Robert Hooke discovered cells while studying a cork under a microscope. He observed that the cork was made up of small, empty compartments and named these compartments “cells” after the Latin word for “room.” This discovery was an important step in the development of modern cell theory.
Hooke’s cells were probably not true cells, as we understand them today. They were probably empty spaces between the cell walls of the cork.
This discovery was published in his book Micrographia in 1665. In Micrographia, Hooke also described other microscopic observations, including the structure of insects.
Hooke’s work was largely forgotten after his death in 1703. His work was rediscovered in the mid-19th century and he is now considered one of the fathers of cell biology.
