Cells and Cell Theory

Introduction to Cells

• Topic begins with an analogy of building blocks and cells.
• Emphasis on how understanding cells explain the dynamics of life.

Historical Discovery of Cells

• 1661: King Charles II of England commissions Christopher Wren to design microscopes.
  • Wren delegates to Robert Hooke.
  • Hooke designs the microscope and discovers cells through cork examination (1665).
  • Observed cell walls resembling small compartments, leading to the term