Miss Conolly's fall writing has been a fairly grim endeavor. Around here, a steady writing lull has only been exceeded by a steady rain. She did complete a paper on Vermeer and a fiction piece called Sweet Crime. Of course, a crook covered in sugar from head to toe and partaking of sweet shop doughnuts is a sweet crime indeed. I keep reminding myself that Rod and Staff 7 is a full grammar and writing curricula, and we are doing that. Thankfully, she just finished a book review for The Remedy. Enjoy!
The Remedy Book Report
The Remedy, by Thomas Goetz, is about Tuberculosis and the quest to find a cure. On the whole, it is a very interesting book, but in some places, it is unfortunately necessary to wade through chest-high tediousness to get to the interesting parts. German physician Robert Koch, French chemist Louis Pasteur, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a medical doctor before he began writing full-time, are all included in this captivating book. With excellent documentation of medical issues that were controversial at the time, this book will interest both those with an understanding of healthcare and laymen alike. Learn about the origins of microbes, antiseptic, and “germ theory” in this enjoyable read!
All Those Little Idiocracies
Pasteur disliked shaking hands. Koch was seriously introverted. Conan Doyle was a doctor, even though he wanted to be a writer. Everyone has their “thing”. Often one’s “thing” is just that: a silly little thing. But these guys…. Well, Pasteur was a germophobe, of all things, yet he upheld the “germ theory”. He actually advocated for the existence of germs- and he did things (like dissecting anthrax infected carcasses) in his lab that were a lot germier than shaking hands. Dr. Robert Koch, for all the wonderful work he and his lab staff did, was completely, hopelessly, introverted. When he was called on to speak at a medical conference, the people in the front row had to strain their ears to hear him! Sir Arthur Conan Doyle practiced as a doctor, but what he wished to do was write! Of course, there are also silly things that whole people groups do. For instance, if you see a red lamp in Britain, you have located a doctor. Here’s another strange fact: It typically takes approximately 17 years for a lab breakthrough to become a common medical procedure, a reality that could certainly create some very annoyed patients. Everyone and everything appears to have something a little crazy defining them.
Everyone Has Rivals
Contemporaries, Pasteur and Koch were rivals from the time Koch became known for his discovery of anthrax baccillus. With national pressure thrown in, both of them raced to find the cause and develop a cure for diseases such as anthrax. Koch provided some rather heated words on the topic of Pasteur’s ability to grow anthrax bacteria, but Pasteur was the one to develop a vaccine for anthrax. While Pasteur may have used control groups in his experiments, small-town, back country Koch was the one to develop the revolutionary lab procedures and techniques that are standard today. It’s strange how things work sometimes. Even though they were both working for a common goal, Pasteur and Koch were personal enemies!
When Robert Koch emerged from the German countryside, no one expected him
to build up his reputation, only to strike it down. Koch pretended that he had
found the cure for Tuberculosis, but what he actually found was tuberculin, a
substance that did nothing to strike down this particularly vicious disease. Sir Conan
Doyle realized the substance for what it was, and somehow learned through the
process of discovery that his destiny was to be the author of the Sherlock Holmes
series. Somehow amid all the scientific turmoil of the time, people were able to
document this time period for what it was: an amazing Golden Age of Discovery.
That is the essence of Remedy,: the fascinating story of Sherlock Holmes, Tuberculosis,
and the race to find a cure for a deadly disease. Read on!
That is the essence of Remedy,: the fascinating story of Sherlock Holmes, Tuberculosis,
and the race to find a cure for a deadly disease. Read on!
Next up, she begins working on the biography of a woman mathematician. She will submit it in mid-January to the Association of Women in Mathematics Essay Contest. Tomorrow, she will need to take the leap to begin connecting with some women mathematicians. Write on!
