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Social sciences: history

Grade 6

The development of medical science

Module 3

Pasteur and lister conquer germs

Viruses, germs and bacteria are invisible to the eye. They are present in the air that surrounds us. Scientists say that a virus is a million times smaller than a millimetre. Every day we inhale many viruses, but fortunately we do not always become ill. (What is a computer virus?)

The person who discovered the real cause of disease, was Louis Pasteur. He discovered that the air around us is full of germs - germs that are so small that they can only be seen under a powerful microscope. These germs cause foodstuffs to decay if they are not preserved in some way.

The discovery of a means of preservation, which made Pasteur famous, bears his name: pasteurization. He proved that food can be preserved for a long time if it is germ-free. He discovered that heating milk to just below boiling point and then cooling it immediately, killed the germs or bacteria in it. This process is called pasteurization and is still used on dairy farms.

Because of this discovery, nearly all types of food, e.g. meat, fish, vegetables and fruit, can be preserved germ-free in containers or tins. The food is cooked in the tin until it is free of germs and the tin is then sealed. This food is safe to keep for a long time.

Activity 1:

How to acquire and use sources

[lo 1.2, 2.1]

Class discussion

a) Use the following questions to open a discussion. Then you can use your own questions!

  • Which milk is the safest for drinking: milk bought in a container in a café or the delicious fresh milk bought on a farm straight from the cow? Why?
  • Say how would you make milk germ-free.
  • Examine five items of food in your house. Do the labels indicate that the contents has been pasteurized?
  • Why can tinned food be kept for such a long time?

b) Reasearch

The vaccine against the dreaded disease called rabies is one of Pasteur’s most important discoveries. He could not determine the origin of the disease because the virus was too small to be seen through his microscope. He produced vaccine for treating people who had been bitten by rabid dogs from the spinal marrow of contaminated rabbits.

On 6 July 1885 the vaccine was used on a nine-year-old boy who had been bitten by a rabid dog three days earlier. The boy recovered. Another vaccine proved to be successful! Find out for yourself what happened then ….

Supply the following word(s) that helped you to acquire the rest of the information above:

Contents ____________________________

Index _______________________________

Activity 2:

To understand that different points of view on pasteur could be right or wrong

[lo 2.1]

Louis Pasteur wants to test this vaccine against rabies on a human being for the first time.

  • Explain, on his behalf, by means of the A.P.C. method, what the possibilities could be if the experiment is successful.
  • What will his alternatives be if the experiment fails?
  • What choice does Pasteur make?
  • What would you have done? Why?

Discuss the following in class and complete the assignments.

Questions & Answers

what is mutation
Janga Reply
what is a cell
Sifune Reply
how is urine form
Sifune
what is antagonism?
mahase Reply
classification of plants, gymnosperm features.
Linsy Reply
what is the features of gymnosperm
Linsy
how many types of solid did we have
Samuel Reply
what is an ionic bond
Samuel
What is Atoms
Daprince Reply
what is fallopian tube
Merolyn
what is bladder
Merolyn
what's bulbourethral gland
Eduek Reply
urine is formed in the nephron of the renal medulla in the kidney. It starts from filtration, then selective reabsorption and finally secretion
onuoha Reply
State the evolution relation and relevance between endoplasmic reticulum and cytoskeleton as it relates to cell.
Jeremiah
what is heart
Konadu Reply
how is urine formed in human
Konadu
how is urine formed in human
Rahma
what is the diference between a cavity and a canal
Pelagie Reply
what is the causative agent of malaria
Diamond
malaria is caused by an insect called mosquito.
Naomi
Malaria is cause by female anopheles mosquito
Isaac
Malaria is caused by plasmodium Female anopheles mosquitoe is d carrier
Olalekan
a canal is more needed in a root but a cavity is a bad effect
Commander
what are pathogens
Don Reply
In biology, a pathogen (Greek: πάθος pathos "suffering", "passion" and -γενής -genēs "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is anything that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a germ. The term pathogen came into use in the 1880s.[1][2
Zainab
A virus
Commander
Definition of respiration
Muhsin Reply
respiration is the process in which we breath in oxygen and breath out carbon dioxide
Achor
how are lungs work
Commander
where does digestion begins
Achiri Reply
in the mouth
EZEKIEL
what are the functions of follicle stimulating harmones?
Rashima Reply
stimulates the follicle to release the mature ovum into the oviduct
Davonte
what are the functions of Endocrine and pituitary gland
Chinaza
endocrine secrete hormone and regulate body process
Achor
while pituitary gland is an example of endocrine system and it's found in the Brain
Achor
what's biology?
Egbodo Reply
Biology is the study of living organisms, divided into many specialized field that cover their morphology, physiology,anatomy, behaviour,origin and distribution.
Lisah
biology is the study of life.
Alfreda
Biology is the study of how living organisms live and survive in a specific environment
Sifune
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Source:  OpenStax, History grade 6. OpenStax CNX. Sep 08, 2009 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col11011/1.1
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