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Before Christopher Columbus and the Spanish Conquistadors landed on the island of "Borikén" (Puerto Rico), the Tainos who inhabited the island depended on their astronomical observations for the cultivation of their crops.
Contents
- Aerospace
- Aerospace physiology
- Agriculture
- Archaeology
- Astronomy
- Astrophysics
- Biochemistry
- Botany
- Earth System Science
- Ecology
- Hydrometeorology
- Marine biology
- Medicine
- Microbiology
- Mycology
- Nanotechnology
- Physics
- Psychology
- Rocket scientist
- Space physics
- Zoology
- Inventors
- Electronics
- Musical instruments
- Public health
- References
In 1581, Juan Ponce de León II, the grandson of the Conquistador Juan Ponce de León, studied an eclipse and its effects on the island and was able to establish the exact geographical coordinates of San Juan with his observations.
During the 19th century the economies of many countries in the world suffered from the spread of crop failures. Puerto Rico, whose economy depended heavily on its agriculture, felt the effects of some of the crop diseases. Scientists such as Dr. Agustín Stahl, Fermín Tangüis and Fernando López Tuero conducted investigations and experiments in the fields of agriculture, botany, ethnology and zoology. The findings of their investigations helped Puerto Rico's agricultural industry.
With the advances in medical technologies and the coming of the Space Age of the 20th century, Puerto Ricans have expanded their horizons and have made many contributions in various scientific fields, among them the fields of aerospace and medicine.
There are many Puerto Rican scientists involved in the American space program at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). According to an article written by Margarita Santori Lopez for the official newspaper of the University of Puerto Rico's Mayagüez Campus, "Prensa RUM", as of 2003, of the 115 Hispanics working at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, 70 were Puerto Ricans or of Puerto Rican descent. According to a research conducted during the period of 1990 to 1998 by Puerto Rican scientists in science and technology, Puerto Rican scientific production was greater than in any other Caribbean country and the sixth largest in all of Latin America.
The following is a list of some of Puerto Rico's notable scientists and inventors with short profiles that include the scientific contributions, inventions and achievements in their respective fields. The list is not limited to people born in Puerto Rico, it also includes people who are of full or partial Puerto Rican ancestry, and many long-term residents and who have made Puerto Rico their home, and who are recognized for their life and/or work.
Contents: Top – Aerospace, Aerospace physiology, Agriculture, Archaeology, Astronomy, Astrophysics, Biochemistry, Botany, Ecology, Hydrometeorology, Marine biology, Medicine, Microbiology, Mycology, Nanotechnology, Psychology, Physics, Physiology, Rocket scientist, Space exploration, Space physics, Zoology, Inventors
Aerospace
Aerospace comprises the atmosphere of Earth and surrounding space. Typically the term is used to refer to the industry that researches, designs, manufactures, operates, and maintains vehicles moving through air and space.
Aerospace physiology
Aerospace physiology refers to effects on the human body caused by characteristics of the aerospace environment.
Agriculture
In the 19th Century, Puerto Rico's economy depended on its agricultural industry. Among the products which Puerto Rico exported were tobacco, cotton, ginger, pineapples and citrus fruits. The two main agricultural products whose production dominated the island's economy were sugar and coffee.
Archaeology
Archaeology is the science that studies human cultures through the recovery, documentation, analysis, and interpretation of material remains and environmental data, including architecture, artifacts, features, biofacts, and landscapes.
Astronomy
Astronomy is the scientific study of celestial objects (such as stars, planets, comets, and galaxies) and phenomena that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere (such as the cosmic background radiation). It is concerned with the evolution, physics, chemistry, meteorology, and motion of celestial objects, as well as the formation and development of the universe.
Astrophysics
Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties (luminosity, density, temperature, and chemical composition) of celestial objects such as stars, galaxies, and the interstellar medium, as well as their interactions.
Biochemistry
Biochemistry is the study of the chemical processes in living organisms. It deals with the structure and function of cellular components, such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids, and other biomolecules.
Botany
Botany is a branch of biology and is the scientific study of plant life and development.
Earth System Science
Earth system science (ESS) is the application of systems science to the Earth sciences. In particular, it considers interactions between the Earth's "spheres"—atmosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere, geosphere, pedosphere, biosphere, and, even, the magnetosphere — as well as the impact of human societies on these components.
