Tag: Science
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Stem cells and their promise in treating disease
Ashok SinghChicago, Illinois, United States Stem cells represent a fascinating and promising frontier in modern medicine. As they multiply, stem cells are unique in their ability to differentiate themselves into cells with different properties. This ability is observable in the development of a complete body from a single, unique fertilized cell. After fertilization and multiplication…
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A second mind in scientific writing
Rao UppuBaton Rouge, Louisiana, United States Clarity in scientific writing is a rare achievement. As Margaret Thatcher would have said in a different context, it does not fall from Heaven but needs work, often a lot of it. I learned this years ago, not in a laboratory or a seminar, but in my living room,…
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Martinus van Marum, physician, scientist, and inventor
Annabelle SlingerlandLeiden, Netherlands Martinus van Marum, who was born in 1750 during the era of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands, went on to enjoy a remarkable career in science. His father, Petrus van Marum, was a graduate engineer from Groningen who had started a pottery-factory in Delft, married Cornelia van Oudheusden, and had…
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The chemistry of coffee and the paradox of balance
Rao UppuBaton Rouge, Louisiana, United States Coffee is more than a daily stimulant; it is a quiet lesson in biological balance. The long-running debate over whether coffee is “good” or “bad” increasingly shows that, for most people, moderate intake—about one to three cups a day—sits comfortably within that balance. Coffee also carries cultural meaning, reminding…
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In praise of speleology
As freshmen at the university, we were advised to join a society or club in order to expand our horizons through what later became known as a liberal education. So, my classmate Pete convinced me to join the speleological society and suggested we should explore the Jenolan Caves, a major tourist attraction in New South…
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Carl Linnaeus as dietitian and pediatrician
Göran WettrellLund, Sweden Carl Linnaeus as pediatrician Carl Linnaeus is best known as a botanist through his classification of the sexual system of plants and taxonomy. His interest in botany was noticed from a young age at Växjö Gymnasium by his teacher, provincial physician Johan Rothman, who instructed the young student in botany and medicine.…
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Physicians as inventors
Avi OhryTel Aviv, Israel “Research is four things: brains with which to think, eyes with which to see, machines with which to measure, and money.”—Albert Szent-Györgyi, 1937 Inventions can be created either following a sudden enlightenment (for which Claude Bernard coined the term être frappé—to be punched or after a long investigation). Relatively few physicians…
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Charles Darwin’s illnesses on HMS Beagle
JMS PearceHull, England Charles Darwin (1809–1882) for much of his life was subject to illness and periods of invalidity. Their cause has been widely debated.1 Darwin joined the second voyage of HMS Beagle in December 1831. Under Captain FitzRoy, its prime purposes were to study weather systems and to survey and chart new territories. It…
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A magnificent late seventeenth-century German pharmacy cabinet
Christopher DuffinLondon, England Small, portable apothecary cabinets were once popular for household, travel, and campaign purposes, but few have survived from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Several are exhibited in German museums,1 including one spectacular example in the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum in Münich. The cabinet represents a fusion of artistic media. The goldsmith was Joseph Herterich…
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A brief history of fluorescein
Vidhi NaikAberdeen, Scotland Fluorescein, a strikingly bright orange-yellow liquid, is an essential tool in ophthalmic practice. Its synthesis marked a pivotal moment in the intersection of chemistry and medicine. Created by Adolf von Baeyer, a Nobel prizewinning chemist, in 1871, fluorescein originated as a product of industrial organic chemistry but soon became central to ophthalmic…