William Dallinger
Encyclopedia
Rev. Dr. William Henry Dallinger F.R.S. (July 5, 1839 – November 7, 1909) was a British minister in the Wesleyan Methodist Church
. He was also an accomplished scientist
, being the first to study the complete lifecycle of unicellular organism
s under the microscope
and studying the adaptation of such organisms to temperature.
He made numerous contributions to microscopy, and was president of the Quekett Microscopical Club from 1890 to 1892. Dallinger was awarded three honorary doctorates, the Ll.D. from Victoria College, Toronto in 1884, the D.Sc. from Dublin in 1892, and the D.L.C. from Durham in 1896.
Dallinger was married to Emma Ion Goldsmith (1842-1910). They had one child, son Percy Gough (1867-1930).
Wesleyan Methodist Church
The Wesleyan Methodist Church was a Methodist denomination in the United States organized on May 13, 1841. It was composed of ministers and laypeople who withdrew from the Methodist Episcopal Church because of disagreements regarding slavery, church government, and the doctrine of holiness...
. He was also an accomplished scientist
Scientist
A scientist in a broad sense is one engaging in a systematic activity to acquire knowledge. In a more restricted sense, a scientist is an individual who uses the scientific method. The person may be an expert in one or more areas of science. This article focuses on the more restricted use of the word...
, being the first to study the complete lifecycle of unicellular organism
Unicellular organism
A unicellular organism, also known as a single-celled organism is an organism that consists of only one cell, in contrast to a multicellular organism that consists of multiple cells. Historically simple single celled organisms have sometimes been referred to as monads Prokaryotes, most protists,...
s under the microscope
Microscope
A microscope is an instrument used to see objects that are too small for the naked eye. The science of investigating small objects using such an instrument is called microscopy...
and studying the adaptation of such organisms to temperature.
He made numerous contributions to microscopy, and was president of the Quekett Microscopical Club from 1890 to 1892. Dallinger was awarded three honorary doctorates, the Ll.D. from Victoria College, Toronto in 1884, the D.Sc. from Dublin in 1892, and the D.L.C. from Durham in 1896.
Dallinger was married to Emma Ion Goldsmith (1842-1910). They had one child, son Percy Gough (1867-1930).
Selected scientific publications by Dallinger
- W. Dallinger (1872) Should the naturalist recognize a fourth kingdom in nature? Lit. Phil. Soc. Lpool Proc. 26, 286.
- W. Dallinger and J. Drysdale (1873) Researches on the life history of a Cercomonade: a lesson in biogenesis. Mon. Microscp. Jl. 10, 52-58.
- W. Dallinger (1878) On the life-history of a minute septic organism: with an account of experiments made to determine its thermal death point. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. 27, 332-350.
- W. Dallinger (1887) The President's Address. Jl. R. Microscp. Soc. 184-199.
Further reading
- J.W. Haas, Jr. (2000). The reverend Dr William Henry Dallinger, F.R.S. (1839 1909). Notes Rec. R. Soc. Lond. 54, 53-65.