title: Historical microbiology, is it relevant in the 21st century?
abstract: Facsimile microscopes have been used to examine the possibilities of van Leeuwenhoek microscopes with a range of magnifications, particularly to confirm that bacteria can be seen if the microscope is strong enough. The relevance of historical microbiology in education is also illustrated by adapting versions of van Leeuwenhoek's pepper water experiment and Beijerinck's use of bioluminescent bacteria as oxygen probes. These experiments can demonstrate fundamentals such as enrichment and isolation cultures, physiology and experimental planning as well as critical reading of published material.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, Delft University of Technology, 2628BC, Delft, the Netherlands l.a.robertson@tudelft.nl.
authors.forename: Lesley A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Robertson
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000648:ultrastructure; D049670:History, 17th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D008829:Microbiology / Q000193:education / Q000266:history*; D008853:Microscopy / Q000266:history / Q000295:instrumentation
keywords: Beijerinck; Leeuwenhoek; biohistory; bioluminescence; education; simple microscopes