Johann Baptist Andreas Ritter von Scherer (24 June 1755 – 10 April 1844) was an Austrian

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

and

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

. Scherer was born in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

. He studied chemistry at the universities of

and

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, receiving his doctorate in 1782. As a student his instructors included botanists Joseph Gottfried Mikan and

Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin Nikolaus Joseph Freiherr von Jacquin (16 February 172726 October 1817) was a scientist who studied medicine, chemistry and botany. Biography Born in Leiden in the Netherlands, he studied medicine at Leiden University, then moved first to P ...

. In 1797 he became a professor of chemistry at the

Theresianum Theresianum (or Theresian Academy; german: Theresianische Akademie) is a private boarding and day school governed by the laws for public schools in Vienna, Austria. It was founded in 1746 by Empress Maria Theresa of Austria. History Early h ...

in Vienna, followed by a professorship at the Polytechnic Institute in Prague (from 1803). From 1807 to 1834 he was a professor of specialized natural history at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...

.Scherer, Johann Andreas
ZVAB.com In 1811 he was elevated to the status of "

Ritter Ritter (German for "knight") is a designation used as a title of nobility in German-speaking areas. Traditionally it denotes the second-lowest rank within the nobility, standing above "Edler" and below "Freiherr" (Baron). As with most titles an ...

" (title of nobility). From 1832 he was an editor of the ''Österreichischen medizinischen Jahrbücher''. He died in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Selected works

* ''Eudiometria sive methodus aeris atmosphaerici puritatem salubritatemve examinandi'', 1782 ( dissertation thesis). * ''Geschichte der Luftgüteprüfungslehre für Aerzte und Naturfreunde'', 1785 – History of air quality testing for physicians and lovers of nature. * ''Versuche mit Pflanzen'', 1786 (translation of

Jan Ingenhousz Jan (or John) Ingenhousz or Ingen-Housz FRS (8 December 1730 – 7 September 1799) was a Dutch-born British physiologist, biologist and chemist. He is best known for discovering photosynthesis by showing that light is essential to the process ...

' plant experiments). * ''Beobachtungen und Versuche über das pflanzenaehnliche Wesen in den warmen Karlsbader und Toeplitzer Waessern in Boehmen'', 1787 – Observations and experiments on plant-like entities in the warm waters of Karlsbad and Töplitz in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

. * ''Versuch einer neuen Nomenclatur für Deutsche Chymisten'' (with Christian Friedrich Wappler), 1792 – Essay on a new nomenclature for German chemists. * ''Beweis, dass Johann Mayow von hundert Jahren den Grund zur antiphlogistischen Chemie und Physiologie gelegt hat'', 1793 – Evidence that

John Mayow John Mayow FRS (1641–1679) was a chemist, physician, and physiologist who is remembered today for conducting early research into respiration and the nature of air. Mayow worked in a field that is sometimes called pneumatic chemistry. Life ...

had laid the foundation for anti-

phlogiston The phlogiston theory is a superseded scientific theory that postulated the existence of a fire-like element called phlogiston () contained within combustible bodies and released during combustion. The name comes from the Ancient Greek (''burni ...

chemistry and

physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

100 years ago.Most widely held works by Johann Andreas Scherer
WorldCat Identities

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scherer, Johann Andreas 1755 births 1844 deaths Scientists from Prague Charles University alumni University of Vienna alumni Academic staff of the University of Vienna 19th-century Austrian botanists 18th-century Austrian chemists