Health & biology · 1895
X-rays
Wilhelm Rontgen's new rays passed through flesh and photographed his wife's hand bones.
Discovered in Wurzburg in November 1895, X-rays were used clinically within months to find bullets and fractures. They launched medical imaging and, via crystallography, later revealed the structure of DNA and proteins.
What it built on 2
What it led to 6
Related measurements
The dashed line marks when it first worked.
Life expectancy in the UK since 1543 Latest: 81.3 years (2023) Source: Our World in Data