1. Robert HookeBiography
Academic, Philosopher, Scholar, Mathematician, Illustrator, Architect,Astronomer, Physicist, Scientist (1635–1703)
Robert Hooke is know n as a "Renaissance Man" of 17th centuryEngland forhis workin the sciences, which covered areassuch as
astronomy, physicsand biology.
Synopsis
Born in Freshwater on England's Isle ofWight in 1635, scientist Robert Hooke was educatedat Oxfordand spent his career at the
Royal Society andGreshamCollege.His research andexperiments rangedfromastronomy tobiology tophysics; he is particularly
recognizedfor the observations he made while usinga microscope and for "Hooke's Law" of elasticity.Hooke diedin London in
1703.
Early Lifeand Education
Robert Hooke was born in the town of Freshwater,on England’s Isle ofWight, on July 18, 1635.His parents were John Hooke,who
servedas curate for the local church parish,andCecily (née Gyles) Hooke.
Initially a sickly child,Hooke grew to be a quick learner whowas interestedin paintingand adept at makingmechanical toys and
models. After his father’s death in 1648,the 13-year-oldHooke was sent toLondon to apprentice with painter Peter Lely.This
connection turned out to be a short one, and he went insteadtostudy at London’s Westminster School.
In 1653,Hooke enrolledat Oxford's Christ Church College,where he supplementedhis meager funds by working as an assistant to
the scientist Robert Boyle.While studyingsubjects rangingfromastronomy tochemistry,Hooke alsomade influential friends,such
as future architect Christopher Wren.
Teaching, Researchand OtherOccupations
Hooke was appointedcurator of experiments for the newly formed Royal Society of London in 1662,a position he obtainedwith
Boyle's support. Hooke became a fellow of the society in 1663.
Unlike many of the gentleman scientistshe interactedwith,Hooke requiredan income.In 1665,he accepteda position as professor
of geometry at GreshamCollege in London. After the "Great Fire" destroyedmuch of London in 1666, Hooke became a city
surveyor.Working with Wren,he assessedthe damage andredesignedmany of London’s streets andpublic buildings.
Major Discoveries andAchievements
A true polymath, the topics Hooke coveredduring his career include comets,the motion of light, the rotation of Jupiter,gravity,
human memory andthe properties ofair.In all of his studies anddemonstrations,he adheredtothe scientific methodof
experimentation andobservation.Hooke alsoutilizedthe most up-to-date instruments in his many projects.
Hooke’s most important publication was Micrographia,a 1665 volume documenting experiments he hadmade with a microscope.In
this groundbreaking study, he coined the term"cell" while discussingthe structure ofcork. He alsodescribedflies, feathers and
snowflakes,andcorrectly identifiedfossils as remnants ofonce-livingthings.
The 1678 publication of Hooke's Lectures of Springsharedhis theory of elasticity;in what came tobe known as "Hooke’s Law," he
statedthat the force requiredtoextendor compress a spring is proportional to the distance ofthat extension or compression.In an
ongoing, relatedproject,Hooke worked for many years on the invention of a spring-regulatedwatch.
Hooke Becomes a Scientist
Aged 20, in 1655, Hooke’s career tooka further turn towards science.
His abilities in workingwith mechanical instruments hadbecome very refined,and he securedworkin Oxford as an assistant t oone
of the founders of modern chemistry – Robert Boyle.Hooke worked with Boyle for seven years;duringthis time Boyle discovered
Boyle’s Law usingair pumps designed andbuilt largely by Hooke.
The Royal Society
In 1662,now aged27, Hooke was appointedas Curator of Experiments for the newly founded Royal Society,whose purpose was to
advance scientific understandingofthe world.
As Curator,he was responsible for the experiments conductedby the Society.This was an important position for such a young man
to hold. Clearly Hooke’s time with Boyle hadwon him admiration in the scientific world.
Hooke moved from Oxford to London, where he held the Curator position for forty years.
Robert Hooke’s Scientific Discoveries
The Measurement of Time
In about 1657, Hooke greatly improved the pendulum clock by inventingthe anchor escapement.This was a cogwhich gave a small
push to every swinga pendulum took, preventingit running down, while alsomoving the hands of the clock forward.
In about 1660, Hooke inventedthe balance spring,vital for accurate timekeepingin pocket watches,one of which he made for his
own use.A pendulum cannot be used in a pocket watch,so another way of marking the passage of time is needed.
