The largest biologist of the first half of the 19th century, the founder of modern embryology. The great-grandson's name is Max von Lingen. He was in our city last year and participated in a seminar held by the BAN, dedicated to the memory of his great great-great-grandfather.
Carl Ernst von Baer
Karl Ernst von Baer
Karl Maximovich Baer (1792-1876) - an outstanding natural scientist, according to V.I. Vernadsky, is among the greatest minds of mankind. Throughout the world, Karl Baer is considered practically the founder of embryology - as a science. He also owns the discovery of a geographical phenomenon in the Caspian lowland, which I now call the Baer Hills. Bera Island is located in the Laptev Sea. Karl Baer was the first to establish the existence of such a phenomenon as permafrost. Entomologist and anthropologist. A researcher of the works of Homer, who proved in practice that the journey of Odysseus actually took place and passed from Ithaca to the eastern shores of the Black Sea. Historian who wrote a work about the polar expeditions of Peter the Great. Anthropologist. Entomologist. Zoologist. Botanist. Ichthyologist. Anatomist. Doctor. Darwinist before the advent of Darwin's writings. Poet. Polar explorer. One of the founders of the Russian Geographical Society.
How did it happen that the interests and, most importantly, the successes of one scientist are so diverse?
Let's start the story about him with a multiple reference about what Embryology is, to the creators of which Baer is considered.
Embryology(from Ancient Greek ἔμβρυον, germ, "embryo"; and -λογία, -logy) is a science that studies the development of the embryo. interesting History of embryology. Embryological research in India, China, Egypt and Greece up to the 5th c. BC e. largely reflected religious and philosophical teachings. However, the views that developed at that time had a certain influence on the subsequent development of E., the founders of which should be considered Hippocrates (as well as the authors of the so-called Hippocratic Miscellany adjoining him) and Aristotle. Hippocrates and his followers paid most attention to the study of the development of the human embryo, recommending only for comparison to study the formation of a chicken in an egg. Aristotle made extensive use of observations, and in the writings “History of Animals” and “On the Origin of Animals” that have come down to us, he reported data on the development of humans, mammals, birds, reptiles and fish, as well as many invertebrates. Aristotle studied the development of the chicken embryo in most detail. The embryological views of Aristotle persisted throughout the Middle Ages until the 16th century. without significant changes. An important stage in the development of E. was the publication of the works of the Dutch scientist W. Keuter (1573) and the Italian scientist Fabricius of Aquapendente (1604), which contain new observations on the development of the chicken embryo. A significant shift in the development of ecology occurred only in the middle of the 17th century, when W. Harvey's work Studies on the Origin of Animals (1651) appeared, the material for which was the study of the development of the chicken and mammals. Harvey generalized ideas about the egg as the source of development of all animals, however, like Aristotle, he believed that the development of vertebrates occurs mainly through epigenesis, argued that not a single part of the future fetus “does exist in the egg actually, but all parts are potentially in it »; however, for insects, he assumed that their body arises through the "metamorphosis" of the originally preceding parts. Harvey did not see the eggs of mammals, just like the Dutch scientist R. de Graaf (1672), who mistook ovarian follicles for eggs, which later became known as Graaffian vesicles. Using a microscope, the Italian scientist M. Malpighi (1672) discovered organs at those stages of chicken development at which it was not possible to see the formed parts of the embryo before. Malpighi joined the preformist ideas , dominant in embryology almost until the end of the 18th century; Their main defenders were the Swiss scientists A. Haller and C. Bonnet. The decisive blow to the concept of preformation, which is inextricably linked with the idea of the immutability of living beings, was dealt by K. F. Wolf in his dissertation Theory of Origin (1759, published in Russian in 1950). In Russia, the influence of Wolf's ideas was reflected in the embryological studies of L. Tredern, H. I. Pander, and K. M. Baer.
The founder of modern E. K. M. Baer discovered and described in 1827 an egg in the ovary of mammals and humans. In the classic work On the History of the Development of Animals, Baer was the first to describe in detail the main features of the embryogenesis of a number of vertebrates. He developed the concept of germ layers as the main embryonic organs and clarified their subsequent fate. Comparative observations on the embryonic development of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish led Baer to theoretical conclusions, the most important of which is the law of similarity of embryos belonging to different classes of vertebrates; this similarity is all the more the younger the embryo. Baer associated this fact with the fact that in the embryo, as it develops, the properties of the type appear first of all, then the properties of the class, order, etc.; specific and individual features appear last.
