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Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Pennicillin (and more)

By clock on June 17, 2007.

Here is an example of perfect science blogging. It starts seemingly innocuously, with a quiz: Monday's Molecule #30, where you are supposed to figure out what the compound is.

Then, after a couple of days, there is a post that you may not even realize at first is related to the first one: Bacteria Have Cell Walls

Another day or two, and A and B get connected: How Penicillin Works to Kill Bacteria

But how do we know this? Well, some people figured it out: Nobel Laureates: Sir Alexander Fleming, Ernst Boris Chain, Sir Howard Walter Florey - and now you know how we know.

Finally, putting everything in context of science, society, medicine and history, a two-parter: Penicillin Resistance in Bacteria: Before 1960 and Penecillin Resistance in Bacteria: After 1960

A tour-de-force of science blogging. I wish I could do something like that.

Tags
Basic Biology
history of science
medicine
Microorganisms
Science Education

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Thank-you. I try to do one of these every week. It's taking up a lot of time so I really appreciate hearing that somebody has actually read my postings.