Gregor Mendel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gregor Johann Mendel
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| Born | July 20, 1822 Heinzendorf,
 Austrian Empire |
| Died | January 6, 1884 (aged 61) |
| Alma mater | University of Vienna |
| Known for | Founding modern genetics |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Genetics |
| Institutions | Abbey of St. Thomas in Brünn |
Gregor Johann Mendel was an Austrian monk and botanist. He is often called the "father of modern genetics". He was born on July 20, 1822, in Heinzendorf, Austria. He passed away on January 6, 1884, in Brünn, Austria-Hungary.
Mendel discovered the basic rules of heredity. He did this by carefully cross-breeding pea plants. He found out that traits like seed color or plant height are passed down in predictable ways. He learned about "dominant" and "recessive" traits. What he discovered is now called Mendelian inheritance. His amazing work was not fully understood at first. But it was rediscovered in 1900 by other scientists.
Contents
Early Life and Learning
Gregor Mendel grew up in a German-speaking family. They lived on a farm in Heinzendorf (now Hynčice, Czech Republic). His family had owned the farm for over 130 years. As a child, Mendel worked as a gardener. He also studied beekeeping.
He went to school in Troppau (now Opava, Czech Republic). He had to take time off due to illness. From 1840 to 1843, he studied philosophy and physics. He attended the Philosophical Institute of the University of Olmütz. He took another year off because he was sick.
In 1851, he went to the University of Vienna. He studied there with help from Abbot Cyril František Napp. This allowed him to get more formal education.
Mendel's Career
Mendel became a monk because he did not have much money. Becoming a monk was a way for him to get an education. He did not have to pay for it himself.
In 1853, Mendel started working as a teacher. He mainly taught physics. Later, in 1867, he became the abbot of the monastery. He took over from Abbot Napp.
After becoming abbot in 1868, his scientific work mostly stopped. He became very busy with managing the monastery.
His Passing
Mendel died on January 6, 1884. He was 61 years old. He passed away in Brünn, Moravia (now Czech Republic). The cause was a kidney disease. A famous Czech composer, Leoš Janáček, played the organ at his funeral.
Mendel's Plant Experiments
Mendel worked with seven different traits of pea plants. These included plant height, pod shape and color, and seed shape and color. He also studied flower position and color.
Let's look at seed color as an example. Mendel crossed a plant that always produced yellow seeds with one that always produced green seeds. All the new plants from this cross had yellow seeds. But in the next generation, green peas appeared again. There was about 1 green pea for every 3 yellow peas.
To explain this, Mendel used the terms "recessive" and "dominant". In our example, the green trait seemed to disappear in the first generation. This meant it was recessive. The yellow trait was dominant.
He published his findings in 1866. He showed that invisible "factors" determined a plant's traits. We now call these factors genes.
Other Studies and Discoveries
Mendel first started studying heredity using mice. But his bishop preferred him to study plants instead. So, Mendel switched to working with plants.
He also raised bees in a special bee house. He even designed his own bee hives. Mendel was also interested in astronomy and meteorology. He helped start the 'Austrian Meteorological Society' in 1865. Most of his published writings were about weather.
Mendel also experimented with hawkweed plants and honeybees. His results with hawkweed were different from his pea plant findings. He couldn't explain why at the time. We now know that many hawkweed species reproduce without needing two parents.
Sadly, none of his notes about bees survived. We only know he used certain types of bees. These bees were quite aggressive. This annoyed the other monks! But Mendel liked his bees. He called them "my dearest little animals."
He also described new plant species. His name is used to show this in plant names.
The true importance of Mendel's work was not known until the early 1900s. This was when his laws were rediscovered. Scientists Hugo de Vries and Carl Correns confirmed his findings in 1900. This started the modern age of genetics.
The "Too Good to Be True" Mystery
In 1936, a scientist named Ronald Fisher looked at Mendel's experiments again. He noticed something unusual. Mendel's results for dominant to recessive traits (like 3 yellow peas to 1 green pea) were almost perfectly close to what he expected. Fisher wondered if the data was "too good to be true."
This led to the Mendelian paradox. It means Mendel's reported data seemed statistically too perfect. Yet, everything we know about Mendel suggests he was honest. He was not likely to cheat or change his observations. Many scientists have tried to understand this mystery.
Remembering Mendel
Mount Mendel in New Zealand was named after him in 1970. It is in the Paparoa Range.
Interesting Facts About Gregor Mendel
- The house where Mendel was born is now a museum.
- Mendel's sister, Theresia, gave him her dowry so he could afford to study. Later, Mendel helped support her three sons. Two of them became doctors.
- He was born Johann Mendel. He was given the name Gregor when he became a monk. This happened when he joined the Augustinian St Thomas's Abbey in Brünn.
- Mendel tried several times to become a certified teacher. Each time, he failed the oral part of the exam.
- In 2021, Mendel's body was studied. Scientists found he was about 168 cm tall. They also analyzed his DNA. It showed he was likely to have heart problems.
Images for kids
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A portrait of Gregor Mendel.
Related Pages
See also
In Spanish: Gregor Mendel para niños
