Course Description:
"An Environmental History of Microbes, 19th–20th Centuries"
Professor Mathias Grote, Universität Bielefeld and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
This series of lectures explores how the sciences have conceptualized microbes in relation to humans, other forms of life, and the biosphere from the mid-19th to the late 20th century. The ubiquity, power, and versatility of these minute life forms—whether as "foes" in disease, "friends" in symbioses, or tools in biotechnology—reflect a complex and evolving relationship with nature. Recent microbiome research on microbiota in human bodies and aquatic environments has highlighted the impression of microbial omnipresence, if not omnipotence, even in large-scale geochemical processes and the natural history of the planet. This makes the question of the relationship between microbes and their environments in the history of science and technology particularly relevant.
