history

The Physician is Only Nature’s Assistant

Daniela Padres — Fri, 26 Jan 2024 18:20:02 +0000

Although warm foods are not likely to cause the production of yellow bile and hot winds are unlikely to be the cause of your digestive issues, Greek physician Galen of Pergamum contributed significantly to our understanding of the human body and left a lasting mark on the practice of medicine. He played a strong role in establishing the experimental method in the medical field.

Faraday, Dickens and Lighthouses

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 22 Dec 2023 13:18:13 +0000

I have a longstanding fascination with Victorian arts and sciences. It was the era when Darwin published the “Origin of the Species,” Perkin synthesized dyes, Lister introduced antiseptic surgery, Conan-Doyle and Charles Dickens thrilled audiences with the adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Oliver Twist. It was also the time when Michael Faraday laid the foundations for the practical use of electricity.

A Bloody Mess

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 20:17:50 +0000

Take some corn syrup, water, flour, red food dye and blue food dye. Blend these ingredients together in the right ratio and you’ll have a great batch of fake blood! It won’t be of any good for transfusions, but when it comes to movies, it makes for a very effective substitute for the real thing. By no means is this the only recipe that is used. Over the years special effects experts have developed numerous variants but the most common base is some sort of syrup composed of a combination of simple carbohydrates.

Phineas Gage, Neuroscience and Count Dracula

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 14 May 2021 19:32:26 +0000

The glass cases at the Warren Anatomical Museum in Boston are filled with a variety of fascinating items that have played a role in the history of medicine. On display is a one- meter long iron rod that doesn’t appear to have any special medicinal properties, and indeed it has none. Its fame, or one might say notoriety, rests on having passed completely through the skull of one Phineas Gage in 1848 without killing him! The dreadful injury didn’t kill him, but it did dramatically alter his personality.

What exactly is “Green Chemistry?”

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 30 Apr 2021 20:52:48 +0000

In 1942 nylon went to war. American paratroopers dropped from the sky with nylon parachutes and hunkered down in nylon tents. Soldiers on leave hoped to seduce European women with gifts of nylon stockings. Bristles for toothbrushes, strings for tennis racquets, insulation for wires, bearings for machinery, catheters, sutures, umbrellas, undergarments, shower curtains and numerous items of clothing all made of nylon soon hit the market. Consumers were absolutely taken with this miraculous new material.

The Right Chemistry: P.T. Barnum Was a Champion of Critical Thinking

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 09 Apr 2021 20:32:54 +0000

The Right Chemistry: All About Arsenic

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 20 Sep 2019 17:32:02 +0000

Video of Dr. Joe Schwarcz: All about arsenic

The Right Chemistry: the History of Laughing at Groundbreaking Scientists

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Mon, 12 Aug 2019 23:25:21 +0000

Under The Microscope: Velcro

Ada McVean B.Sc. — Tue, 21 May 2019 15:45:14 +0000

Just like Vivaldi was inspired by nature to compose his Four Seasons concertos, the inventor of Velcro was also inspired by nature. Specifically, by burrs.

Under The Microscope: Rose Petals

Ada McVean B.Sc. — Mon, 06 May 2019 17:58:23 +0000

Nowadays roses are mostly used for Bachelorette ceremonies and hipster lattes, but once upon a time roses, and their fruit, rose hips, were widely used as medicines.
Diarrhodon is the name given to herbal treatments containing roses, and there are lots of them, said to treat everything from liver problems to heart problems to digestion issues. Traditional Chinese medicine made use of the China rose for regulating menstruation, pain relief, thyroid problems and diarrhea.

The Right Chemistry: why gout shows up in the toes

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 18 Jan 2019 18:06:38 +0000

Video of Dr. Joe Schwarcz on why gout shows up in the toes

The Right Chemistry: the secrets of mercury

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 18 Jan 2019 18:04:24 +0000

Video of Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the secrets of mercury

The Right Chemistry: The history of decaffeinated coffee

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Fri, 14 Sep 2018 16:29:36 +0000

The Origins of Soda Water

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Tue, 15 May 2018 14:30:00 +0000

In 1874, thirty five men solemnly gathered at a grave sight in Northumberland, Pennsylvania. They had come to lay the foundations for the American Chemical Society, which would eventually become the largest scientific society in the world. Why did they assemble in such a somber setting? Because, in America, there was no place symbolically more appropriate for this event than the grave of Joseph Priestley.

Getting Stoned

Joe Schwarcz PhD — Tue, 16 Jan 2018 18:35:48 +0000

Ever wonder about how that stone washed effect is achieved on blue jeans? By washing with stones, that's how. The fabric is placed into large industrial washing machines together with volcanic rocks. The rocks rub against the surface, abrading some of the cotton yarn. Since the fibers used to make jeans are dyed only on the surface with indigo, the undyed white cotton begins to show through. A clever inventor in the U.S.