Crafting the microworld: how Robert Hooke constructed knowledge about small things

Abstract

This paper investigates the way in which Robert Hooke constructed his microscopical observations. His Micrographia is justifiably famous for its detailed engravings, which communicated Hooke's observations of tiny nature to his readers, but less attention has been paid to how he went about making the observations themselves. In this paper I explore the relationship between the materiality of his instrument and the epistemic images he produced. Behind the pictures lies an array of hidden materials, and the craft knowledge it took to manipulate them. By investigating the often counter-theoretical and conflicting practices of his ingenious microscope use, I demonstrate the way in which Hooke crafted the microworld for his readers, giving insight into how early modern microscopy was understood by its practitioners and audience.

The Cell Membrane: A Historical Narration

“…Several contradictory opinions have been raised over the years following Robert Hooke's miraculous description of the cell. The fact that animal cells did not contain the cell wall seen in plant cells, even though they contained nuclei and protoplasm, caused confusion about the definition of cell (31).…”

Microscopy in Early Modern Natural Philosophy

“…These 38 schemas show magnified views of everything from such artificial objects as a printed dot and a needle to ants and flies, seeds, and leaves to minerals and even stellar objects. Hooke sought to represent his specimens as if in a peaceful and undisturbed world and so promoted microscopy as a nonviolent and easily accessible way to study nature, even if it took painstaking manipulation to make it appear as such (Lawson 2016).…”

From magnifying glass to operative microscopy – the historical and modern role of the microscope in microsurgery

“…Hooke introduced coarse and fine adjustments and ball and socket joints. Lister, a wine merchant and amateur microscopist, was the first to use compound lenses from more than one element, significantly reducing spherical and chromatic aberrations [9,10]. Lister's law of aplanatic foci remained the underlying principle of microscopic science.…”

“…Lister's law of aplanatic foci remained the underlying principle of microscopic science. He wrote a paper in 1843, entitled 'On the Limit to Defining Power in Vision with the Unassisted Eye, the Telescope and the Microscope', which was presented by his son John Lister to the Royal Microscopical Society, and influenced many of the later discoveries [9,10]. In 1846, a German mechanist Carl Zeiss opened the first microscope workshop in Jena, Germany [11].…”