jan 1, 1750 - Joseph Priestly (late 1700's)

Description:

Joseph Priestly was the founder of oxygen. Priestly noticed that a mouse living in a sealed jar would eventually collapse. Priestly placed a leaf in the jar and noticed that the mouse was coming back to reality. Priestly noticed that the leaf was giving off some sort of gas that was beneficial to living things. To further prove his discovery he heated mercuric oxide powder and noticed it could reignite an ember. He then tried breathing the gas himself and realized it was wonderful and he said his breath felt so light and smooth. Priestly's discovery helped with the evolution of the atomic theory because he and Lavoisier got together and went over his findings which helped Lavoisier with his discovery.