Karl Baer, in his writings on embryology, formulated patterns that were later called "Baer's Laws":
- most common features any large group of animals appear in the embryo earlier than less common signs;
- after the formation of the most general signs, less common ones appear, and so on until the appearance of special signs characteristic of this group;
- the embryo of any kind of animal, as it develops, becomes less and less like the embryos of other species and does not pass through the later stages of their development;
- the embryo of a highly organized species may resemble the embryo of a more primitive species, but never resembles the adult form of that species.
In the book “On the history of animal development. Observations and Reflections”, published in Koenigsberg in 1837, Karl Baer came to the conclusion that “the history of nature is only the history of the continuing victory of the spirit over matter... it makes individuals and series of beings disappear from the face of the Earth and rebuilds modernity on the ruins of an exorbitant past.”
Karl Ernst, or, as he was called in Russia, Karl Maksimovich Baer, was born on February 17 (28), 1792 in the town of Pip, in the Gerven district of the Estland province. Baer's father, Magnus von Baer, belonged to the Estonian nobility and was married to his cousin Julia von Baer.
Little Carl began to take an early interest different subjects nature and often brought home various fossils, snails and the like. As a seven-year-old boy, Baer not only could not read yet, but did not know a single letter. Subsequently, he was very pleased that "he did not belong to the number of those phenomenal children who, due to the ambition of their parents, are deprived of a bright childhood."
In 1810 he entered the Dorpat (Tartu) University, from which he graduated in 1814. Baer passed the exam for a doctorate in medicine. He presented and defended his thesis "On endemic diseases in Estonia" (Dissertatio inaugurales medica de morbis inter esthonos endemicis. Auctor Carolus Ernestus Baer. Dorpat, litteris Schummanni. 1814. 88 c.).
In the bowels of the Internet, I found some interesting information about Estonians, allegedly taken from the materials of this dissertation:
« All of them, to the last, are serfs of the Germans - they are poor and boring in the use of many things ... Estonians are very greedy. Already the northern country itself makes it easy to assume; however, their neighbors on the same geographical latitude they are far superior in this. Hence the reasons for the fact that from childhood they stuff the stomach unnecessarily and stretch it ... This people also strives for a more joyful mood, in order to forget for a moment the oppressive conditions of life, although their rough soul finds consolation only in wild and violent fun, and calm cheerfulness is alien to it ... As for spiritual culture, most European peoples surpass them significantly, for very few Estonians have learned to write ... Of the shortcomings, which cannot be denied in any way, I would list them: laziness, uncleanliness, excessive subservience to the strong and cruelty, savagery towards the weaker ... "
However, Estonians in Tartu 10 years after the death of Baer on November 16, 1886, a monument to the great scientist was erected with public money (sculptor Opekushin).
And on the 2-kroon Estonian banknote, the Estonians also depicted a portrait of Baer.
After graduating from Dorpat University, Baer went abroad, choosing to continue his medical education Vienna, where such famous people of the time as Hildebrand, Rust, Beer and others taught. In the autumn of 1815, Baer arrived in Würzburg to another well-known scientist, Dellinger, to whom he handed, instead of a letter of recommendation, a bag of mosses, explaining his desire to study comparative anatomy. The very next day, Karl, under the guidance of an old scientist, set about dissecting a leech from a pharmacy. In this way, he independently studied the structure of various animals. All his life, Baer kept the liveliest gratitude to Dellinger, who spared neither time nor labor for his education. Since then, Baer's teaching and scientific activities have entered their permanent track. He led the practical classes of students in the anatomical theater, taught courses in human anatomy and anthropology, and found time to prepare and publish special independent works.
In 1819, he became an extraordinary professor of zoology at the University of Königsberg with an assignment to take up the organization of the zoological museum at the university. In general, this year was a happy one in Baer's life: he married one of the residents of Koenigsberg, Augusta von Medem. Gradually, in Königsberg, Baer became one of the prominent and beloved members of the intelligentsia - not only among professors, but also in many families that had no direct relationship to the university.
