When Royal Society Secretary Henry Oldenburg asked Leeuwenhoek to look at semen, the Dutch draper initially did not reply “because he felt it was ‘unseemly.'” Despite living in the Dutch ...

In 1677, Leeuwenhoek’s now-verified observations were published by the Royal Society (in English, after being translated from Dutch with help from Hooke, who learned Dutch so that he could read ...

A head louse as microscope pioneer Antoni van Leeuwenhoek might have seen it (Image: Brian J. Ford) Who needs fancy electron microscopes when you've got the simple but ingenious hand-held ...

Van Leeuwenhoek's own interest in lensmaking stemmed from his desire to more clearly see the quality of the thread he used in his draper business, ...

OF all the great naturalists of the past, Leeuwenhoek occupies the unique and anomalous position of being the most frequently quoted and at the same time the least appreciated and understood. An ...

THE connexion of Leeuwenhoek with the Royal Society was unique, sinoe, although for fifty years he was a constant correspondent and for forty-three years a fellow, he never attended a single meeting.

Van Leeuwenhoek's claim resulted in widespread speculation. Innumerable suggestions were made, but a conclusive answer remained forthcoming. The 11 Leeuwenhoek microscopes that have stood the test ...

This animated documentary celebrates the 17th-century citizen scientist Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, whose discovery of microbes would change our view of the biological world.

Van Leeuwenhoek had to hold the 3- or 4-inch instrument close to his eye. Besides good lighting, it required sharp eyesight and a fair dose of patience. Van Leeuwenhoek had both.

Van Leeuwenhoek crafted more than 500 microscopes, but only 11 of his instruments survive today—and only one that produces the 270X magnification he used to make his greatest discovery.

Antonie van Leeuwenhoek is being celebrated for his work on microbiology with a Google Doodle. And it is well deserved – he is the scientist who perhaps did the most to help us understand what ...