover|Opportunity]]'' had discovered evidence that Mars was, in the ancient past, a wet planet. This has raised hopes that evidence of past life might be found on the planet today. Later that same month, the orbiting [[ESA]] probe [[Mars Express]] confirmed the presence of [[methane]] in the martian atmosphere, which had earlier been suggested by observations of the [[UKIRT|UKIRT Infrared telescope]] on Hawaii and the [[Gemini South]] observatory in Chile in 2003. As methane cannot persist in the Martian atmosphere for more than a few hundred years, this suggests that either Mars has recently been [[Volcano|volcanically]] active, or that some kind of [[extremophile]] life form similar to some present on Earth is metabolising carbon dioxide and hydrogen and producing methane. A NASA scientist has also said that there are no known ways for ammonia to be present in the Martian atmosphere that do not involve life [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3896335.stm].

In January 2005, two [[NASA]] scientists reported that they had found strong evidence of present life on [[Mars]] (Berger, 2005). The two scientists, Carol Stoker and Larry Lemke of NASA’s Ames Research Center, based their claims on methane signatures found in Mars’ atmosphere that resemble the methane production of some forms of primitive life on Earth, as well as their own study of primitive life near the Rio [[Tinto river]] in Spain. NASA officials soon denied the scientists’ claims, and Stoker herself backed off from her initial assertations (www.spacetoday.net, 2005). However, only a few days after Stoker and Lemke made their claims, scientists from the [[European Space Agency]] reported that their own measurements of methane on Mars suggested an organic origin (Michelson, 2005).

Though such findings are still very much in debate, support among scientists for the belief in the existence of life on Mars seems to be growing. In an informal survey of scientists attending the conference at which the European Space Agency presented its findings, 75 percent of the scientists at the conference reported to believe that life once existed on Mars; 25 percent reported a belief that life currently exists there (Michelson, 2005).

==Fringe viewpoints==

Among the more extreme beliefs held in mainstream academia is that of Dr. [[Courtney Brown]], an associate professor of political science at [[Emory University]], who has written two books saying an ancient race of humanoid Martians are living below the surface of Mars. He believes they survived a catastrophic natural disaster on their planet eons ago, destroying their atmosphere. Dr. Brown bases his conclusions on data he supposedly gathered by [[remote viewing]].

==See also==
*[[Planetary habitability]]
*[[Face on Mars]]
*[[Martian canals]]
*[[List of artificial objects on Mars]]
*[[Astronomy on Mars]]

==External links ==

*[http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/overview/ NASA - The Mars Exploration Program]
*[http://www.phenomenamagazine.com/0/editorial.asp?aff_id=0&this_cat=Area%2051&action=page&type_id=&cat_id=&obj_id=123 Arthur C. Clarke sees life on Mars]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3560867.stm Scientists have discovered that Mars once had saltwater oceans]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3577551.stm BBC News: Methane on Mars could signal life]
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3896335.stm BBC News: Ammonia on Mars could mean life]
*[http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/mars_microorganisms_040803.html Scientists say that life on Mars is likely today]
*[http://www.space.com/news/science_top10_041216.html Ancient salty sea on Mars wins as the most important scientific achievement of 2004 - Journal Science]
*[http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/snc/nasa1.html Mars meteor found on Earth provides evidence that suggests microbial life once existed on Mars]

==References==
* [[Alfred Russel Wallace|Wallace, Alfred Russel]]. ''Is Mars habitable? A critical examination of Professor Percival Lowell's book "Mars and its canals," with an alternative explanation, by Alfred Russel Wallace, F.R.S., etc.'' London, Macmillan and co., 1907.
* Berger, Brian (2005). [http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/mars_life_050216.html Exclusive: NASA Researchers Claim Evidence of Present Life on Mars]. Posted Feb. 16, 2005.
*spacetoday.net (2005). [http://www.spacetoday.net/Summary/2804 NASA denies Mars life reports]. Posted Feb 19, 2005.
*Michelson, Marcel (2005). [http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/space_mars_dc European Scientists Believe in Life on Mars]. Posted Feb 25, 2005.

[[Category:Astrobiology]]
[[Category:Mars]]

[[nl:Leven op Mars]]