Excellent command of German literary language, Baer sometimes wrote German poetry, moreover, very good and smooth. “I must repent,” Baer says in his autobiography, “that one day it really occurred to me that there was a poet in me. But my attempts made it clear to me that Apollo was not sitting by my cradle. If I did not write humorous poems, then the ridiculous element nevertheless involuntarily crept in in the form of empty pathos or a tearing elegy.
In the autumn of 1829 Baer went to Russia. But after a short stay in St. Petersburg, which made an unfavorable impression on him, the scientist again settled in Königsberg, to the great joy of his family and friends. His situation continued to improve: the government allocated funds for the construction of a new building for the zoological museum, in which Baer was given an apartment.
Baer continued his scientific studies with extraordinary zeal. He sat at the microscope for days on end and, in the end, greatly upset his naturally strong health. While Baer was thinking about how he could change his position, an unforeseen event led to a new turn in his career. The elder brother Ludwig fell ill and died; the family estate in Estonia he managed was burdened with debts and required good governance, which was nowhere else to be expected, except from Karl. Thus, Baer had to go back to Estonia.
He decides to send a request to the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences: is there anything for him in it? free space? The Academy responded by electing Baer again as a member, and thus the final resettlement of Baer to Russia was decided. At the end of 1834, Baer was already living in St. Petersburg.
From the capital, the scientist in the summer of 1837 made a trip to New Earth where no naturalist had ever been before him. Baer was delighted with the abundance and novelty of the impressions made on him by this poor and brutally harsh country.
This journey entailed the desire for new similar enterprises. In 1839, Baer made a trip with his eldest son Karl to explore the islands of the Gulf of Finland, and in 1840, together with the future famous traveler Middendorf visited the Kola Peninsula. Thus, Baer became more and more involved in the study of geography, and from 1840 he began to publish, together with Gelmersen, a special journal at the academy, entitled "Materials for Knowledge Russian Empire».
His travels, however, were interrupted for a time by the new duties assigned to him. Since 1841, the scientist was appointed ordinary professor of comparative anatomy and physiology at the Medico-Surgical Academy. But the position of professor, although it significantly increased the content, so burdened him, leaving at the same time no convenience for independent zoological work, that Baer resigned this title in 1852.
In 1851, Baer submitted to the Academy of Sciences a large article "On Man", intended for Semashko's "Russian Fauna" and translated into Russian.
Since 1851, a series of Baer's travels to different places in Russia began, undertaken for practical purposes and involving Baer, in addition to geographical and ethnographic research, in the field of applied zoology. He led expeditions to Lake Peipsi and the shores of the Baltic Sea, the Volga and the Caspian Sea. His "Caspian studies" in eight parts are very rich in scientific results. In this work of Baer, the eighth part is most interesting - “ On the universal law of the formation of river channels". We are talking about a remarkable phenomenon, which later received the name of Baer's law, under this name it entered the textbooks of geography. Baer, during his many travels, could not fail to notice that the right bank of Russian rivers (if you look in the direction of the river) is usually high, and the left is low. Thinking about the cause of this phenomenon, he came to the following theory. If the flowing water is directed approximately parallel to the meridian, from the equator to the pole, then due to rotation the globe from west to east, the water, bringing with it a greater speed of rotation than in the northern latitudes, will press with particular force on the eastern, that is, the right bank, which therefore will be steeper and higher than the left.
K.M. Baer is also known as one of the greatest anthropologists of his time, as an organizer of anthropological and ethnographic research in Russia. Of particular interest is his work "On the Origin and Distribution of Human Tribes" (1822), which develops a view of the origin of mankind from a common root, that the differences between human races developed after their settlement from a common center, under the influence of various natural conditions in their habitats. Perhaps, this work for the first time is not just a collection of anthropological information, and is not reduced to a simple postulation of some idea, but is an attempt at a demonstrative logical conclusion of a certain hypothesis. In 1824 K.M. Baer published his lectures on anthropology. Of the three parts conceived by the author, only the first was printed - an anthropography, outlining the basics of human anatomy and physiology. The other two parts were to be devoted to the comparison of man with animals, his position in the system of the animal world, as well as a description of the differences within mankind, the question of subdivisions within the species, the influence climatic factors and living conditions on the structure of man. Unfortunately, the completed work never saw the light of day. Partially his ideas K.M. Baer outlined in a number of popular articles published in the 50-60s. In Petersburg.
