This article has been reviewed by the following Topic Editor: Peter Saundry
Jan Baptista Van Helmont (1577–1644), a Flemish physician, chemist, and physicist who made an important early contribution to our understanding of photosynthesis and chemistry. He performed a classic experiment where he measured the mass of a potted willow tree grown for 5 years in a tightly controlled environment. He discovered that the mass of the entire plant was far more than the weight of the displaced original 200 pounds of soil. This led him to reject the commonly held notion that plants were fed exclusively by the soil. He also discovered carbon dioxide and went on to distinguish gases as a class of substances (as contrasted with solids and liquids); he is credited with introducing the term gas in its present scientific sense.
Cutler Cleveland (Lead Author);Peter Saundry (Topic Editor) "Van Helmont, Jan Baptista". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth September 25, 2006; Last revised Date September 25, 2006; Retrieved May 26, 2012 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Van_Helmont,_Jan_Baptista>
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The Encyclopedia of Earth Cutler J. Cleveland is the founding Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Earth. Dr. Cleveland is currently a Professor in the Department of Geography and Environment at Boston University, with joint appointments in the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies and the Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer Range Future. He also is a Senior Fellow at the National Council for Science and the Environment in Washington D.C. Dr. Cleveland is als ... (Full Bio)
Jan Baptista Van Helmont (1577–1644), a Flemish physician, chemist, and physicist who made an important early contribution to our understanding of photosynthesis and chemistry. He performed a classic experiment where he measured the mass of a potted willow tree grown for 5 years in a tightly controlled environment. He discovered that the mass of the entire plant was far more than the weight of the displaced original 200 pounds of soil. This led him to reject the commonly held notion that plants were fed exclusively by the soil. He also discovered carbon dioxide and went on to distinguish gases as a class of substances (as contrasted with solids and liquids); he is credited with introducing the term gas in its present scientific sense.
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