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"Micrographia" was published
Robert Hooke's book presenting his ideas about the life cycle of misquitoes, the origin of craters on the moon, and fossils. -
Period: to
The History of the Germ Theory of Disease
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Beginning of Spontaneous Generation
Francesco Redi set up a experiment to prove that maggots grew from eggs laid by flies. -
Discovery of Microbes
While observing a drop of water, Anton van Leeuwenhoek described what he saw as, "wretched beasties." Later named Microbes. -
Leewenhoek describes a Microbe
Spirogyra was a name given to a Microbe found on lakes. It's appearence was described as, "some green streaks," and, "each of these streaks was about the thickness of a hair of one's head." -
Disproving Spontaneous Generation
Lazzaro Spallanzani, a priest, conducted a experiment to disprove the theory. Instead, many scientists believe he proved that spontaneous generation did not occur without air. -
Botanists did not use microscopes
They put more time towards naming and describing entire plants, rahter than studying their microlife. -
Theory that all plants are made of cells
Matthis Schleiden suggested the theory that all plants are made up of cells. -
Theory that animals were made up of cells
Theodor Schwann proposed that animals were made up of cells, not just plants. -
Childbed fever
Dr. Ignaz Philipp Semmelweiss noticed that the pregnant women catching this disease were examined by doctors who had just completed an autopsy. -
Dr. Semmelweiss reduces the death rate
Semmelweiss washed his hands between patients. In two years, the death rate reduced from 12% to 1%. -
Theory that Microbes were made up of cells
Karl Theodor Ernst von Siebold theorized that Microbes were made up of a single cell, not multiple cells. -
Thoery of cells reproducing
Rudolf Carl Virchow is famous for saying, "all cells arise from cells." He was right, cells continue to divide and grow in living organisms. -
Proving Spontaneous Generation
Louis Pasteur, a chemist, provided enough evidence against the idea that living organisms come from non-living things. -
Disease ideas are published
Florence Nightingale, an English nurse, published her ideas. Cleanliness was the most imporant in preventing dieases. -
Further study of Microbes
Louis Pasteur studied Microbes in food and drinks to determine why they spoil. -
The silk industry
Louis Pasteur was asked to help the industry because of its problems with silk production. He found that a microbe was infecting the silkworms and the leaves they ate. -
Killing germs with chemicals
American surgeon William Hasted began using an antiseptic to clean surgical instruments. The death rate of patients following sugery dropped by 15% -
Anthrax is identified
Robert Koch identified the microbe that caused anthrax, along with other diseases such as losis and cholera. -
One step further in germ prevention
William Halsted became one of the first surgeons to use rubber gloves during surgery. This improved patient health even more. -
"Germ Theory" becomes accepted by society
It had become so accepted that disposable tissue ads would say, "Use once, and discard--avoiding self-infection from germ-filled handkerchiefs."
