Occupation: Chemist and microbiologistBorn: December 27, 1822 in Dole, FranceDied: September 28, 1895 in Marnes-la-Coquette, FranceBest known for: The discovery of vaccinations, pasteurization, and proving that germs cause disease.

Louis Pasteur was born in Dole, France on December 27, 1822. His family was poor and during his early education he was an average student who enjoyed art and singing. However, when Louis was exposed to science as a teenager, he knew he had found his calling.

College and Career In 1838, Louis went to college to become a science teacher. He earned degrees in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. He then became a chemistry professor at the University of Strasbourg. While at the University he fell in love with the daughter of the university's rector, Marie Laurent. He and Marie married in 1849. They had five children, however, three died young from typhoid fever. It was the deaths of his children that drove Louis to investigate infectious diseases in order to find a cure.

He killed all them germs

he discovered the germs.

And told people to wash

hands.

Pasteur continued to investigate with diseases. He found that he could make a weak form of a disease that would cause people to become immune to the stronger form of the disease. He called this weak form a "vaccine." He first discovered this by working with cattle on the disease anthrax. The first vaccine he gave to a human was the rabies vaccine. He administered it to a nine year old boy name Joseph Meister in 1885