Hooke’s balance springwas attachedtoa balance wheel andproduceda regular oscillation;this oscillation allowedtime tobe kept
accurately. Christian Huygens inventedthe balance springindependently ofHooke over a decade later.
Hooke’s Law
In 1660 Hooke discoveredHooke’s Law,which states that the tension force in a springincreases in direct proportion tothe length it
is stretchedto.
Micrographiaand Microscopy
In 1665,when he was aged30, Hooke publishedthe first ever scientific bestseller: Micrographia.
The book was a showcase for Hooke’s particular talents – his understandingofnature andlight,his highly developed skills in
designingand constructingscientific instruments,andhis skills as an artist.

2. Hooke had built a compound microscope with a new, screw-operatedfocusingmechanismhe haddesigned.Previously,people
neededto move the specimen to get it in focus.
He further improved the microscope with lighting.He placeda water-lens beside the microscope tofocus light from an oil-lampon
to his specimens toilluminate thembrightly.
Robert Hooke’s own illustration of his compound microscope, with labels added by this website.
Hooke usedhis microscope to observe the smallest,previously hidden details ofthe natural world.His book Micrographia revealed
and describedhis discoveries.
Some people disputedhis diagrams because they refusedtobelieve what they showed.The worldHooke had discoveredwas too
alien for them!
Robert Hooke’s drawing from Micrographiaof a dronefly’s head, showing detailed eye-structure. Images like thiswere too
worryingly alien forsome people to believe genuine.
The Importance of Hooke’s Micrographia
Micrographia was one of the most important scientific books ever written,because it revealeda new worldthat people had never
imaginedcould exist.Our knowledge of microbiology, quantum physics and nanotechnology can all be tracedbackto
Hooke’s Micrographia andthe path some scientistswere inspiredtofollow after seeingthe worldHooke had revealed.
Hooke’s Discovery of Plant Cells
Hooke looked at the bark of a cork tree andobservedits microscopic structure. In doing so, he discoveredand namedthe cell – the
building block of life.He thought the objects he haddiscoveredlooked like the individual rooms in a monastery,which were known
as cells.Hooke did not discover the true biological function of cells.
Plant cells, discovered, named and drawn by Robert Hooke. This illustration was first published in Hooke’s
book Micrographia, in 1665.

3. Hooke’s Micrographia drawings of crystals taken from frozen urine
Robert Hooke’s illustrationof a bee’s sting. Hooke foundthat bee stings have barbs at the end. Image 2 is a more detailed
illustration of the barbed end of the sting.
Micrographiaand Paleontology
Hooke usedhis microscope to study the ancient cells in fossilizedwood. He concluded that fossils had once been livingcreatures
whose cells hadbecome mineralized.He alsoconcludedthat some species that hadonce existedmust have become extinct.
Although this is now acceptedby almost everyone his proposal was controversial when he made it.
The Force of Gravity
In a lecture in 1670,Hooke correctly saidthat gravity appliedtoall celestial bodies andthat the force of gravity between bodies
decreases with the distancebetween them.Ifthe force were to be removed, the celestial bodies wouldmove in straight lines.
Hooke the Architect
While working as a scientist,Hooke developeda sideline career as an architect.People likedhis designs for buildings, and he was
appointedto be Surveyor to the City of London. In fact,he made much more money as an architect than as a scientist,because he
designedmany of the buildings which replacedthose destroyedby the Great Fire of London in 1666.
The End
In his later years,Hooke became increasingly grumpy,engaging in a number of feuds with other scientists,often about whosaid
what first.Hooke’s most famous feud was with Isaac Newton.Hooke thought Newton had not acknowledgedHooke’s ideas about
gravity sufficiently.
Although it is believedartists paintedportraits ofHooke in his lifetime,none of these paintings now exists.Historians thinkthat,
although nobody deliberately set out todestroy paintings ofHooke, nobody made any great effort to preserve themeither.The
result is that we do not have any likenesses ofthis great scientist.
Robert Hooke died aged 67, on March 3, 1703,in London. He hadsuffered ill-health for some years,but the precise cause ofhis
death was not recorded. Thanks mainly to his work as an architect; he dieda very wealthy man.
Preparedby: Panganiban,Perly D.