Emil Racoviță

Emil Racoviţă (* November 15, 1868 in Iasi, † November 17, 1947 in Cluj) was a Romanian biologist, botanist and founder of the biospeleology ( caving ). He was a member and president (1926-1929) of the Romanian Academy of Sciences and professor at the University of Cluj.

Background and education

Emil Racoviţă came from the major Moldavian aristocratic family Racoviţă whose members in the 18th century on several occasions the Moldavian and Wallachian throne ascended Mihai Racoviţă, Constantin Racoviţă and Ştefan Racoviţă. Emil Racoviţă spent most of his childhood in Sorăneşti, Vaslui, and was a student of Ion Creangă. Through his teacher Grigore Cobalcescu at the Lyceum " Institutele Unite " in Iaşi, he discovered his passion for the natural sciences.

At his father's request, he first studied law in Paris, around 1891 then again devote all the natural sciences at the Sorbonne and his doctorate in 1896 to conclude with Henri de Lacaze - Duthiers. As a student he led for many years the socialist circle of students in Paris, where the fundamental tenets of scientific socialism were discussed. Due to his political belief that " the soil must belong to him who built it," he distributed most of his inherited goods to the farmers.

Belgica expedition

Emil Racoviţă took part in the Belgian Antarctic Expedition ( 1897-1899 ) on the Belgica as a biologist. The expedition was led by Adrien de Gerlache de Gomery; second officer was the then completely unknown Roald Amundsen. Emil Racoviţă laid during this expedition to an impressive botanical and zoological collection of over 1600 species. His research on whales are now considered classics. His diary of the expedition, mentions the great physical and mental anguish that they had to endure. His scientific results of the expedition were under the title La vie des animaux et des plantes dans l' Antarctique published in 1900 (The Life of Animals and Plants in Antarctica ).

Life

Henri de Lacaze - Duthiers appointed him as Deputy Director of the Marine Research Station " Arago " in Banyuls -sur -Mer and the Sorbonne. Emil Racoviţă was associate editor of the international journal Archives of zoology experimental et generale.

During a visit to Mallorca 1904 he discovered in the Cueva del Drach, a new type of cancer and he dedicated himself to the study of subterranean ecosystems. In 1907 he published the Essai sur les problemes biospeologiques, the first scientific work on the Biospäologie that was the birth of the new science worldwide.

At the University of Cluj, today Babeş -Bolyai University of Cluj, in 1920 he founded the world's first Institute of Speleology. Emil Racoviţă defined the biospeleology as the science of life in caves and underground waters, and his research on the ecology and evolution, the adaptation of the animal world to the living conditions in the subsurface and classification of wildlife are milestones of science.

The results of his biospäologischen program are remarkable: it has been researched more than 1,400 caves in Europe and Africa and created a collection of 50,000 cave animals and written 66 publications with almost 6,000 pages together on the subterranean fauna.

1940 Romania had taken on the second Vienna Award, the north and east of Transylvania ceded to Hungary. Then pulled Emil Racoviţă and the Speleological Institute briefly to Timisoara. After the cancellation of the cession of territory, the Institute was moved back to Cluj. Emil Racoviţă could not complete the re- establishment of the Institute in Cluj, and died in 1947 at the age of 79 years. Due to his international reputation, he was not like many members of the family were arrested and weggesprerrt, although he often critically commented on the political conditions of the communist authorities. In one of his last public lectures, he summed up his life's work and legacy to the youth with the following words: " love of country and the Romanian language; Love of science; unlimited confidence in the scientific research; the moral courage, anytime, anywhere to tell the truth; Finally, unclouded optimism, faith sprung that today's humanity ultimately will not be so foolish to dig their own grave. "

Out of respect for the evolution of idealism and he sat down his life to protect the environment, especially climate change, and the preservation of nature monuments in Romania and warned early of the dangers of progress: " It can not go on! The progress on this not too big planet requires changes to avert the destruction of mankind. " ( Progress and its problems, Astra, Cluj 1929)

Functions

• Senator and representative of the University of Cluj-Napoca 1922-1926
• Rector of the University of Cluj, 1929-1930
• President of the Romanian Academy of Sciences 1926-1929
• Director of the Institute of Speleology 1920-1947

He also was a member of many international scientific associations.

Publications

• La vie des animaux et des plantes dans l' Antarctique (The Life of Animals and Plants in Antarctica ) ( 1900)
• Essai sur les problemes biospeologiques ( essay on the problems of Biospäleologie ) ( 1907)
• Speologia ( caving ) ( 1927)
• Evolutia şi problemėlę ei ( Problems of Evolution) (1929 )
• The South opposed - By Patagonia to the South Pole (Travelogue of the Belgica Expedition to the South Pole ), Bucharest, Youth Publishing 1960