Humors

Submitted by Nicholas C. Darnton (inactive) on Friday, 10/16/2009, at 11:18 AM

The first round of Western-trained Tibetan Medicine practitioners are graduating from the Shang Shung Institute a few miles NW of Amherst; their graduation ceremony is tomorrow (October 17) here at Amherst College.  Tibetan medicine has major overlaps with the humoral theory of medicine.  Here is a short report that mentions the theory medicine (from NPR) and a synopsis of the principles behind Tibetan Medicine from the Shang Shung Institute.

Obsolete Science

Submitted by Nicholas C. Darnton (inactive) on Tuesday, 10/6/2009, at 11:05 AM

The main source for this part of the course is Peter J. Bowler and Iwan Rhys Morus, Making Modern Science: A Historical Survey,  University Of Chicago Press, 2005.  ISBN: 0226068617.  This is a wide-ranging account of the beginning of what we would recognize as physics, chemistry and biology.  This is a historical overview of the Scientific Revolution that puts it in a philosophical and social context. 

Reading for the week of Sept 21: please skim the introduction and read chapters 2-5.

For the week of Sept 28:

  1. You may want to start chapter 15 of Bowler and Morus.
  2. Check out Noga Arikha's website concerning her recent book on humors, possibly including a humoral (not humorous) personality test.  (Note the medical disclaimer attached to the test page).  The NYT review of her book has a good summary of humoral theory. 
  3. Watch Demi Moore lightheartedly shill for leech therapy (via HuffPo)

For the week of Oct 6: Chapters 6-8 and chapter 19 in Making Modern Science.