An international team of artists and scientists is creating a graphic novel to tell the story of the forgotten woman who introduced agar (and its derivative, agarose) to the life sciences, Fanny Angelina Hesse (1850-1934). The story will present the historical context and present significance of agar and its uses. A major source will be new historical material about Fanny Angelina Hesse shared by the great-grandchildren.
Please support the team in their Kickstarter campaign, if you can! The Kickstarter campaign will run until 20 July 2024.
In a nutshell
This project seeks support to create a graphic novel about Fanny Angelina Hesse, the forgotten woman who introduced agar to the life sciences.
- Indonesian desserts contain agar (called "agar-agar"), a gelling agent used instead of gelatine
- Agar (and its derivative, agarose) is used in almost every laboratory in research, medicine, and industry; thanks to agar we have antibiotics and vaccines and much more!
- We have received unpublished historical material from Fanny Angelina Hesse's descendants, which will be a major source for this story
- This material will be deposited at the Museum of the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin (Germany); this story will live forever!
- The graphic novel format will make this story accessible to a broad audience; we really want this story to be enjoyable by many readers!
What is this story about?
This is the story of a forgotten woman. A transparent substance. An invisible force.
This is the story of how Fanny Angelina Hesse introduced agar to the life sciences. Agar is an ingredient in Indonesian desserts; it is also an essential substance (along with its derivative, agarose) in almost every laboratory in research, medicine, and industry.
Thanks to agar (and thanks to Fanny Angelina Hesse!) today we have antibiotics, vaccines, and so much more! Agar is the substance used every day for culturing microbes in Petri dishes.
Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jens-notroff/the-dessert-that-changed-the-world