Bacteria in Daily Life

Grace Frankland was an English bacteriologist and one of the first women to do serious work in the field. Bacteria in Daily Life was published in 1903 and aimed at general readers who wanted to understand what microbes actually did, at a moment when the public knowledge of germs was still catching up with the science.

She writes about milk and water purity, soil bacteria, fermentation, disease, and the small daily encounters that put people in contact with microorganisms.

The science is dated, of course. Whole branches of microbiology that exist now didn’t yet then. But Frankland’s prose is clear, her examples are practical, and her enthusiasm for the subject comes through.

For history of science readers, or anyone curious about how women scientists wrote for the public a hundred years ago, it’s a worthwhile small book.