ABSTRACT
Joseph Lister was not the first surgeon, nor was he the first scientist; in fact, he was not even the first man to do both. Lister was, however, the first man to show tremendous strengths in both fields and combine them into one occupation-the surgeon-scientist. Joseph Lister’s broad surgical skills, his inquisitive nature, and above all, his receptivity to new and foreign ideas directed him toward one of the great discoveries introduced to mankind.
