Nicolaus Steno.

Nicolas Steno (in Danish, Niels Steensen or Niels Stensen) (January 10, 1638 - November 26, 1686) was a pioneer both in anatomy and in geology. This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... January 10 is the 10th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events March 29 - Swedish colonists establish first settlement in Delaware, called New Sweden. ... November 26 is the 330th day (331st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events The League of Augsburg is founded. ... Anatomical drawing of the human muscles from the Encyclopédie. ... Geology (from Greek γη- (ge-, the earth) and λογος (logos, word, reason)) is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history and the processes that shape it. ...

After having completed his university education in Copenhagen, the city of his birth, he set out travelling in Europe; in fact, he would be on the move for the rest of his life. In the Netherlands, France, and Italy he came into contact with prominent physicians and scientists, and thanks to his eminent power of observation he very soon made important discoveries. At a time when scientific studies consisted in reading the ancient authorities, Steno was bold enough to trust his own eyes, even when his observations differed from traditional doctrines. Copenhagen (Danish: København) is the capital of Denmark, and the name of the municipality (Danish, kommune) in which it resides. ...

Steno originally studied anatomy, focused at first on the muscular system and the nature of muscle contraction. He used geometry to show that a contracting muscle changes its shape but not its volume.

However, in October 1666, two fishermen caught a huge shark near the town of Livorno, and Duke Ferdinand ordered its head to be sent to Steno. Steno dissected it and published his findings in 1667. Examination of the teeth of the shark showed a striking resemblance to certain stony objects, called glossopetrae or "tongue stones," that were found in certain rocks. Ancient authorities, such as the Roman author Pliny the Elder, had suggested that these stones fell from the sky or from the moon. Others were of the opinion, also going back to ancient times, that fossils naturally grew in the rocks. Steno's contemporary Athanasius Kircher, for example, attributed fossils to a "lapidifying virtue diffused through the whole body of the geocosm." Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19c portrait. ... A fossil Ammonite Fossils (from Latin fossus, literally having been dug up) are the mineralized or otherwise preserved remains or traces (such as footprints) of animals, plants, and other organisms. ... Athanasius Kircher (sometimes spelt Kirchner) (May 2, 1601?–27 November 1680) was a 17th century German Jesuit scholar who published around 40 works, most notably in the fields of oriental studies, geology and medicine. ...

Steno, however, argued that glossopetrae looked like shark teeth because they were shark teeth, come from the mouths of ancient sharks, and come to be buried in mud or sand that was now dry land. There were differences in composition between glossopetrae and living sharks' teeth, but Steno argued that fossils could be altered in chemical composition without changing their form, using the "corpuscular theory of matter".

Steno's work on shark teeth led him to the question of how any solid object could come to be found inside another solid object, such as a rock or a layer of rock. The "solid bodies within solids" that attracted Steno's interest included not only fossils as we would define them today, but minerals, crystals, incrustations, veins, and even entire rock layers or strata. He published his geologic studies in De solido intra solidum naturaliter contento dissertationis prodromus, or Preliminary discourse to a dissertation on a solid body naturally contained within a solid in 1669. This work was extended in 1772 by Jean-Baptiste L. Romé de l'Isle. This article is about the geologic use of the term, for other uses see Stratum (disambiguation) Interstate road cut through limestone and shale strata in eastern Tennessee In geology and related fields, a stratum (plural: strata) is a layer of rock or soil with internally consistent characteristics that distinguishes it... // Events Samuel Pepys stopped writing his diary. ... 1772 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Jean-Baptiste L. Romé de lIsle (August 26, 1736–July 3, 1790) formulated the Law of Constancy of Interfacial Angles in his Traitise on Crystallography (1772), which built on observations by the geologist Nicolaus Steno. ...

Steno was not the first to identify fossils as being from living organisms. Steno's contemporaries Robert Hooke and John Ray also argued that fossils were the remains of once-living organisms. A portrait, claimed by historian Lisa Jardine to be of Robert Hooke Robert Hooke, FRS (July 18, 1635 - March 3, 1703), one of the greatest experimental scientists of the seventeenth century, played an important role in the scientific revolution. ...

He is credited with the law of superposition, the principle of original horizontality, and the principle of lateral continuity: three defining principles of the science of geology of sedimentary rocks. [1] The law of superposition is an axiom that forms one of the bases of the sciences of geology, archaeology, and other fields dealing with geological stratigraphy. ... Proposed by Nicholas Steno. ... Geology (from Greek γη- (ge-, the earth) and λογος (logos, word, reason)) is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history and the processes that shape it. ... Two types of sedimentary rock: limey shale overlaid by limestone. ...

