Portrait of Franz von Soxhlet

Birthday profile

Franz von Soxhlet

German agricultural chemist (1848–1926)

Born
January 12, 1848
Died
May 5, 1926
Zodiac sign
Capricorn
Birth year
1848

About Franz von Soxhlet

Franz Ritter von Soxhlet (12 January 1848 – 5 May 1926) was a German agricultural chemist and inventor. == Biography == Franz von Soxhlet was born on 12 January 1848 in Brno, Moravia, Austrian Empire and migrated with his family to the German Confederation. He was the son of spinning industrialist Hubert Soxhlet, an immigrant from Dalhem near Liège (in the former Duchy of Brabant). He gained a PhD at Leipzig in 1872 with the dissertation Zur physiologischen Chemie der Milch. In 1879, he became a professor of agricultural chemistry at the Technical University of Munich. He invented the Soxhlet extractor in 1879 and in 1886 he proposed pasteurization be applied to milk and other beverages in order to prevent disease and spoilage. Soxhlet is also known as the first scientist who fractionated the milk proteins in casein, albumin, globulin and lactoprotein. Furthermore, he described for the first time the sugar present in milk, lactose. The Soxhlet solution is an alternative to Fehling's solution for preparation of a comparable cupric/tartrate reagent to test for reducing sugars. == Death == He died on 5 May 1926 in Munich, at the age of 78, and was buried alongside his wife at the Alter Friedhof Pöcking, Starnberg.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Franz von Soxhlet was born

Franz von Soxhlet was born in 1848. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1848

  • Best-selling bookThe Communist Manifesto by Marx & Engels

Headlines and milestones

  • Top headlineGold discovered at Sutter's Mill — California Gold Rush
  • Technology milestoneFirst modern chewing gum sold
  • Defining fadGold Rush fever
  • World population~1.28B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderJames K. Polk
  • U.S. population21.4M

1848 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Franz von Soxhlet's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure18482026
Population21.4M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

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