Since 1842 K.M. Baer heads the Anatomical Cabinet of the Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg, where a small craniological collection, the famous Petrovsky collection of freaks and anatomical preparations purchased by Peter I from the Dutch anatomist Ruysch. Thanks to Baer, this cabinet becomes the basis of a future major museum. Baer supervised it and devoted a lot of energy to replenishing and systematizing, first of all, his craniological collections. In the process of studying them, Baer published a number of articles on craniology. The first of them refers to 1844 and is devoted to the description of the Karagas skull, which he compares with the Samoyed and Buryat skulls. This is not only the first craniological work in Russia, but, undoubtedly, one of the first craniological studies in which many methodological and general questions of anthropology are posed.
By 1859, an article by K.M. Baer "On the Papuans and Alfurs", which details his views on the origin of the human races. He also owns special works - about deformed skulls, about the craniological type of the Slavs and a number of others. K.M. Baer was the founder of the study of the anthropological type of the Kurgan Slavic population of Russia and a direct predecessor of the outstanding works of A.P. Bogdanov in this area.
Special mention should be made of Baer's merits in the development programs and methods of anthropological, primarily craniological research. Already in the works of the 40s and 50s, he points to the need to develop uniform principles for measuring the human body (primarily the skull). K.M. Baer was the initiator of the Congress of Anthropologists, which took place in Göttingen in 1861. The methodology and program of craniological research proposed by him at the congress formed the basis for further work. craniologists both in Russia and abroad.
From theoretical problems anthropology, K.M. Baer was attracted by questions of the origin of human races, factors in the emergence of racial characteristics. The main position that he developed in his works is that differences, both in the physical type and in the culture of peoples, are due to the peculiarities of the geographical environment, the influence of climate and terrain (the tradition of J.B. Lamarck). He consistently develops the hypothesis of a single origin of mankind and its resettlement from single center(theory monocentrism). These views stemmed from the recognition of the variability of forms in the animal kingdom and the common origin of related species. Throughout his activities, K.M. Baer held the theory transformism.
In 1835 K.M. Baer, in addition to his main activity at the Academy, showed a desire to engage in the Library. He was appointed director of the Foreign Department of the academic library and remained in this post until his retirement in 1862.
The largest measure to improve the organization of book collections and catalogs was the creation of a new scientific library classification, thanks to which library collections began to be formed and arranged in accordance with the level of development of exact natural and humanities. In accordance with this scheme, all foreign books and magazines were encrypted and distributed until 1929. Currently, this fund is part of the main foreign fund of the BAN and is called the Baer Fund, being an active, actively used book collection.
Baer made a huge contribution to solving practical problems of studying and rationalizing fishing on Lake Peipus, on the Caspian and Seas of Azov. For 4 years (1853-1856) he spent expeditions on the Caspian Sea. The predatory fishing by private industrialists in the mouth of the Volga and in the Caspian Sea, the main region of fish production of then Russia, led, as today, to a catastrophic drop in the catch of fish and threatened with the loss of this main fishing base. In order to accomplish the task, Baer decided to conduct a preliminary detailed study of the hydrological and hydrobiological features of the Caspian Sea, which had not been studied at all before him. Wherein. he furrowed the Caspian in several directions from Astrakhan to the coast of Persia. He established that the reason for the decline in the catch was not at all the impoverishment of nature, but the acquisitive and selfish interests of private fishermen, the predatory methods of fishing and the irrational primitive methods of processing it, which he called "the insane waste of the gifts of nature." You can’t catch fish before spawning and during it, you can’t not engage in fish reproduction artificial methods: nature is not a bottomless barrel. Baer demanded the introduction of state control over the protection of fish stocks and their restoration.
A unique edition was discovered in the depths of the Internet: Baer, Karl Maksimovich "Drawings for the study of the Caspian fishery". Published by the Ministry of State Property. St. Petersburg, in the printing house of V. Bezobrazov, 1861. Numerous color and tone lithographs, in addition to scientific, also have artistic significance. Rarity!
