Johann Mendel - the Father of Modern Genetics

Johann Mendel, better known as “The Father of Modern Genetics”, was born on July 20, 1822. His place of birth was Heinzendorf, Silesia, Bohemia. As a child, Mendel worked as a gardener. This later became resourceful for his scientific studies. When he was older, he became a student at the Philosophical Institute in Olomouc. After two years of study, he entered Augustinian Abbey of St. Thomas in Brno. Upon entering the monastery, Johann Mendel changed his name to Gregor Johann Mendel. He entered as a teacher. In 1851, he was sent to the University of Vienna by his abbot, the superior of a monastery for men, to learn more about physics, chemistry, mathematics, zoology, and botany. Although Mendel did not graduate, he returned to the monastery in 1853 as a teacher, mainly teaching physics. Mendel also maintained the up keeping of the monastery’s garden. It was not until between 1856 and 1863 did he begin his experiments to find out the how living thing get the characteristics they do. By 1868, Mendel was elected as an abbot. Gregor Johann Mendel died on January 6, 1884, in Brno, Austria-Hungary. He died from chronic nephritis, which is a disease that causes an inflammation of the kidney.

Gregor Mendel is best known for his work with pea plants. With all the research he gained, Mendel achieved an understanding of genetics. His experiment involved a group of true-breeding short pea plants and a group of true-breeding tall pea plants. He then took the two opposite groups and cross-pollinated them. He did this by Cutting