Contents
Books
The scientists : an epic of discovery /
by Robinson, Andrew
This book tells the remarkable lives of the pioneers of science from Galileo and Newton, Faraday and Darwin, Pasteur and Marie Curie, to Einstein, Freud, Turing, and Crick and Watson. A series of seventy articles, written by an international team of distinguished scientists, historians of science and science writers, provides an unrivalled account of the lives and personalities behind the greatest scientific breakthroughs of all time. Organized thematically, starting at the Universe, and moving smaller through the Earth and Molecules and Matter to Inside the Atom, with the final two sections looking at Life and Body and Mind, it covers all the major scientific disciplines, including astronomy, biology, biochemistry, chemistry, computing, ecology, geology, medicine, neurology, physics and psychology, as well as mathematics. The Scientists will intrigue budding scientists, those fascinated by the lives of great individuals, and anyone curious to know how over the centuries we came to understand the physical world around us and inside us. Includes chapter- Louis Pasteur, revolutions in the treatment of disease.
Germ theory : medical pioneers in infectious diseases /
by Gaynes, Robert
From Hippocrates to Lillian Wald-the stories of scientists whose work changed the way we think about and treat infection. * Describes the genesis of the germ theory of disease by a dozen seminal thinkers such as Jenner, Lister, and Ehrlich. * Presents the “inside stories” of these pioneers struggles to have their work accepted, which can inform strategies for tackling current crises in infectious diseases and motivate and support todays scientists. * Relevant to anyone interested in microbiology, infectious disease, or how medical discoveries shape our modern understanding. Includes chapter on Pasteur – Louis Pasteur and the germ theory of disease.
Pasteur and modern science /
by Dubos, René
Pasteur’s stunning career has attracted a host of biographies, but this book, written by a distinguished French-born microbiologist, is among the best. Dubos displays a deep appreciation for the power and enduring significance of Pasteur’s scientific work. His graceful writing style allows him to convey the excitement and significance of even the most technical aspects of Pasteur’s work. Now, updated to the present day by the distinguished microbiologist Thomas D. Brock, the book also has a foreword by Pasteur scholar Gerald L.Geison that places it in historical context. For high school and college students, as well as the general reader, this is the ideal introduction to the life of Louis Pasteur.
The private science of Louis Pasteur /
by Geison, Gerald
In The Private Science of Louis Pasteur, Gerald Geison penetrates the secrecy that has surrounded much of this legendary scientist’s laboratory work. Geison uses Pasteur’s laboratory notebooks, made available only recently, and his published papers to present a rich and full account of some of the most famous episodes in the history of science and their darker side. The discrepancies between the public record and the private science of Louis Pasteur tell us as much about the man as they do about the highly competitive and political world he learned to master. Geison’s controversial but stunning biography raises many important questions about the nature of science, past and present. Representing some of the newer interpretive trends in the history of science and medicine, it requires us to reevaluate our heroes and consider the complexities of science as it is actually created instead of merely clinging to comforting and heroic myths.
Journal Articles
Guy, B. (n.d). Review: on the shoulders of giants: Louis Pasteur (1822–1895). Microbes And Infection, 5553-560.
In Louis Pasteur’s scientific career it is striking to note the exponential character of the research he introduced in all the fields he opened up. He offered fabulous opportunities to stereochemistry. He is acknowledged as one of the founders of microbiology. He established the possibility of anaerobic life. He pointed the way to epidemiology, public health, and the bacteriologic fight. He struggled against the idea of spontaneous generation of life. He irrevocably substantiated the microbial theory of infectious diseases. He demonstrated that bacterial virulence could be attenuated, he evidenced immunity and generalised the vaccination principle. He also was an incomparable experimenter.
Ligon, B. (2002). Louis Pasteur: a controversial figure in a debate on scientific ethics. Seminars In Pediatric Infectious Diseases, 13(2), 134-141.
Louis Pasteur long has been heralded as the “father of modern hygiene, public health and much of modern medicine,” despite early controversies regarding his findings and methodology. A recently published biography, however, has shed new light on both Pasteur’s scientific acumen and integrity. Reactions to this portrayal have been mixed. This article provides an overview of Pasteur’s life and the debate regarding his scientific discoveries and honesty that has ensued for more than 100 years, with insights gained from both supporters and critics of the new biography by Gerald L. Geison.
Mahadevan, S. S. (2007). The Legend of Louis Pasteur. Resonance: Journal Of Science Education, 12(1), 15-22.
For a scientist, making a seminal contribution even in one area of science is a matter of joy and pride. To be able to start several fields and contribute significantly to all of them is indeed a rare feat. Louis Pasteur belongs to this rare breed of scientists. He was a chemist, microbiologist, immunologist, and biotechnologist, all rolled into one. He founded the field of stereochemistry, established the foundations of modern microbiology, disproved the theory of spontaneous generation, demonstrated the microbial basis of fermentation, and derived vaccines against several bacterial and viral diseases.
Toledo-Pereyra, L. H. (2009). Louis Pasteur Surgical Revolution. Journal Of Investigative Surgery, 22(2), 82-87.
Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) is considered the most notable medical scientist of his time and perhaps one of the most distinguished of all times in the history of medicine. From Dole in France to Paris, from a student of crystals to “living ferments,” and from chemistry to biology and medicine, Pasteur changed the world for the benefit of humanity. The genius of Pasteur dealt with the most pressing issues of his time, basing the germ theory on the effects that microorganisms had on fermentation and putrefaction of organic matter, which gave birth to the science of bacteriology. Many other difficult problems in medicine and biology were tackled by Pasteur, culminating in the spectacular results seen with the treatment of rabies. Surgery was no exception to the scientific conquests of Pasteur. The transformation of the surgical world arose from the antiseptic concepts of Lister that were based on the germ theory of the disease, which had been derived from the germ theory of fermentation and putrefaction discovered by Pasteur.