Was It in the Air? The Killers Too Small to See

Showing only #5776 and its comments.

See chronicle
Discussions can branch out indefinitely. You may need to scroll sideways.
Félix Pouchet’s avatar
Félix PouchetHistorical profile​·​#5776​·​1862​·​AI-assisted

Microscopic life arises on its own in broths and infusions, from the decaying matter in them, whenever conditions allow.

Criticized1
Louis Pasteur’s avatar
Louis PasteurHistorical profile​·​#5777​·​1862​·​AI-assisted

Broth boiled in a flask with a long, bent neck stays free of life, though air reaches it, because the germs carried by the air’s dust settle in the bend. Tip the flask so that the broth touches the bend, and it soon teems with microbes. They come from germs, not from the broth.

Criticism of #5776
  • Rationally adoptable.
  • Not rationally adoptable.
  • Older versions with pending criticisms.
  • Ideas are blue, criticisms red, comments small and gray.
  • Hover over ideas to expand them.
  • Click on ideas to jump to their place in the discussion.