Although Baer enjoyed general respect and had no shortage of friendly society, he did not particularly like life in Petersburg. Therefore, he was looking for opportunities to leave Petersburg and go somewhere to live out the rest of his life in peace, devoting himself exclusively to his scientific inclinations, without any official duties. In 1862 he retired and was elected an honorary member of the academy.
On August 18, 1864, a solemn celebration of his anniversary took place at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. The emperor granted the hero of the day a lifetime annual pension of 3,000 rubles, and the Baer Prize was established at the Academy of Sciences for outstanding research in the natural sciences.
Baer was very witty, and his well-aimed, merrily mild humor shone through both in his speeches and in his writings, sometimes even in articles of a special nature. For an example of this humor, it is not out of place to quote the following excerpt from his speech, said in response to Middendorf's greeting during the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of Baer's scientific activity:
"In closing," Baer said, "let me once again thank everyone here for their participation and try to repay them for it." new theory. Death, as everyone knows, has been proved by experience, and this experience has been repeated very often, but the necessity of death has still not been proven in the least. The lower organisms often live only for one particular season of the year, and their life does not extend beyond these limits, unless they leave behind the germs of new individuals; such are, for example, annual plants. But for organisms that survive winter and summer and have the means to accumulate food materials, that these organisms must necessarily die, I repeat, this has not been proven. The famous Harvey once dissected a man who died in the 152nd year of his life, and found all his organs perfectly healthy, so that this man probably could have lived even longer if he had not been removed from the village in order to better care for him. , to the capital, where he died from too good care. I am therefore inclined to regard death as a mere manifestation of imitation, as something like a fashion, and a fashion completely unnecessary. In this conviction, I am strengthened by the philosophy of Schopenhauer, which considers everything that exists as a manifestation of the will. If a stone falls, it is only the effect of its inherent will, which causes it to fall, just as I walk as a result of my will, which makes me walk. And so I set myself the task of not wanting death, and if my organs do not want to fulfill their duties, then I will oppose my will to their will, to which they will have to obey. I advise everyone present to do the same and invite you all to my second doctoral jubilee in 50 years at the same place, and I only ask you to do me the honor of allowing me to accept you as guests, as a host.
These words, coming from the mouth of a 72-year-old man, amaze as much with their witty humor as with their cheerfulness, which can rarely be found in young man. They eloquently testify to the fullness of spiritual strength and clarity of mind, characteristic of Baer even in his advanced years!
Karl Baer belonged to those scientists whose inspiration makes science related to poetry.
After the anniversary, Baer considered his St. Petersburg career finally completed and decided to move to Dorpat, since, having gone abroad, he would have been too far from his children. Baer's family by this time had been greatly reduced: his only daughter, Maria, married Dr. von Lingen in 1850, and of his six sons, only three survived; Baer's wife died in the spring of 1864. In the early summer of 1867 he moved to his native university town.
The elderly scientist continued to be interested in science here, at rest. He prepared his unpublished works for publication and, as far as possible, followed the progress of knowledge. His mind was still as clear and active, but his physical forces began to betray him more and more. On November 16 (28), 1876, Baer died quietly, as if he had fallen asleep.
Carl Ernst von Baer(German Karl Ernst von Baer), or, as it was called in Russia, Karl Maksimovich Baer, February 17, 1792 - November 28, 1876), one of the founders of embryology and comparative anatomy, academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, president of the Russian Entomological Society, one of the founders of the Russian geographical society.
Born into a family of Baltic Germans in the Pip estate (German. Piep; in Estonian Piibe(Est. Piibe)) on the territory of the parish Marien-Magdalenen(German St. Marien-Magdalenen; in the Estonian version - parish Koeru(Est. Koeru kihelkond)) Weisenstein county, Estland province (now in the territory of Rakke parish, Lääne-Virumaa county, Estonia).
Baer's father, Magnus von Baer, belonged to the Estonian nobility and was married to his cousin Julia von Baer. Home teachers worked with Karl. He studied mathematics, geography, Latin and French and other items. Eleven-year-old Karl has already become familiar with algebra, geometry and trigonometry.
In August 1807, the boy was taken to a noble school at the city cathedral in Reval (now Tallinn). In the first half of 1810, Karl completed the course of the school. He enters Dorpat University. In Dorpat (now Tartu), Baer decided to choose a medical career.
