There have been
many great scientists in humankind’s history, who were successful in different
fields of science. The reason I have chosen Louis
Pasteur, a French chemist and microbiologist renowned for
his discoveries of the principles of vaccination, microbial
fermentation and pasteurization, is, because he was a great man who saved millions of
people by devoting his life to chemistry and physics, but only a small group of
individuals know him. I hope you’ll learn a few things about Louis Pasteur from
my presentation.
So what do we already know about his life? Well, he was born
on December 27, 1822, in Dole, Jura, France, in a Catholic family of a poor tanner.
Also, he was an average student in his early years, and not particularly
academic, as his interests were fishing and sketching. Moreover, in 1848, he became a professor of chemistry at
the University of
Strasbourg, where he met his wife Marie
Laurent. They were married on May 29, 1849, and had
five children together, only two of whom survived to adulthood; the other three
died of typhoid. You won’t be surprised to hear that these personal
tragedies were his motivation for curing infectious
diseases.
As
for his career, Louis Pasteur was
appointed to the Chair of Chemistry in the faculty of sciences of the
University of Strasbourg. Also, in 1854, he was named dean of the new faculty
of sciences at Lille University. In 1856,
he moved back to Paris, because he was feeling homesick, as the director of
scientific studies where he took control from 1858 to 1867 and introduced a
series of reforms. His examinations
became more rigid, which led to better results, greater competition, and
increased prestige. Louis Pasteur raised the standard of scientific work,
leading to two serious student revolts. Furthermore, in 1862, he was appointed
professor of geology, physics, and chemistry until his resignation in 1867. And
finally, in 1887, In Paris, he established the Pasteur Institute and was its
director for the rest of his life.
And now, when you know a little bit more about
this great scientist, you are probably wondering, what are his achievements,
right? Well, he is remembered for his remarkable breakthroughs in the causes
and preventions of diseases, and his discoveries have saved countless lives ever
since. He, also, reduced mortality from puerperal
fever, and created the first vaccines for rabies and anthrax. And the interesting fact about his vaccine is that it had
been tested only on 11 dogs before its first human trial. And the first patient
who was injected with Louis Pasteur vaccine was a 9-year old boy! But he is
best known to the general public for his invention of the technique of treating milk and wine to stop bacterial contamination, a process now called
pasteurization.
There’s so much more I could tell you about this
man, popularly known as the "father of microbiology", but I think
it’s enough for now. Let me just finish by saying that Louis Pasteur had a big
influence on today’s chemistry and medicine and I’m sure you’ll agree that he was
a very successful scientist.
