Robert Koch
1843–1910 · German · Victorian Era
Known for: Identified the bacteria causing tuberculosis, anthrax, and cholera; established Koch's postulates
Robert Koch proved that specific bacteria cause specific diseases. His Koch's postulates for proving disease causation became the gold standard of medical microbiology. He identified the bacteria responsible for anthrax, tuberculosis, and cholera, and won the Nobel Prize in 1905.
His rivalry with Pasteur was one of science's great feuds—the methodical German versus the passionate Frenchman, each racing to prove the germ theory of disease.
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