categorizing

Florula Ceilanica

Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) in the Indian Ocean is a biodiversity hot-spot, with over 3,000 endemic species of plants – not just native, but known only on the island. New to European science in the 1700s and 1800s, they are the focus of this university dissertation written by Professor Carl Peter Thunberg. In 18th- and 19th-century Europe, professors wrote the dissertations; the student’s job was to explicate and defend it and pay for its publication.

Ficus Genus [Fig Trees]

Figs form an ancient pan-tropical genus of over 850 species of trees and shrubs that are keystone species in rainforest ecosystems. They may have been the first plant cultivated by humans and play an important role in all of the major religions of the world. They are the focus of this university dissertation written by Professor Carl Peter Thunberg. In 18th- and 19th-century Europe, professors wrote the dissertations; the student’s job was to explicate and defend it and pay for its publication.