In 1814, Baer passed the examination for the degree of doctor of medicine. He presented and defended his thesis "On endemic diseases in Estonia" (Dissertatio inaugurales medica de morbis inter esthonos endemicis. Auctor Carolus Ernestus Baer. Dorpat, litteris Schummanni. 1814. 88 c.). Baer went abroad, choosing to continue his medical education in Vienna.
Professor Burdakh invited Baer to join him as a dissector at the Department of Physiology at the University of Königsberg. As a dissector, Baer opened a course on the comparative anatomy of invertebrates, which was of an applied nature, since it consisted mainly of showing and explaining anatomical preparations and drawings.
In 1826, Baer was appointed ordinary professor of anatomy and director of the anatomical institute, relieving him of his duties as a dissector until now.
In 1828, the first volume of the famous "History of the Development of Animals" appeared in print. Baer, studying the embryology of the chicken, observed that early stage of development, when two parallel ridges form on the germinal plate, subsequently closing and forming a brain tube. Baer believed that in the process of development, each new formation arises from a simpler pre-existing basis. Thus, general bases first appear in the embryo, and more and more special parts are isolated from them. This process of gradual movement from the general to the specific is known as differentiation. In this volume Baer also described his Law of Germinal Similarity. Baer discovered the mammalian egg in 1826. This discovery was made public by him in the form of a message addressed to the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, which elected him as its corresponding member.
Another very important discovery made by Baer is the discovery of the dorsal string (chord), the basis of the internal skeleton of vertebrates.
At the end of 1834, Baer was already living in St. Petersburg. From the capital, in the summer of 1837, the scientist traveled to Novaya Zemlya, where no naturalist had ever been before.
In 1839, Baer made a trip to explore the islands of the Gulf of Finland, and in 1840 visited the Kola Peninsula. Baer from 1840 began to publish, together with Gelmersen, a special journal at the academy, called "Materials for the Knowledge of the Russian Empire."
Since 1841, the scientist was appointed ordinary professor of comparative anatomy and physiology at the Medico-Surgical Academy.
In 1851, Baer submitted to the Academy of Sciences a large article "On Man", intended for Semashko's "Russian Fauna" and translated into Russian.
Since 1851, a series of Baer's travels around Russia began, undertaken for practical purposes and involving Baer, in addition to geographical and ethnographic research, in the field of applied zoology. He led expeditions to Lake Peipus and the shores of the Baltic Sea, to the Volga and the Caspian Sea. His "Caspian Studies" in eight parts is very rich in scientific results. In this work of Baer, the eighth part is most interesting - “On the General Law of the Formation of River Channels” (see Baer's Law). In the spring of 1857, the scientist returned to St. Petersburg. Now Baer devoted himself mainly to anthropology. He put in order and enriched the collection of human skulls in the anatomical museum of the Academy, gradually turning it into an anthropological museum.
In 1862 he retired and was elected an honorary member of the Academy.
On August 18, 1864, a solemn celebration of his anniversary took place at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. After the anniversary, Baer considered his St. Petersburg career finally completed and decided to move to Dorpat. In the early summer of 1867 he moved to his native university town.
Karl Maksimovich Baer(Karl Ernst) (1792-1876) - naturalist, founder of embryology, one of the founders of the Russian Geographical Society, foreign corresponding member (1826), academician (1828-30 and 1834-62; honorary member from 1862) of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. Born in Estonia. Worked in Austria and Germany; in 1829-30 and from 1834 - in Russia. Opened the egg in mammals, described the blastula stage; studied chick embryogenesis.
Karl Baer established the similarity of the embryos of higher and lower animals, the consistent appearance in embryogenesis of signs of type, class, order, etc.; described the development of all major organs of vertebrates. Explored Novaya Zemlya, the Caspian Sea. K. Baer - editor of a series of publications on the geography of Russia . He explained the pattern of river bank erosion (Baer's law: rivers flowing in the direction of the meridian in the Northern Hemisphere wash away the right bank, in the Southern Hemisphere - the left. It is explained by the influence of the daily rotation of the Earth on the movement of water particles in the river.).
