Portrait of Lord Melvyn Bragg, host of In Our Time

History of biology

The history of biology traces the study of the living world from ancient to modern times. Although the concept of biology as a single coherent field arose in the 19th century, the biological sciences emerged from traditions of medicine and natural history reaching back to Ayurveda, ancient Egyptian medicine and the works of Aristotle and Galen in the ancient Greco-Roman world.

2 episodes

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  1. Aristotle's biology

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Aristotle's method of biological investigation and the first systematic and thorough study of animals, which was unequalled for almost 2,000 years.

    7 February 2019

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    Featuring: Armand Leroi, Myrto Hatzimichali, Sophia Connell

     
  2. Vitalism

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Vitalism, an 18th and 19th century quest for the spark of life and the science behind Frankenstein.

    16 October 2008

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    Featuring: Patricia Fara, Andrew Mendelsohn, Pietro Corsi