Science and Technology in Medicine: An Illustrated Account Based on Ninety-Nine Landmark Publications from Five Centuries PDF
Preview Science and Technology in Medicine: An Illustrated Account Based on Ninety-Nine Landmark Publications from Five Centuries
Andras Gedeon S CIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY M EDICINE IN An Illustrated Account Based on Ninety-Nine Landmark Publications from Five Centuries S C I E N C E A N D T E C H N O LO G Y I N M E D I C I N E Andras Gedeon Science and Technology in Medicine AN ILLUSTRATED ACCOUNT BASED ON NINETY-NINE LANDMARK PUBLICATIONS FROM FIVE CENTURIES With 1130 Illustrations S C I E N C E A N D T E C H N O LO G Y I N M E D I C I N E Andras Gedeon Science and Technology in Medicine AN ILLUSTRATED ACCOUNT BASED ON NINETY-NINE LANDMARK PUBLICATIONS FROM FIVE CENTURIES With 1130 Illustrations Andras Gedeon D.Sc. http://www.scienceandtechnologyinmedicine.com Library ofCongress Control Number:2005934913 ISBN-10:0-387-27874-5 e-ISBN 0-387-27875-3 ISBN-13:978-0387-30171-6 Printed on acid-free paper. ©2006 Springer Science+Business Media,Inc. All rights reserved.This work may not be translated or copied in whole or in part without the written permission ofthe publisher (Springer Science+Business Media,Inc.,233 Spring Street,New York,NY 10013,USA),except for brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis.Use in con- nection with any form ofinformation storage and retrieval,electronic adaptation,computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed is forbidden. The use in this publication of trade names,trademarks,service marks,and similar terms,even if they are not identified as such,is not to be taken as an expression ofopinion as to whether or not they are subject to proprietary rights. Printed in Singapore (KYO) 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 springeronline.com Contents Foreword by Leslie A. Geddes V Foreword by Paul U. Unschuld VI Preface and acknowledgements 10 Introduction by Jeremy M Norman 13 Ninety-nine landmark publications at a glance 18 NINETY-NINE LANDMARK PUBLICATIONS 20 Timeline and topics at a glance 520 The network of interrelationships 521 Bibliography by Ove Hagelin 523 Image sources and credits 529 References 535 Index of personal names 547 Foreword by Leslie A.Geddes This entertainingand informative book by Andras Gedeon is about those who contributed science and technology to medi- cine and it fills an important gap in the history of medicine. Each of the 99 chapters starts with a brief biographical sketch, followed by a description of the scientific or technological discovery. Then the significance is explained clearly, followed by an historical per- spective, placing the discovery neatly in the evolution of medicine. The book will be of value, not only to historians, but also those who wish to illuminate their lectures and speeches with relevant and interesting facts, some of which may be surprising. For exam- ple, most associate the name of Doppler with the frequency shift of sound or radar waves. However, Doppler’s original paper de- scribed the color change associated with a rotating pair of stars in the heavens. Its audible proof for everyone was the frequency change heard when a trumpeter was emitting sound when on a passing train. Within the various chapters, one finds a smorgasbord of fasci- nating information on the background of many “modern” med- ical techniques. For example, mouth-to-mouth resuscitation was in use in the mid 1700s. Electric stimulation was used slightly later to resuscitate subjects with respiratory arrest. Long before the first implanted cardiac pacemaker appeared in 1960, stimulation for cardiac arrest was performed in the late 1800s. These and many other historic tidbits are found in the many very readable chapters. Each chapter concludes with a perspective that places the dis- covery nicely in the history of medicine. It tells about the knowl- edge prior to the discovery, thereby enabling the reader to identify creatively and ingenuity of the discoverer. The perspective does not confine itself to prior medical history; it covers contemporary and prior relevant discoveries in related scientific areas. The reader will find the book difficult to stop reading. In fact this reviewer found it addicting and it will be found on my book- shelf that contains my most valuable reference books. V Foreword by Paul U.Unschuld Medicine isat the center of human civilization. Medicine is at the cross-roads of science and technology, ethics and philosophy, language and sociology, politics and economy, and many facets more that as a whole determine the nature of our culture. Medi- cine has arisen from man’s existential desire not to be incapacitat- ed by disease, and to escape an untimely early death. Medicine has, in addition, come to be applied not only to improve the quali- ty of human life of those who suffer from illness or malformation, but also to help mankind to transgress the borderlines of its natu- ral habitat and to venture into the deepest oceans and the most distant spheres of the universe. Medicine has been able to reach this capacity because two and a half millennia ago a process was started aiming at making use of the laws of nature for the benefit of humanity. The beginning of a recognition of natural laws marks the be- ginning of science and technology. The union of science and tech- nology with health care marks the beginning of medicine as we know it today. It was in the aftermath of the European Renais- sance that a new momentum arose in that fruitful development. Increasingly, philosophers, physicians, and scientists drew conclu- sions from their observations and arranged ever more skillful ex- periments to test their hypotheses. The historiography of science has informed us that no direct path leads to truth. Often enough, our view on nature is guided by cultural stimuli rather than by an elusive reality. We cannot even be certain about the relationship between scientific findings and reality. We can be sure, however, of most welcome achievements in the history of medicine that could never even have been thought of without contributions by and the use of science and technology. Andras Gedeon has provided, in his portrayal of “ninety-nine publications from five centuries”, a fascinating panorama of what may be identified as the most decisive “landmarks” in the history VI of modern medicine. He begins with Albrecht Dürer’s book, pub- lished posthumously in 1528, as “the first attempt to apply mathe- matics to the description of the proportions and forms of the hu- man body”, and he concludes his list with Michael Phelps’ presen- tation of “a prototype system of a positron emission transaxial to- mograph”. Within the 450 years separating these two publica- tions, innumerous individual naturalists and research groups have offered their contributions to “science and technology in medi- cine”. For the first three centuries, this has been an all-European endeavor; with the extension of the scientific world view beyond the borders of the European continent, it has become a global ef- fort shared by all who seek to expand knowledge and to adapt hu- man life to ever changing existential conditions. A listing of the top 99 seminal publications marking the ab- solute highlights of the influence of science and technology on medicine between the early 16th and the late 20th century should be considered a difficult task. Too many authors come to one’s mind that deserve an eternal place in our collective memory. And yet, it is the historian’s prerogative to value one against another and to present a personal choice. Andras Gedeon’s account repre- sents a most valuable and representative selection, and constitutes a timely record. It is most valuable because it demonstrates the broad international and multidisciplinary foundations of progress in science and technology for the benefit of medicine. It is repre- sentative, because it would be difficult to come up with a markedly different list of essential contributions to the progress in medicine as it has been stimulated, in the period under review, by new find- ings in chemistry, physics, and biology, and by new applications of mathematics and technology. Finally, it is a timely record because, as has happened before, voices are raised nowadays demanding a preference, in medicine, for beliefs over science. It is to be hoped that this book will contribute to a recollection of the multi-faceted scientific and technological origins of today’s status of medicine. In addition, it should stimulate young people from all scientific and technological disciplines and in all nations to continue on this path and to further the development of medicine—at the center of civilisation. VII
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