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Carl Ernst von Baer Teacher of biology Kuzyaeva A.M. Nizhny Novgorod
Karl Ernst von Baer (February 17, 1792 - November 28, 1876) Karl Ernst von Baer, or, as he was called in Russia, Karl Maksimovich Baer, one of the founders of embryology and comparative anatomy, academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, president of the Russian Entomological Society, one of the founders Russian Geographical Society. Ichthyologist, geographer, anthropologist and ethnographer.
Baer was born on February 28, 1792 in his father's estate Pin, Estland province (Tartu, Estonia); Baer's father, Magnus von Baer, belonged to the Estonian nobility. Home teachers worked with Karl. In August 1807, the boy entered the noble school in Revel. in 1810 - 1814 he studied medicine at the University of Dorpat and in 1812 - 1813 he had the opportunity to do it practically in a large military infirmary in Riga. In 1814, Baer passed the examination for the degree of doctor of medicine.
To improve in the sciences, Karl Baer went to Germany, where, under the guidance of Dellinger, he studied comparative anatomy in Würzburg; met Nees von Esenbeck, who had a great influence on his mental direction. Since 1817 Baer has been Burdakh's prosector in Konigsberg. In 1819 he was appointed extraordinary, and shortly thereafter, ordinary professor of zoology. In 1826 he was appointed ordinary professor of anatomy and director of the anatomical institute. In the same year, Baer discovered the mammalian egg. In 1828, the first volume of the famous "History of the Development of Animals" appeared in print. In 1829 he was invited as an academician and professor of zoology at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. Johann Dellinger Nes von Esenbeck
In the summer of 1837 he traveled to Novaya Zemlya, where no naturalist had ever been before. In 1839, Baer made a trip to explore the islands of the Gulf of Finland. In 1840 he visited the Kola Peninsula. Baer from 1840 began to publish, together with Gelmersen, a special journal at the academy, called "Materials for the Knowledge of the Russian Empire."
Since 1841, Baer was appointed to the chair of comparative anatomy and physiology specially founded for him at the Medico-Surgical Academy as an ordinary professor. Cheny works together with the surgeon N.I. Pirogov. In 1851, Baer submitted to the Academy of Sciences a large article "On Man", intended for Yu.I. Simashko and translated into Russian. K. Baer N.I. Pirogov
Since 1851, the system of Baer's travels across Russia began with practical purposes and carried, in addition to geographical and ethnographic research, in the field of applied zoology (to Lake Peipus, the shores of the Baltic Sea, the Volga and the Caspian Sea). In the spring of 1857, the scientist returned to St. Petersburg and became interested in anthropology. He commissioned and enriched the collection of human skulls in the anatomical museum of the Academy of Sciences. In 1862 he retired and was elected an honorary member of the Academy. On August 18, 1864, a solemn celebration of his anniversary took place at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. After the anniversary, Baer considered his St. Petersburg career irrevocably completed and decided to move to Dorpat. In the early summer of 1867 he moved to a nearby campus.
Baer's Laws The most general characters of any large group of animals appear in the embryo earlier than the less general characters; after the formation of the most general signs, less common ones appear, and so on until the appearance of special signs characteristic of this group; the embryo of any kind of animal, as it develops, becomes less and less like the embryos of other species and does not pass through the later stages of their development; the embryo of a highly organized species may resemble the embryo of a more primitive species, but never resembles the adult form of that species.
The law of germline similarity Karl Ernst von Baer showed that the development of all organisms begins with the egg. At the same time, the following patterns are observed, common to all vertebrates: early stages development, a striking similarity is found in the structure of the embryos of animals belonging to different classes (in this case, the embryo of the highest form is similar not to the adult animal form, but to its embryo); in the embryos of each large group of animals, common characters are formed earlier than special ones; in the process of embryonic development, there is a divergence of signs from more general to special.
On November 16 (November 28), 1876, Baer died quietly, as if he had fallen asleep. In November 1886, a monument to Baer was erected in Tartu. Monuments are also installed at the entrance to the Zoological Museum of the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences and in the Library of the Academy of Sciences (BAN) in St. Petersburg. In 1864, the prize was approved to them. Baer. K. Baer on the Estonian banknote of 2 kroons Karl von Baer is depicted on the banknote of two Estonian kroons.
Who is Karl Maksimovich Baer, what is his contribution to biology, what is this scientist known for?
