Joseph Lister was a remarkable British surgeon who pioneered principles of
antisepsis. He died 100 years ago after devoting his life to developing and
promoting safe, antiseptic surgery. In the 1800's as many as 80% of all operations
resulted in infection but many people refused to accept the true nature of
infection, believing instead that the deaths were coincidental. Lister became
familiar with the work of Pasteur while working in Glasgow. He recognized the
truth in his work, and in 1867 Lister published his landmark paper 'On the
Antiseptic Principle in the Practice of Surgery in the British Medical Journal. It
proved to be a turning point in healthcare.
Coincidental, in the paragraph, most likely means.
without connection
sure
with connection
on purpose