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When I studied medicine at Oxford one of the courses was Pathology and bacteriology, which occurred between our undergraduate years and our clinical years. You had to pass this course to progress on and the final exam included an oral exam or in pretentious Oxbridge talk a 'Viva Voce.'
One of our number, who ironically became a Pathologist in later life, came a cropper on his oral exam. He had been doing quite well until asked by his examiner, " What would your conclusions be if you were told that there is an island off the coast of Scotland which is off limits beacause of Anthrax?" Pete quite correctly but undiplomatically stated that he supposed " some asshole had been experimenting with biological warfare during WWII." Unfortunately he said it to that asshole, who promptly failed him. At least that's what Pete claimed and it sure makes a good story.
Incidentally, during that Path and Bac course one of our supervisors was an old woman of a man called Basil Heatley who was part of Florey's team at Oxford that purified Penicillin. The first ever use of Penicillin was at the Radcliffe Infirmary in Oxford. It was given to an Oxfordshire policeman who had Staph sepsis from a skin lesion. There was so little available that every day they collected all his urine and reconstituted the antibiotic. But this was a situation of diminishing returns and although he rallied while on the drug, proving its effectiveness, they ran out before full recovery and the man relapsed and died.
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