Baer Karl Maksimovich, born Karl Ernst von Baer. Years of life 1792-1876. The future naturalist was born into a family of Baltic Germans in the Estland province, now Estonia.
He went down in history as the founder of embryology. He was engaged in a comparative analysis of the patterns of intrauterine development of embryos belonging to different biological species. In their scientific papers he formulated the foundations for the formation of the embryo, which were later named in his honor "the so-called Baer's laws."
Carl Baer - short biography
Karl's parents belonged to the famous noble family. The family was considered prosperous at that time. From childhood, home teachers were engaged with the future scientist, teaching him mathematics, geography and foreign languages. Obviously, even in early childhood Karl was a keen student and with genuine interest comprehended the basics of many scientific disciplines which set him apart from his peers.
From 1810 Karl studied medicine in Dorpat and Wurzburg. He was diligent in his studies, comprehended medical disciplines with honors. Just 4 years after graduation medical school, the scientist gets a job as a dissector (pathologist) at the University of Königsberg, where the young specialist is fond of comparative anatomy.
The range of interests of Karl Baer is not limited to the study of human anatomy, although this is precisely what is included in his duties as an employee of the anatomical theater. The scientist is fascinated by the zoology of invertebrates and embryology, which at that time had not yet been isolated into an independent biological discipline.
In 1826, Karl Baer headed the department of anatomy at the University of Königsberg. In the same year he receives degree member of the Imperial Academy in St. Petersburg, and after only a year becomes a professor at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.
In 1834, Baer moved to Russia, after which the scientist's lifestyle changed to a large extent. He is fascinated by the gigantic almost unexplored expanses of the vast country, the nature of which at that time was practically unexplored.
At this time, Baer became a geographer and traveler, a researcher of the richest living world in Russia. So in 1837, the scientist led a scientific expedition to Novaya Zemlya. In the course of this natural testing activity, a group of scientists discovered about 90 new plants and about 70 species of invertebrates unknown until now.
Under his leadership, many scientific expeditions were carried out. The scientist studied the animal and vegetable world Gulf of Finland, Kola Peninsula, Transcaucasia, Volga region, Black Sea, Azov, Caspian and so on.
The results of this expedition had not only scientific but also practical significance. Thanks to his discoveries, the foundations were laid for the formation of fisheries as a field of applied human activity.
Baer ended his practical activity in 1864, officially announcing this within the walls of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. In the same year, the scientist moved to his historical homeland in Dorpat, where 12 years later he died in his sleep. AT last years life he completely departed from scientific activity and devoted all his time to his friends and relatives.
Baer's contribution to the development of science
Baer first discovered the egg in humans. Studying the developmental features of embryos belonging to different types of multicellular animals, he saw certain similarities that are present in the early stages of development and disappear over time.
According to the teachings of Baer, the embryo first develops traits characteristic of the type, then the class, then the detachment, genus, and finally the species. In the early stages of their development, embryos belonging to different species and even orders have a lot of similar features.
In addition, Baer determined the main stages in the development of the embryo of multicellular animals: the timing and features of the formation and growth of the neural tube, as well as the spinal column, in addition, he studied the structural features of other vital organs.
Baer was one of the first to suggest that all racial differences in a person are formed solely under the influence of characteristics environment. To study the features of the development of ethno-territorial groups of a person, the scientist for the first time used the methods of craniology (the study of structural features of the skull).
Karl Baer has always been a supporter of the species unity of man and criticized any ideas and attempts to prove the superiority of one race to another. For his tough position regarding species unity, the views of the scientist were criticized more than once by other more reactionary colleagues.
Having said that Baer contributed to biology, one cannot fail to note his contribution as a scientist to geography. The so-called Baer's law states that rivers flowing along the meridian will always have a steeper west bank due to constant washing away by the current. Karl Baer is one of the founders of the Russian Geographical Society.
A cape on Novaya Zemlya is named after this great naturalist, in addition, a whole range of hills in the Caspian lowland, as well as one of the islands in the Taimyr Bay.
Conclusion
Karl Maksimovich Baer, whose biography can not tell everything about this person, approached nature as a whole. He studied the invisible forces that make every organism develop, while not violating the principles of harmony, unity and integrity of the universe.