Another principal known simply as Steno's law, or Steno's law of contant angles, is that the angles between corresponding faces on crystals of the same substance are the same for all examples of the mineral or material.

This mindset also was important for his religious views. Having been brought up in the Lutheran faith, he nevertheless questioned its teachings, something which became for him a burning issue when confronted with Roman Catholicism while studying in Florence. After theological studies, not the least the Church Fathers, he decided that the Catholic, not the Lutheran, church was the authentic church, and as a consequence he converted to the Catholic Church. The Lutheran movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity by the original definition. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Founded 59 BC as Florentia Region Tuscany Mayor Leonardo Domenici (Democratici di Sinistra) Area  - City Proper  102 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 356,000 almost 500,000 3,453/km² Time zone CET, UTC+1 Latitude Longitude 43°47 N 11°15 E www. ...

This, however, gradually made him put aside his scientific studies. (Possibly, his remarkable insight in geology made him realise that the formation of the Earth's strata could not be brought into agreement with the creation stories in Genesis - stories which nobody at the time dared to question.) He was ordained priest, later bishop, and sent to the "missions" in Lutheran North Germany. He first worked from the city of Hannover, meeting Gottfried Leibniz there, and then moved to Hamburg. After years filled with difficult tasks, he died after much suffering at Schwerin in 1686. The Creation of Light by Gustave Doré. In Abrahamic religions, creationism or creation theology is the origin belief that humans, life, the Earth, and the universe were created by a supreme being or deitys supernatural intervention. ... This article is about Genesis, the first book of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). ... Map of Germany showing Hanover Hanover (in German: Hannover [haˈnoːfɐ]), on the river Leine, is the capital of the state of Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen), Germany. ... Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (also von Leibni(t)z) (July 1 (June 21 Old Style) 1646, Leipzig – November 14, 1716, Hanover) was a German polymath, deemed a genius in his day and since. ... Alster Lake at dusk Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany and with the Hamburg Harbour, its principal port. ... Schwerin is a town in northern Germany. ... Events The League of Augsburg is founded. ...

His life and work have been intensely studied, in particular since the late 19th century, and especially his piety and virtue has been evaluated with a view to an eventual canonization. In 1987, he was declared "beatus" - the first step to being declared "saint" - by Pope John Paul II. He is thus now called Blessed Nicolas Steno. Canonization is the process of declaring someone a saint and involves proving that a candidate has lived in such a way that he or she is worthy of sainthood. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... In Catholicism, beatification (from Latin beatus, blessed, via Greek μακαριος, makarios) is a recognition accorded by the church of a dead persons accession to Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name (intercession of saints). ... In general, the term Saint refers to someone who is exceptionally virtuous and holy. ... Pope John Paul II (Latin: ), born Karol Józef Wojtyła (May 18, 1920 – April 2, 2005) reigned as pope of the Roman Catholic Church for almost 27 years, from October 16, 1978 until his death, making his the second-longest pontificate. ...

The Steno Museum in Århus, Denmark is named after Steno. It holds exhibitions on the history of science and the history of medicine. It also operates a planetarium and a medical herb garden. Also, craters on Mars and the Moon are named in his honor The cityhall of Ã…rhus. ... A planetarium is a theater built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation. ... Tycho crater on Earths moon. ... Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the solar system, named after the Roman god of war (the counterpart of the Greek Ares), on account of its blood red color as viewed in the night sky. ... Crust composition Oxygen 43% Silicon 21% Aluminium 10% Calcium 9% Iron 9% Magnesium 5% Titanium 2% Nickel 0. ...

Books

• Concerning Solids naturally contained within solids (1671)
• Elementary Mylogical Specimens (1669)
• Anatomical Observations (1662)
• Discours de Monsieur Stenon sur L'Anatomie du Cerveau (1669), Paris.
• Of the anatomy of the Brain (1671)

References

• The Seashell on the Mountaintop: A Story of Science, Sainthood, and the Humble Genius Who Discovered a New History of the Earth by Alan Cutler, 2003 ISBN 0525947086
• Blessed Nicholas Steno (1638-1686). Natural-History Research and Science of the Cross by Frank Sobiech, in: Australian EJournal of Theology, August 2005, Issue 5, ISSN 1448-632 (http://dlibrary.acu.edu.au/research/theology/ejournal/aejt_5/Sobiech.htm)
• Steno article at UC Berkeley
• Niels Stensen