Alexander Fleming

Hello. My name is Alexander Fleming. I was born a long, long time ago, around the year 1881. I grew up on a big, green farm in a place called Scotland. I loved to play outside in nature. I would look at the flowers, watch the animals, and explore the fields. Being outside made me very curious. I always wondered how things in the world worked. That curiosity was the most important thing I had.

When I grew up, I became a scientist and had my own laboratory. A laboratory is a special room for doing experiments. One day in 1928, I made a very important discovery. It was a happy accident. I had some dishes where I was growing yucky germs to study them. When I looked at one dish, I saw something surprising. There was a fuzzy, green mold growing on it. The most amazing part was that all around the mold, the yucky germs were gone. The fuzzy mold was stopping the germs from growing.

I knew this little mold was very special. I gave it a name: penicillin. I studied it very carefully and learned that it could be used to create a new medicine. This medicine was powerful. It could fight off bad germs inside our bodies and help sick people get better. This was a wonderful discovery. It meant doctors all over the world would have a new way to help people who were not feeling well.

I lived to be 73 years old. I was so happy that my discovery could help so many people live healthier lives. Even today, the medicine that grew from my discovery of penicillin helps keep people all around the world healthy and strong.