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the distribution and abundance of life and the interactions between organisms and their natural environment. .
Hydrometeorology
Hydrometeorology is a branch of meteorology and hydrology that studies the transfer of water and energy between the land surface and the lower atmosphere.
Marine biology
Marine biology is the scientific study of living organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water.
Medicine
Anatomy
Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things.
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts.
Cardiology
Cardiology is the branch of internal medicine dealing with disorders of the heart and blood vessels.
Embryology
Embryology is the study of the development of an embryo. An embryo is defined as any organism in a stage before birth or hatching, or in plants, before germination occurs.
Endocrinology
Endocrinology is a branch of medicine dealing with disorders of the endocrine system and its specific secretions called hormones.
Immunology
Immunology is the branch of medicine dealing with disorders of the immunological system that helps the body protect itself from foreign substances and illnesses.
Nephrology
Nephrology is a branch of internal medicine and pediatrics dealing with the study of the function and diseases of the kidney.
Odontology
Odontology is the scientific study of the structure, development, and abnormalities of the teeth.
Oncology
Oncology is the branch of medicine that studies tumors (cancer) and seeks to understand their development, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.
Organ transplantation
An organ transplant is the moving of a whole or partial organ from one body to another (or from a donor site on the patient's own body), for the purpose of replacing the recipient's damaged or failing organ with a working one from the donor site. Organ donors can be living or deceased (previously referred to as cadaveric). In Puerto Rico, the first Kidney organ transplants were realized in the city of Ponce between 1968 and 1972.
Pediatrics
Pediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents.
Public health
Teratology
Teratology refers to disfiguring birth defects or malformations. Another term for this is dysmorphology, meaning "the study of abnormal form."
Microbiology
Microbiology is the study of microorganisms, which are unicellular or cell-cluster microscopic organisms. This includes eukaryotes such as fungi and protists, and prokaryotes, which are bacteria and archaea. Viruses, though not strictly classed as living organisms, are also studied.
Mycology
Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their genetic and biochemical properties, their taxonomy and their use to humans as a source for tinder, medicinals (e.g., penicillin) as well as their dangers, such as poisoning or infection. Published in Florence, this seminal work laid the foundations for the systematic classification of grasses, mosses and fungi. The term mycology and the complimentary mycologist were first used in 1836 by M.J. Berkeley.
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology (sometimes shortened to "nanotech") is the manipulation of matter on an atomic and molecular scale.
Physics
Physics is the study of the laws and constituents of the material world and encompasses a wide variety of fields, including condensed matter physics, biological physics, astrophysics, particle physics, and others.
Psychology
Psychology is an academic and applied discipline involving the scientific study of mental processes and behavior.
Rocket scientist
A Rocket scientist is an aerospace engineer who specialty are the rockets which launch spacecraft into or operate in outer space.
Space physics
Space physics is also known as space plasma physics.
Zoology
Zoology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of animals.
Inventors
Puerto Rican inventors earned an average of sixteen patents per year in the late seventies, twenty patents per year in the eighties, and twenty-seven patents per year in the nineties. The total number of patents issued by the U.S. Patent Office has seen similar increases.
In the field of Aerospace (see "Aerospace" section) Olga D. González-Sanabria contributed to the development of the "Long Cycle-Life Nickel-Hydrogen Batteries" which helps enable the International Space Station power system; Mercedes Reaves contributed to the design of a viable full-scale solar sail and the development and testing of a scale model solar sail; Dr. Pedro Rodriguez invented a portable, battery-operated lift seat for people suffering from knee arthritis; Dr. Felix Soto Toro developed the Advanced Payload Transfer Measurement System (ASPTMS) (Electronic 3D measuring system) and Dr. Juan R. Cruz contributed in the development of entry, descent, and landing (EDL) systems for robotic and human exploration missions. Puerto Ricans have also invented products for commercial use.
Electronics
Hydroelectric Wave-Energy Conversion System
Semiconductors
Musical instruments
The cuatro is the national instrument of Puerto Rico. It belongs to the lute family of string instruments. Very little is known about the exact origin of the Cuatro.
Public health
Ceramic Water Filter
Floating Strainer