Angelina Fanny Hesse: The Story of Agar and Microbiology

Google the word microbiology, and the first few images you’ll see are Petri dishes containing solid growth media, also known as agar plates. Microbiologists use these plates containing food to grow the microorganisms they study. A key ingredient in solid growth media is called agar. It is the solidifying agent. This ingredient originated from a relatively unknown person — her name does not come to mind as quickly as Leeuwenhoek or Pasteur — though her contribution was arguably one of the most...