astronomy

Hans Kniep

Hans Kniep is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Hans Kniep rather than just read about it. In short: Karl Johannes Kniep (3 April 1881 – 17 November 1930) was a German botanist who was a native of Jena. He studied medicine at the University of Kiel, and botany in Jena with Christian Ernst Stahl (1848-1919), where in 1904 he received his doctorate.

Key takeaways

Hans Kniep belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Hans Kniep to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Hans Kniep from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Karl Johannes Kniep (3 April 1881 – 17 November 1930) was a German botanist who was a native of Jena. He studied medicine at the University of Kiel, and botany in Jena with Christian Ernst Stahl (1848-1919), where in 1904 he received his doctorate. Afterwards, he worked as an assistant to Robert Hippolyte Chodat (1865-1934) in Geneva, to Wilhelm Pfeffer (1845-1920) at Leipzig, and under Friedrich Oltmanns (1860-1945) in Freiburg. Later, he conducted physiological research of algae in Bergen. Beginning in 1907, he was a private lecturer at the University of Freiburg, followed by an associate professorship at the University of Strasbourg (1911). In 1914 Kniep became a full professor at the University of Würzburg, where he was also served as dean of the university (1923–24). In 1924 he succeeded Gottlieb Haberlandt (1854-1945) as professor of plant physiology at the University of Berlin. During his career, he undertook study trips to the Balearic Islands, Corsica, Norway, Italy, the Caucasus region, Netherlands East Indies and Japan.

Works Kniep is remembered for studies of sexuality in lower plants. He also conducted phytophysiological research of chemotaxis and nastic movements, as well as ecophysiological investigations involving photosynthesis and respiration of marine plants. Furthermore, he did extensive studies on the cytology and genetics of fungi, especially basidiomycetes. From 1913 to 1917, he published five treatises on the fungal class Hymenomycetes:

Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Hymenomyceten: I. Die Entwicklungsgeschichte von Hypochnus terrestris nov. spec. - 1913, Zeitschrift für Botanik 5 pp. 593 – 637 Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Hymenomyceten: II. Über die Herkunft der Kernpaare im Fruchtkörper von Coprinus nycthemerus - 1913, Zeitschrift für Botanik 5 pp. 593 – 637 Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Hymenomyceten: III. Über die konjugierten Teilungen und die phylogenetische Bedeutung der Schnallenbildungen - 1915, Zeitschrift für Botanik 7 pp. 369 – 398. Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Hymenomyceten: IV. Über den Ursprung und die ersten Entwicklungsstadien der Basidien - 1916, Zeitschrift für Botanik 8 pp. 353 – 359. Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Hymenomyceten: V. Über die Entstehung der Paarkernigkeit der Zellen des Schnallenmycels - 1917, Zeitschrift für Botanik 9 pp. 81 – 118. Other significant writings by Kniep include:

Über rhythmische Lebensvorgänge bei den Pflanzen, 1915 – On rhythmic life processes in plants. Über morphologische und physiologische Geschlechtsdifferenzierung, 1920 – On morphological and physiological sex differentiation. Über Geschlechtsbestimmung und Reduktionsteilung, 1922 – On sex determination and meiosis. Die Sexualität der niederen Pflanzen, 1928 – Sexuality of lower plants. With Friedrich Oltmanns, he was editor of the botanical magazine, "Zeitschrift für Botanik".

References This article incorporates text from equivalent articles at the German and French Wikipedia. List of publications by Hans Kniep from the "Katalog der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek".

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Hans Kniep

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Hans Kniep claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Hans Kniep before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Hans Kniep ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Hans Kniep

In research: Hans Kniep appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Hans Kniep in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Hans Kniep is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1881 births, 1930 deaths, 20th-century German botanists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Hans Kniep outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Hans Kniep in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Hans Kniep means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Hans Kniep out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hans Kniep in simple terms?

Why does Hans Kniep matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Hans Kniep?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Hans Kniep.