October 19

In 1900, German physicist Max Planck introduced Planck's law to explain the spectral distribution of electromagnetic radiation emitted by a black body. Facing the ultraviolet catastrophe predicted by classical physics, Planck proposed that energy is quantized in discrete packets called quanta. His theoretical law matched experimental observations and resolved the paradox. This groundbreaking work marked the birth of quantum theory and paved the way for modern physics. Planck's discovery transformed our understanding of energy and the atom, earning him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918.

On October 19, 1943, microbiologist Selman Waksman and graduate student Albert Schatz at Rutgers University isolated streptomycin from the soil bacterium Streptomyces griseus. It became the first antibiotic capable of treating tuberculosis, a deadly disease with few treatment options at the time. Clinical trials demonstrated its effectiveness in reducing TB mortality, sparking worldwide interest. This breakthrough ushered in the golden age of antibiotics and earned Waksman the 1952 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Streptomycin's discovery revolutionized infectious disease therapy and saved countless lives.