mar 24, 1859 - Louis Pasteur

Description:

Louis Pasteur disapproved the theory of spontaneous generation. He boiled beef broth in two flasks, each with a glass 'goose neck' to prevent contaminants in the air from reaching the broth. No microorganisms were growing in either of the flasks at this point. But, when he broke the 'goose neck' off the flask, it was exposed to the air and it was contaminated with the microorganisms. The other however, remained free of microorganisms.

He also proved that if you boil milk or water, it will kill any microorganisms within the liquid. This process was named pasteurisation, after him.

His experiments helped us to understand the germ theory of infection.