What is most responsible for the modern understanding that diseases are contagious and that hygiene and isolation are important in disease prevention?

the emergence of scurvy during the High Age of sailing

the spread of various epidemics, including the black plague, in the Dark and Middle Ages

the fatality rates from surgeries performed during the First World War

the reduction in disease detected after the Romans built public bath houses

The spread of various epidemics, including the black plague, in the Dark and Middle Ages is most responsible for the modern understanding that diseases are contagious and that hygiene and isolation are important in disease prevention. This period of history saw firsthand the devastating effects of infectious diseases and played a crucial role in shaping our understanding of how diseases are transmitted and how to prevent their spread.