Medieval and Renaissance-era physicians were forbidden by the Church to cut into a body, living or dead. That distasteful work was left to the barber surgeons. So in order to diagnose a patient’s problem, physicians couldn’t do much besides checking… Read More
In my last post I discussed Steven Johnson’s book How We Got to Now: Six Innovations That Made the Modern World, and I couldn’t resist another post about it. It’s such a cool book, if you haven’t read it.
In… Read More
For some reason, I’ve been going to a lot of baby showers recently–I have another one Monday night. It’s fascinating to see all the new-fangled baby contraptions available these days, and to learn what has gone in and out and… Read More
On a recent trip to France, we passed by many châteaux in the Loire valley, each more magnificent than the next. The Loire valley is not very close to Paris—it’s about 110 miles from Paris to Chateau de Chambord, for… Read More
The artist Benvenuto Cellini (1500 – 1571) was a goldsmith and musician, and also one of the greatest sculptors of the Renaissance. He seems also to have been kind of a thug. He killed quite a lot of people, first… Read More
I don’t know why I should continue to be shocked that in this day and age, books are still being banned. Book banning (and burning) has a long and ignominious history.
As the Renaissance dawned, great thinkers began to consider… Read More
Up to a quarter of women who gave birth in hospitals in Europe and America in the 17th through the 19th centuries died of puerperal fever. It's an infection that could most likely have been prevented by doctors and nurses washing their hands.