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Birth of the life sciences in The Netherlands and Belgium

Abstract

Small countries can seldom compete in science with larger, more powerful nations. The Netherlands and Belgium, however, are excellent examples of centres that fertilized scientific activity in neighbouring countries for over 400 years.

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Figure 1: Vesal's anatomical drawings.
Figure 2: Jan Swamerdam (1637–1680).
Figure 3: Antoni van Leeuwenhoek (1723).
Figure 4: Hermann Boerhaave (1668–1738).

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Acknowledgements

The generous support by W. U. Eckart, Heidelberg and M. Popplow, Berlin is gratefully acknowledged.

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Paweletz, N. Birth of the life sciences in The Netherlands and Belgium. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 2, 857–863 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/35099105

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