Lionel Smith Beale
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Lionel Smith Beale (5 February 1828 – 28 March 1906) was a British physician, microscopist, and professor at
King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...
. He graduated in medicine from King's College in 1851. He was elected a Fellow of the
Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
in 1857.


Life

Lionel Smith Beale was born in London on 5 February 1828, son of Lionel John Beale, a member of the
Royal College of Surgeons The Royal College of Surgeons is an ancient college (a form of corporation) established in England to regulate the activity of surgeons. Derivative organisations survive in many present and former members of the Commonwealth. These organisations ...
. He attended
King's College School King's College School, also known as Wimbledon, KCS, King's and KCS Wimbledon, is a public school in Wimbledon, southwest London, England. The school was founded in 1829 by King George IV, as the junior department of King's College London an ...
and
King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...
, where he obtained a degree in medicine. He also studied zoology at King's College. A year after graduating, Beale used his own funds to set up a laboratory for chemical and microscopic research and teaching. In 1853, when he was 25, King's College appointed him Professor of Physiology and General and Morbid Anatomy. In 1857 Beale was the founding editor of '' Archives of Medicine''. He promised the readers of this journal that it would be "freely illustrated" since "drawings are really of much more use than long descriptions". Beale was physician to King's College Hospital for forty years. At King's College, he became Professor of Pathology and then Professor of the Principle and Practice of Medicine until 1896, when he resigned. Beale was awarded the Baly medal in 1871. He was Croonian Lecturer to the Royal Society, 1865, President of the
Quekett Microscopical Club The Quekett Microscopical Club is a learned society for the promotion of microscopy. Its members come from all over the world, and include both amateur and professional microscopists. It is a registered charity and not-for-profit publisher, with the ...
, 1870–1871, Lumleian Lecturer at the Royal College of Physicians, 1875, President of the
Royal Microscopical Society The Royal Microscopical Society (RMS) is a learned society for the promotion of microscopy. It was founded in 1839 as the Microscopical Society of London making it the oldest organisation of its kind in the world. In 1866, the society gained its ...
, 1879, and Government medical referee for England, 1891–1904. Beale married Frances, daughter of Dr. Blakiston, F.R.S. His son, Peyton T. B. Beale, also became a surgeon. He died on 28 March 1906 at the age of 78.


Work

In writing, teaching and public speaking, Beale was a leading proponent of the
scientific method The scientific method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century (with notable practitioners in previous centuries; see the article history of scientifi ...
in medicine. He was a strong advocate of the value of microscopy, which he felt to be essential to understanding morbid growths and diseases. In his 1854 book ''The Microscope in its Applications to Practical Medicine'', Beale described the cell as a perfectly closed sac containing a
nucleus Nucleus ( : nuclei) is a Latin word for the seed inside a fruit. It most often refers to: * Atomic nucleus, the very dense central region of an atom *Cell nucleus, a central organelle of a eukaryotic cell, containing most of the cell's DNA Nucl ...
, which in turn usually contained a clear bright spot, the
nucleolus The nucleolus (, plural: nucleoli ) is the largest structure in the nucleus of eukaryotic cells. It is best known as the site of ribosome biogenesis, which is the synthesis of ribosomes. The nucleolus also participates in the formation of sign ...
. He classified cells by shape as well as by the part of the body they came from, and discussed ways in which cancerous cells could be distinguished from benign changes with similar clinical appearance. In 1860 he found and described cancer cells in
sputum Sputum is mucus that is coughed up from the lower airways (the trachea and bronchi). In medicine, sputum samples are usually used for a naked eye examination, microbiological investigation of respiratory infections and cytological investigatio ...
. Beale pioneered differential staining. From observing the differences in the way in which active, living organisms responded to staining compared with nonliving organisms, he concluded that the nucleus must hold the "bioplasm", or the essence of life. He was a passionate and vocal advocate of the view that there is an essential difference between living and inert matter. He felt that there were reasons to doubt the evidence for human evolution. Beale has been described as a "staunch
vitalist Vitalism is a belief that starts from the premise that "living organisms are fundamentally different from non-living entities because they contain some non-physical element or are governed by different principles than are inanimate things." Wher ...
".Strick, James E. (2002). ''Sparks of Life: Darwinism and the Victorian Debates Over Spontaneous Generation''. Harvard University Press. p. 202. He believed in a "vital force", saying, He said,


Publications


''The Microscope, and Its Application to Clinical Medicine''
(1854)
''How to Work with the Microscope''
(5th ed., 1880, 1st pub. 1857)
''Illustrations to How to Work with the Microscope''
(1859)
''On the Scientific Investigation of Disease in Animals and Man''
(1865)
''The Microscope in its Application to Practical Medicine''
(1867)
''Protoplasm: Or, Life, Force, and Matter''
(1870)
''Disease Germs: Their Real Nature''
(1870)
''The Mystery of Life''
(1871)
''Life Theories: Their Influence Upon Religious Thought''
(1871)
''Bioplasm: An Introduction to the Study of Physiology & Medicine''
(1872)
''The Microscope in Medicine''
(1878)
''On Slight Ailments''
(1882)
''Urinary and Renal Derangements and Calculous Disorders''
(1885)
''Our Morality and the Moral Question''
(1893)
''The New Materialism: Dictatorial Scientific Utterances and the Decline of Thought''
(1899)


Notes and references

Citations Sources * * * * * *


Further reading

* Gerald L. Geison. (1969)
''The Protoplasmic Theory of Life and the Vitalist-Mechanist Debate''
''
Isis Isis (; ''Δ’se''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: π€€π€Ž, romanized: ΚΎs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kin ...
'' 60 (3): 272–292. {{DEFAULTSORT:Beale, Lionel Smith 1828 births 1906 deaths 19th-century English medical doctors Academics of King's College London Alumni of King's College London Fellows of the Royal Microscopical Society Fellows of the Royal Society People educated at King's College School, London Medical doctors from London Vitalists