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Dr_Euler t1_ixgrrxc wrote

probably just me seeing this but I instantly saw them in a ww1 Era medical tent near the front lines

I didn't even question why they knew about germ theory that just sounded right for the time period

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sin-and-love t1_ixhv7s0 wrote

Actually we have a record of a roman dude warning that swamps are full of tiny infectious creatures. We have no clue how he knew, though.

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Jrmundgandr t1_ixhyb2k wrote

Probably time travel

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thisismego t1_ixi7620 wrote

Probably the Doctor

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YourAverageNutcase t1_ixj9rn6 wrote

Clearly, this was Rory passing the time while he protects the Pandorica. He was a nurse, might as well share some medical knowledge

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flying-lizard05 t1_ixjfzf4 wrote

😭😭😭😭😭😭 I don’t have favorite companions, but he was my favorite companion πŸ’œ

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-FourOhFour- t1_ixih0h6 wrote

I recall the theory was that he was able to notice "small" amoeba like creatures in water (not sure the correct term is for these large enough you can see with your eye but obviously not a bug or small fish) and concluded that there are smaller ones that can't be seen. How he came about that those caused infections was probably the tried and true method of let me try this on a guy and see what happens.

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Sany_Wave t1_ixijgz7 wrote

There are some amoebae that are large. Enough to poke with a pensil with only good glasses.

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TheArmoredKitten t1_ixj3wyi wrote

Yeah it's honestly really weird how long germ theory took to develop. The microscope was invented in the 1600s but germ theory wasn't firmly established until 250 years later.

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SliceThePi t1_ixihm4q wrote

is it possible he was talking about macroscopic parasites?

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Accidental_Ouroboros t1_ixiljeh wrote

This makes the most sense to me, unless he is specifying something like "so small that they can't be seen." Microparasites like helminths and flukes are visible to the naked eye.

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sin-and-love t1_ixjr06g wrote

yes, actually, he did specify that they were too small to be seen.

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SantiJamesF t1_ixjf342 wrote

My theory is because of magic, scientists of then times could turn their eyes into microscopes and because of this, they discovered bacteria, mold spores, viruses, etc giving them germ theory centuries before it was discovered in our time.

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