Tag: diphtheria bacillus
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Medicine’s “Naming of the Parts”: Less instrumentalism and more aesthetics?
Alan BleakleyPlymouth, United Kingdom The English poet Henry Reed first published “Naming of the Parts” in 1942. English schoolchildren of my generation, born soon after WWII, learned this poem by heart. But we were too young to know, and perhaps our English teachers failed to… Read more
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A hole in the head and a world of skill
Richard de GrijsSydney, Australia In the dim confines of a ship’s sickbay during the golden age of piracy, the sound of waves might have been interrupted by the rasp and twist of a surgical drill biting into bone. Trepanning—the act of boring into the skull… Read more
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Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872–1958)
Ralph Vaughan Williams is regarded as one of the most influential and beloved English musical composers, active at a time when his country’s music was heavily influenced by German and French traditions. He was born in Down Ampney, Gloucestershire, into a well-connected and intellectual family.… Read more
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Antonín Dvořák of the New World Symphony
Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904), the celebrated musical composer, brilliantly combined Czech folk traditions with sophisticated Western classical music. Born in the small village of Nelahozeves near Prague, in what is now the Czech Republic, he was the son of an innkeeper and butcher who also played… Read more
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Man is a waiting animal
If you require a visa for a certain country, you should arrive at the consulate early in the morning to beat the crowd. You are told to take a number and wait in a crowded room for up to one hour before being called. You… Read more
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Dr. Arnold Kadish: Insulin pump inventor and “Diabetes Dad”
Paige EdmistonSeattle, Washington, United States A black-and-white photograph of a man covered in tubing and wearing an unwieldy backpack-sized device (Figure 1) beamed from the screen at the front of the classroom. The nurse leading the diabetes education class walked from the podium to a… Read more
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Spontaneous regression of cancer
Jayant RadhakrishnanChicago, Illinois, United States Unexplainable events have always intrigued people. At the top of this list of the uncommon and perplexing is spontaneous cure or regression of cancer. A cure requires that the lesion disappear completely, never to return, letting the person live for… Read more
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Jane Campbell Munro in Regency India
Stephen MartinThailand Jane Campbell1 (1790–1850) was catapulted from humble beginnings on a farm in Georgian Scotland2 to a life of stresses and medical danger in India. When her uncle died unexpectedly, Jane’s father inherited Craigie House,3 a Scottish mansion by the river in Ayr. At… Read more
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Below decks, a different war
Richard de GrijsSydney, Australia In October 1770, H.M. Bark Endeavour limped into the port of Batavia, capital of the Dutch East Indies (present-day Jakarta, Indonesia), after having almost foundered on the Great Barrier Reef. The hardy crew of Captain James Cook (1728–1779), although renowned for… Read more
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Stigma and truth in Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier” (1926)
Shreya SharmaLondon, Ontario, Canada Throughout history, visible illness has been feared, medically and socially. Diseases with physical manifestations such as leprosy have carried a severe stigma, often leading to misdiagnoses, isolation, and discrimination. But what happens when fear, rather than science, dictates medical care? Arthur… Read more
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The Carpathian wolves of Saki
The relationship between wolves and humans is old and complex. It oscillates between hostility and cooperation and eventually results in domestication as dogs. In Norse mythology, wolves were a powerful force destined to bring about the end of the world. To scientists today, wolves offer… Read more