Gurdon’s experiments captured the attention of the scientific community and the tools and techniques he developed for nuclear transfer are still used today. The term 'clone' (from the ancient Greek word "κλών" klōn = “twig”) was already in use since the beginning of the 20th century in reference to plants. In 1963 the British biologist J.B.S. Haldane, in describing Gurdon’s results, became one of the first to use the word "clone" in reference to animals.