Henry Horatio Dixon
Encyclopedia
Henry Horatio Dixon was a plant biologist
and professor
at Trinity College Dublin. Along with John Joly
, he put forward the cohesion-tension theory of water and mineral movement in plants.
He was born in Dublin, the youngest of the seven sons of George Dixon, a soap manufacturer and Rebecca (née Yeates) Dixon. He was educated at Rathmines School and Trinity College, Dublin
. After studying in Bonn, Germany he in 1894 he was appointed assistant and later full Professor of Botany at Trinity. In 1906 he became Director of the Botanic gardens and in 1910 of the Herbarium also. He had a close working relationship with physicist John Joly
and together they developed the cohesion theory of the ascent of sap.
In 1907 he married Dorothea Mary, daughter of Sir John H Franks, with whom he raised three sons. He was the father of Hal Dixon
and grandfather of Adrian Dixon
.
In 1908 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, his application citation describing him as "[Assistant to the] Professor of Botany in the University of Dublin. Has published various papers on Vegetable Histology, Cytology and Physiology. Joint author with J Joly, of papers, 'On the Ascent of Sap' (Phil Trans, vol 186, B, 1895); 'The Path of the Transpiration-Current' (Annals of Botany, vol ix, 1895); author also of the following papers: - 'Fertilization of 'Pinus silvestris' (ibid, vol viii, 1894); 'On the Vegetative Organs of 'Vanda teres' (Proc Roy Irish Acad, 3rd Ser, vol iii, 1894); 'On the Chromosomes of 'Lilium longiflorum' and 'On the Nuclei of the Endosperm of 'Fritillaria imperials' (ibid, 1896); 'On the Osmotic Pressure in the Cells of Leaves' (ibid, vol iv, 1897); 'On the Physics of the Transpiration-Current' (Notes from the Botanical School, Trinity College, Dublin, 1897); 'Transpiration into a Saturated Atmosphere' (Proc Roy Irish Acad, 3rd Ser, vol iv, 1898); 'On the First Mitosis of the Spore-mother-Cells of Lilium' (ibid, vol vi, 1899); 'The Possible Function of the Nucleolus in Heredity' (Annals of Botany, vol xiii, 1899); 'On the Structure of Coccospheres and the Origin of Coccoliths' (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxvi, 1900); 'On the Germination of Seeds after Exposure to High Temperature' (notes from Botanical School, Trinity College, Dublin, 1902); 'Cohesion Theory of the Ascent of Sap' (Proc Roy Dublin Soc, vol x, 1903); 'Observations on the Temperature of Subterranean Organs of Plants' (Trans Roy Irish Acad, vol xxxii, B, 1903), and other papers on histological and physiology subjects.". He delivered the society's Croonian Lecture
in 1937.
Biologist
A biologist is a scientist devoted to and producing results in biology through the study of life. Typically biologists study organisms and their relationship to their environment. Biologists involved in basic research attempt to discover underlying mechanisms that govern how organisms work...
and professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
at Trinity College Dublin. Along with John Joly
John Joly
John Joly FRS was an Irish physicist, famous for his development of radiotherapy in the treatment of cancer...
, he put forward the cohesion-tension theory of water and mineral movement in plants.
He was born in Dublin, the youngest of the seven sons of George Dixon, a soap manufacturer and Rebecca (née Yeates) Dixon. He was educated at Rathmines School and Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
. After studying in Bonn, Germany he in 1894 he was appointed assistant and later full Professor of Botany at Trinity. In 1906 he became Director of the Botanic gardens and in 1910 of the Herbarium also. He had a close working relationship with physicist John Joly
John Joly
John Joly FRS was an Irish physicist, famous for his development of radiotherapy in the treatment of cancer...
and together they developed the cohesion theory of the ascent of sap.
In 1907 he married Dorothea Mary, daughter of Sir John H Franks, with whom he raised three sons. He was the father of Hal Dixon
Hal Dixon
Dr Henry Berkeley Franks Dixon D.Sc., known as Hal Dixon was a biochemist and Life Fellow of King's College Cambridge...
and grandfather of Adrian Dixon
Adrian Dixon
Professor Adrian Dixon M.A., M.D., FRCR, FRCP, FRCS, FMedSci is the Master of Peterhouse, Cambridge.He was born in 1948 in Cambridge, where he is now Professor of Radiology at the University of Cambridge, and Honorary Consultant Radiologist at Addenbrooke's Hospital...
.
In 1908 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, his application citation describing him as "[Assistant to the] Professor of Botany in the University of Dublin. Has published various papers on Vegetable Histology, Cytology and Physiology. Joint author with J Joly, of papers, 'On the Ascent of Sap' (Phil Trans, vol 186, B, 1895); 'The Path of the Transpiration-Current' (Annals of Botany, vol ix, 1895); author also of the following papers: - 'Fertilization of 'Pinus silvestris' (ibid, vol viii, 1894); 'On the Vegetative Organs of 'Vanda teres' (Proc Roy Irish Acad, 3rd Ser, vol iii, 1894); 'On the Chromosomes of 'Lilium longiflorum' and 'On the Nuclei of the Endosperm of 'Fritillaria imperials' (ibid, 1896); 'On the Osmotic Pressure in the Cells of Leaves' (ibid, vol iv, 1897); 'On the Physics of the Transpiration-Current' (Notes from the Botanical School, Trinity College, Dublin, 1897); 'Transpiration into a Saturated Atmosphere' (Proc Roy Irish Acad, 3rd Ser, vol iv, 1898); 'On the First Mitosis of the Spore-mother-Cells of Lilium' (ibid, vol vi, 1899); 'The Possible Function of the Nucleolus in Heredity' (Annals of Botany, vol xiii, 1899); 'On the Structure of Coccospheres and the Origin of Coccoliths' (Proc Roy Soc, vol lxvi, 1900); 'On the Germination of Seeds after Exposure to High Temperature' (notes from Botanical School, Trinity College, Dublin, 1902); 'Cohesion Theory of the Ascent of Sap' (Proc Roy Dublin Soc, vol x, 1903); 'Observations on the Temperature of Subterranean Organs of Plants' (Trans Roy Irish Acad, vol xxxii, B, 1903), and other papers on histological and physiology subjects.". He delivered the society's Croonian Lecture
Croonian Lecture
The Croonian Lectures are prestigious lectureships given at the invitation of the Royal Society and the Royal College of Physicians.Among the papers of William Croone at his death in 1684, was a plan to endow one lectureship at both the Royal Society and the Royal College of Physicians...
in 1937.