Reference
- Pasteur, Louis (1822-1895)French chemist and microbiologist who became world famous for originating the process of pasteurization and for establishing the validity of the germ theory of disease, although he also made many other scientific contributions. Regarded as one of the greatest scientists in history, he received many honours during his lifetime, including the Legion of Honour, France's highest award.
Pasteur was born on 27 December 1822 in Dôle in eastern France, the son of a tanner. While he was still young, his family moved to Arbois, where he attended primary and secondary schools. He was not a particularly good student, but he showed an aptitude for painting and mathematics and his initial ambition was to become a professor of fine arts. He continued his education at the Royal College in Besançon, from which he gained his BA in 1840 and his BSc in 1842. In 1843 Pasteur entered the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris, where he began to study chemistry and from which he gained his doctorate in 1847. In the following year he was appointed professor of physics at the Dijon Lycée but shortly afterwards, early in 1849, he accepted the post of professor of chemistry at the University of Strasbourg. In the same year he married Marie Laurent, the daughter of the university's rector; later they had five children, only two of whom survived beyond childhood. In 1862 Pasteur was elected to the French Academy of Sciences, and in 1863 to a chair at the Ecole Normale Supérieure, a position that was created for him so that he could institute an original teaching programme that related chemistry, physics, and geology to the fine arts. Also in 1863 he became dean of the new science faculty at Lille University, where he initiated the novel concept of evening classes for workers. Meanwhile, in 1857 he had been appointed director of scientific studies at the Ecole Normale Supérieure. Because of the pressure of his research work, Pasteur resigned from the directorship in 1867 but, with financial assistance from Emperor Napoleon III, a laboratory of physiological chemistry was established for him at the Ecole. Pasteur suffered a stroke in 1868 but, although partly paralysed, continued his work. In 1873 he was made a member of the French Academy of Medicine, and in the following year the French parliament granted him a special monetary award to guarantee his financial security while he pursued his research. In 1882 he was elected to the Academic Française. In 1888 the Pasteur Institute was created in Paris for the purpose of continuing Pasteur's pioneering research into rabies; he headed this establishment until his death, in Paris, on 28 September 1895...
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- Microorganisms and Pasteurization in Canned FoodsLouis Pasteur discovered the presence of microorganisms, disproving the Theory of Spontaneous Generation. His discovery explained why canning worked—heating killed bacteria and sealing kept harmful microbes out.
- Pasteur & Koch: The Race against MicrobesLouis Pasteur, a Frenchman, became famous around the world for having developed the vaccine against rabies. Robert Koch, a German, would receive the Nobel Prize for Medicine for having discovered the tuberculosis bacterium. At the end of the 19th century when epidemics were wiping out populations, their rivalry would revolutionise science. Tuberculosis, rabies, the plague, cholera, tetanus, diphtheria... For the greater good of humanity, Pasteur and Koch challenged each other in all fields. This rivalry, exacerbated by nationalist feelings against the backdrop of the Franco-Prussian War, would be behind one of the greatest discoveries in the world of medicine: the role of bacteria in the transmission of diseases. Through the reconstitution of this exceptional scientific duel, this docudrama tells the story of an incredible turning point in medical science, pursuant to which life expectancy would make a giant leap.
Online Resources
- Louis Pasteur, from crystals of life to vaccination.Clin Microbiol Infect 2012; 18 (Suppl. 5) 1-6 Abstract Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) is an exceptional scientist who opened a new era in medicine and biology. Starting from studies on crystals of by-products of wine fermentation, he first defined a distinct chemistry between dead and living matters. He then showed the role of living microbes in the fermentation and putrefaction processes. This brought him to challenge the two-millennium-old theory of spontaneous generation, using remarkably well-designed experiments. His observations on epidemics in silkworms allowed him to demonstrate the role of specific germs in infectious diseases. His discovery of the vaccine against fowl cholera can be considered as the birth of immunology. Finally, he became universally recognized through his famous vaccinations against anthrax and rabies.
- Louis Pasteur. Pure science at the service of industry1LPasteur was at the heart of the industrial and technological recompositions favoured by political power during the 1850s and 1890s: if posterity celebrated the "pure scientist", he worked his entire life for the benefit of national industry and under the tutelage of the government. It is intended here to show that the identity of the scientist emerges in close correlation with his contribution to the nascent industry, and that his enhanced social status comes precisely from this negotiation deliberately concluded with the political power.
- THE SCIENCE OF LOUIS PASTEUR: A RECONSIDERATION.Profiles scientist Louis Pasteur who suffered from cerebrovascular ischemia. Excerpts from the Pasteur's biography written by his son-in-law Rene Vallery-Radot in 1900; Pasteur's education; Contributions to science; Recognitions earned.
Perspectives
The Private Science of Louis Pasteur
In The Private Science of Louis Pasteur, Gerald Geison has written a controversial biography that finally 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 sides--for example, Pasteur's rush to develop the rabies vaccine and the human risks his haste entailed. 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. Although experimental ingenuity served Pasteur well, he also owed much of his success to the polemical virtuosity and political savvy that won him unprecedented financial support from the French state during the late nineteenth century. But a close look at his greatest achievements raises ethical issues. In the case of Pasteur's widely publicized anthrax vaccine, Geison reveals its initial defects and how Pasteur, in order to avoid embarrassment, secretly incorporated a rival colleague's findings to make his version of the vaccine work. Pasteur's premature decision to apply his rabies treatment to his first animal-bite victims raises even deeper questions and must be understood not only in terms of the ethics of human experimentation and scientific method, but also in light of Pasteur's shift from a biological theory of immunity to a chemical theory--similar to ones he had often disparaged when advanced by his competitors. Through his vivid reconstruction of the professional rivalries as well as the national adulation that surrounded Pasteur, Geison places him in his wider cultural context. In giving Pasteur the close scrutiny his fame and achievements deserve, Geison's book offers compelling reading for anyone interested in the social and ethical dimensions of science. Originally published in 1995. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.
Louis Pasteur
Distinguished French immunologist and physician Patrice Debré offers an extensive, balanced, and detailed account of Louis Pasteur's life, struggles, and contributions. Drawing heavily on Pasteur's own scientific notebooks and writings, Debré presents a complete critical account of his discoveries and the controversies they raised with other scientists and occasionally with his closest associates.
Pasteur and Modern Science
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 for him to convey the excitement and signficance of even the most technical aspects of Pasteur's work.Revised by distinguished microbiologist, Thomas D. Brock, the book includes a foreword by Pasteur scholar Gerald L. Geison from Princeton University that places the book in historical context. The book contains more than forty illustrations and tables, as well as a glossary and additional text.For high school and college undergraduate students, as well as the general reader, this is the ideal introduction to the life of Louis Pasteur.