Musing of a Contemporary Pathologist

Category Education

Camembert

          My childhood was decidedly unsophisticated in many ways, including gastronomically. For the first decade of my life my parents and I lived with my maternal grandparents, both immigrants from different shtetls close to Vilnius in what is now Lithuania…. Continue Reading →

Tsetse and Me

The tsetse fly is a member of the genus Glossina. This blood-sucking fly is indigenous to the equatorial area of Africa. There are about 30 known species and subspecies of tsetse files, but only nine belong to subspecies of G…. Continue Reading →

Medical Trivia #5: Johannes Lijdius Catherinus Pompe van Meerdervoort; a story of serendipity

Jeopardy category: Medical trivia Jeopardy answer: Johannes Lijdius Catherinus Pompe van Meerdervoort, the Netherlands Correct response: Who established the foundation for modern medical practice in Japan and from what country was he?   Many writers—generally of a certain (relatively advanced)… Continue Reading →

Adages, aphorisms and more …

Favorite aphorisms, adages, sayings and quotes – (mostly learned, a few made up) – collected over many years … aphorism: a terse saying embodying a universal truth or astute observation. adage: a traditional saying expressing a common experience or observation…. Continue Reading →

Medical trivia #4: Billroth and Brahms

                          Using language to convey the magic of Brahms would be like using a wooden classroom ruler to measure the speed of light.          … Continue Reading →

A President Lies in State

  John F. Kennedy lying in state, November 24, 1963 On Friday, November 22, 1963, 55 years ago, I was a third-year medical student sitting in a lecture room on the second floor of Freedmen’s Hospital, Washington, D.C. The lecture… Continue Reading →

The Dying Cadaver

The Spring 2018 issue of Rutgers Magazine, the magazine for alumni of the State University of New Jersey (Kate, my wife, is a Rutgers graduate), includes a one-page article, A High-Tech Anatomy Lesson, describing how medical students can be taught… Continue Reading →

Medical Trivia #3: Hadrian’s Earlobe

            The Roman Emperor Hadrian (Publius Aelius Hadrianus Augustus) was born in Italica-Hispanica (modern day Seville, Spain) in 76 CE and died at his villa in Baiae, an ancient Roman town on the Gulf of Naples,… Continue Reading →

Three long steps to Montpelier

Montpelier, the capital of Vermont, is a small, surprisingly vibrant city in the middle of the state, between Burlington and Woodstock. The north branch of the Winooski River runs right under State Street and also under some of the buildings… Continue Reading →

Medical Trivia #2: Cyrano de Bergerac and microscopy

In 1897 the French poet and dramatist, Edmond Eugène Alexis Rostand (1868-1918) wrote what would be his most popular work, the romantic play Cyrano de Bergerac. Rostand was born in Marseille and his father was a renowned economist and poet…. Continue Reading →

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