Max Rubner
Encyclopedia
Max Rubner [ru:bner] was a German
physiologist and hygienist.
He studied at the University of Munich under Adolf von Baeyer
(1835-1917) and Carl von Voit
(1831-1908). Afterwards he taught as a professor
at the University of Marburg and the Robert Koch
Institute of Hygiene at the University of Berlin. Rubner was co-founder of the Kaiser-Wilhelm Institut
für Arbeitsphysiologie, and became its director in 1913.
Rubner is remembered for his research in metabolism
, energy physiology, hygiene and dietary thermogenesis
. With Otto Heubner
(1843-1926), he performed important studies involving energy metabolism in infancy. In 1883 he introduced the "surface hypothesis", which stated that the metabolic rate of birds and mammals maintaining a steady body temperature is roughly proportional to their body surface area.
Max Rubner is also known for his "rate-of-living theory", which proposed that a slow metabolism increases an animal's longevity. Rubner's observation was that larger animals outlived smaller animals, and the metabolic rates of larger animals were slower pro rata. The theory might have been inspired by the Industrial Revolution
, the logic that the more a machine is worked, the sooner it will wear out.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
physiologist and hygienist.
He studied at the University of Munich under Adolf von Baeyer
Adolf von Baeyer
Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Adolf von Baeyer was a German chemist who synthesized indigo, and was the 1905 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Born in Berlin, he initially studied mathematics and physics at Berlin University before moving to Heidelberg to study chemistry with Robert Bunsen...
(1835-1917) and Carl von Voit
Carl von Voit
Carl von Voit was a German physiologist and dietitian.Von Voit was born in Amberg. From 1848 to 1854 he studied medicine in Munich and Würzburg; habilitation in 1857 at the University of Munich, professor of physiology since 1860, as well as curator of the physiological collection.Carl von Voit is...
(1831-1908). Afterwards he taught as a professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
at the University of Marburg and the Robert Koch
Robert Koch
Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch was a German physician. He became famous for isolating Bacillus anthracis , the Tuberculosis bacillus and the Vibrio cholerae and for his development of Koch's postulates....
Institute of Hygiene at the University of Berlin. Rubner was co-founder of the Kaiser-Wilhelm Institut
Kaiser Wilhelm Institute
The Kaiser Wilhelm Society for the Advancement of Science was a German scientific institution established in 1911. It was implicated in Nazi science, and after the Second World War was wound up and its functions replaced by the Max Planck Society...
für Arbeitsphysiologie, and became its director in 1913.
Rubner is remembered for his research in metabolism
Metabolism
Metabolism is the set of chemical reactions that happen in the cells of living organisms to sustain life. These processes allow organisms to grow and reproduce, maintain their structures, and respond to their environments. Metabolism is usually divided into two categories...
, energy physiology, hygiene and dietary thermogenesis
Thermogenesis
Thermogenesis is the process of heat production in organisms. It occurs mostly in warm-blooded animals, but a few species of thermogenic plants exist.-Types:...
. With Otto Heubner
Otto Heubner
Johann Otto Leonhard Heubner was a German internist and pediatrician who was a native of Mühltroff....
(1843-1926), he performed important studies involving energy metabolism in infancy. In 1883 he introduced the "surface hypothesis", which stated that the metabolic rate of birds and mammals maintaining a steady body temperature is roughly proportional to their body surface area.
Max Rubner is also known for his "rate-of-living theory", which proposed that a slow metabolism increases an animal's longevity. Rubner's observation was that larger animals outlived smaller animals, and the metabolic rates of larger animals were slower pro rata. The theory might have been inspired by the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, the logic that the more a machine is worked, the sooner it will wear out.
External links
- Rubner, Max (1854-1932) -- from Eric Weisstein's World of Scientific Biography at scienceworld.wolfram.com
- Short biography and bibliography in the Virtual LaboratoryVirtual LaboratoryThe online project Virtual Laboratory. Essays and Resources on the Experimentalization of Life, 1830-1930, located at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, is dedicated to research in the history of the experimentalization of life...
of the Max Planck Institute for the History of ScienceMax Planck Institute for the History of ScienceThe Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin was established in March 1994. Its research is primarily devoted to a theoretically oriented history of science, principally of the natural sciences, but with methodological perspectives drawn from the cognitive sciences and from... - http://www.brandenburg.de/~mwfkneu/minister/presse_alt/html/pr96/pr96.091.html
- Animal Physiology, Energetics and Metabolism