astronomy

Hans Winkler

Hans Winkler 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 Winkler rather than just read about it. In short: Hans Karl Albert Winkler (23 April 1877 in Oschatz – 22 November 1945 in Wachwitz, Dresden) was a German botanist. From 1912 on, he was Professor of Botany at the University of Hamburg, and a director of that university's Institute of Botany.

Key takeaways

Hans Winkler 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 Winkler to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Hans Winkler from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Hans Karl Albert Winkler (23 April 1877 in Oschatz – 22 November 1945 in Wachwitz, Dresden) was a German botanist. From 1912 on, he was Professor of Botany at the University of Hamburg, and a director of that university's Institute of Botany. Winkler coined the term 'heteroploidy' in 1916. He is remembered for coining the term 'genome' in 1920, by making a portmanteau of the words gene and chromosome. He wrote:

Ich schlage vor, für den haploiden Chromosomensatz, der im Verein mit dem zugehörigen Protoplasma die materielle Grundlage der systematischen Einheit darstellt den Ausdruck: das Genom zu verwenden ... This may be translated as: "I propose the expression Genom for the haploid chromosome set, which, together with the pertinent protoplasm, specifies the material foundations of the species ..." Among his experiments was the discovery of chimeras (also chimaeras) by grafting a black Nightshade and tomato plant and observing a shoot which displayed characteristics of both plants. Winkler also worked at the University of Naples, in Italy, where he researched the physiology of the alga Bryopsis. In 1903/04, he traveled around the world, visiting Ceylon, Java, Australia, New Zealand, Samoa and North America and later Borneo in 1924/25. Apomixis, the process of asexual reproduction through seed without fertilization, was coined and defined by Hans Winkler in 1908. He joined the NSDAP in 1937.

Works "Solanum Tubingense, ein echter Pfropfbastard zwischen Tomate und Nachtschatten". Bericht der Deutschen Botanik Gesellschaft (26a). 1908. "Verbreitung und Ursache der Parthenogenesis im Pflanzen- und Tierreiche. 1920 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library. "Experimentelle Erzeugung von Pflanzen mit abweichenden Chromosomenzahlen". Zeitschrift für Botanik (8). 1916. "Die Konversion der Gene" (1930)

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Hans Winkler

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Hans Winkler 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 Winkler 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 Winkler 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 Winkler

In research: Hans Winkler 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 Winkler 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 Winkler is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1877 births, 1945 deaths, 20th-century German botanists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Hans Winkler 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 Winkler in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Hans Winkler 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 Winkler out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hans Winkler in simple terms?

Why does Hans Winkler 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 Winkler?

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 Winkler.