Experimentelle Untersuchungen über die Frage »Ist die Furcht vor Krankheitsübertragung durch das Telephon berechtigt«? Inaugural-Dissertation zur Erlangung der Doktorwürde in der Medizin, Chirurgie und Geburtshülfe der Hohen Medizinischen Fakultät der Königlichen Universität Greifswald

In the early twentieth century, when the telephone was rapidly becoming a household staple, a wave of anxiety swept through the public: could this new device be a hidden conduit for deadly germs? This scholarly work dives into that very question, grounding the discussion in the recent breakthroughs of bacteriology that revealed how pathogens can survive on everyday objects far removed from direct human contact.

Drawing on contemporary reports, laboratory findings, and a series of carefully designed experiments, the author examines the plausibility of disease transmission through telephone mouthpieces. By juxtaposing sensational newspaper accounts with rigorous scientific data, the dissertation invites listeners to explore how fear, media, and emerging science intersected at a pivotal moment in public health history.