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Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus

Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus 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 Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus rather than just read about it. In short: Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus (20 January 1911 in The Hague – 18 May 2003 in Oegstgeest), was a Dutch mycologist whose work on both ascomycetes and basidiomycetes helped to refine fungal taxonomy over a career of nearly six decades. Early life and education Maas Geesteranus was born in The Hague, but spent his childhood (from infancy until age 18) in the Dutch East Indies, where his family emigrated shortly after h…

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus (20 January 1911 in The Hague – 18 May 2003 in Oegstgeest), was a Dutch mycologist whose work on both ascomycetes and basidiomycetes helped to refine fungal taxonomy over a career of nearly six decades.

Early life and education Maas Geesteranus was born in The Hague, but spent his childhood (from infancy until age 18) in the Dutch East Indies, where his family emigrated shortly after his birth. Upon returning to the Netherlands in 1929, he completed secondary school in The Hague and enrolled at Leiden University to study biology. While still a student, he joined the staff of the Rijksherbarium (the National Herbarium of the Netherlands) as a volunteer assistant—a post that proved pivotal in launching his scientific career. In mid‑1939, at 28, he was promoted to assistant, becoming the sole mycologist on the herbarium staff at that time.

Life and career During the German occupation of the Netherlands in World War II, Maas Geesteranus continued his work under difficult circumstances. In 1942 he was appointed curator of the mycological herbarium of the Netherlands Mycological Society. Following liberation in 1945, he received the title of Curator of the mycological and lichenological collections at the Rijksherbarium in Leiden in 1946. His studies of northern European lichens formed the basis of his doctoral dissertation, and he was awarded a PhD in 1947. Shortly after completing his doctorate, he undertook a one‑man botanical and lichenological expedition to Kenya, where he collected extensively among both lichens and vascular plants. By 1950, his research interests had shifted decisively from lichens to fungi proper. For the next several years he remained the only full‑time member of the mycology department at Leiden, even after the arrival of Marinus Anton Donk in 1956. In his later career, Maas Geesteranus became particularly renowned for his work on the genus Mycena. He produced the two‑volume Mycenas of the Northern Hemisphere (1992), synthesising decades of his own research, and in 1997 published, in collaboration with André de Meijer, a monograph on the Mycena species of Paraná, Brazil. Although he officially retired from the Rijksherbarium in 1976, he remained scientifically active into the 1980s, continuing to describe new species and refine fungal classifications.

Legacy Over the course of his long career, Maas Geesteranus described numerous new taxa across multiple fungal groups and served as a mentor to both professional and amateur mycologists. His systematic treatments, particularly of Mycena, provided a firm basis for subsequent taxonomic and ecological studies. Beyond mycology, he maintained interests in mineralogy, butterfly collecting and painting. He died peacefully in Oegstgeest at the age of 92. The standard author abbreviation Maas Geest. is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.

See also Category:Taxa named by Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus 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 Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus 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 Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus 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 Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus

In research
Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus 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 Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus 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
Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1911 births, 2003 deaths, Academic staff of Leiden University, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus 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 Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus in 20 minutes

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

Frequently asked questions

What is Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus in simple terms?

Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus (20 January 1911 in The Hague – 18 May 2003 in Oegstgeest), was a Dutch mycologist whose work on both ascomycetes and basidiomycetes helped to refine fungal taxonomy over a career of nearly six decades. Early life and education Maas Geesteranus was born in The Hague…

Why does Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus 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 Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus?

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 Rudolf Arnold Maas Geesteranus.

Tags

  • 1911 births
  • 2003 deaths
  • Academic staff of Leiden University
  • Dutch mycologists
  • Leiden University alumni
  • Scientists from The Hague

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