Aleš Hrdlička (March 29, 1869 - September 5, 1943) Aleš Ferdinand Hrdlička was born to Maximilian and Karolina (Wajnerová or Wagner) Hrdlička on March 29, 1869, in Humpolec, Bohemia, which is now Czechoslovakia (Gillispie, 527). His father was a respected master cabinetmaker who owned his own shop. The oldest of seven children, Hrdlička attended local schools and received private tutoring in Latin and Greek from Ludolfa Pejčoch, a Jesuit priest who was attracted by the boy’s abilities (James, 371). He left high school in 1882 at the tender age of fourteen, to emigrate with his father to New York City, where the other members of his family later joined them (James, 371). Once in America, Hrdlička went to work with his father as a laborer in a cigar factory to help contribute to the family income. He attended the evening courses to learn English and to gain himself a high school equivalency diploma (Gillispie, 527). A serious attack of typhoid fever at the age of 19 altered the course of Hrdlička’s life drastically. It is said that his attending physician, a trustee of the Eclectic Medical College in New York, became interested in Hrdlička and persuaded him to undertake the study of medicine at the college. Graduating at the head of his class in 1892, he started a practice in New York’s Lower East Side. At the same time, to broaden his medical background, he began attending the New York Homeopathic Medical College, from which he graduated, again at the head of the class, in 1894 (James, 371). Shortly thereafter, he passed the Maryland State Medical Board (allopathic) examination, hoping to be able to join the staff of the John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, but he gave up this plan to accept an offer of a research internship in the new State Homeopathic Hospital for the Insane at Middletown, New York. It was while he was in this position that he became interested in the application of anthropometry to medicine. Through his autopsies and examinations of the patients, he became interested in whether physical characteristics and skeletal measurements might show systematic differences according to sex and type of insanity (James, 371). It was this interest which led to an invitation in 1896 to join a multidisciplinary research team being assembled by the histologist Ira Van Gieson (1866-1913) to staff the newly created Pathological Institute in New York City (Spencer, 503).
A well-discussed debate in today’s economy is the issues concerning immigrants and their yearning desire to become American citizens. As displayed in The Jungle, a rather perturbing novel about the trials and ruthless temptations early America presents to a Lithuanian family, adjusting to a new surroundings and a new way of life is quite difficult. To make matters worse, language barriers and lack of domestic knowledge only seem to entice starvation and poverty among newly acquired citizens, who simply wish to change their social and economic lives to better themselves and their families. Such is the case of Jurgis Rudkus and his extended family, consisting of cousins, in-laws, and their multitude of children. Natives to the country of Lithuania, Jurgis and his family decide that, after Jurgis and his love, Ona, marry, they will move to Chicago to find work in order to support their family.
Looking back in time at the great composers of the world, only one foreign composer stands out for his many contributions to classical music and in helping America to find its own music. Antonin Leopold Dvorak was born on September 8th, 1841, in a small village of Nelahozeves in Bohemia that lies on the bank of the Mauldau River. The village Dvorak was born into was in good company and surroundings however also retained much of its native luster even through the worst times of political oppression (1).
Albert Bandura was born on December 4th, 1925 in the town of Mundare located in Alberta, Canada right outside of Edmonton (Boeree, 1998). He was both the only boy and the youngest of six in his family. His father was from Poland and his mother from Ukraine who had both immigrated to Canada in their earlier years (Pajares 2004). Although his parents never had any formal educations they held education in high importance. Bandura’s father taught himself how to read 3 different languages and was on the school board for the local school district.
Langholf, Volker. Medical Theories in Hippocrates: Early Texts and the Epidemics. New York: de Gruyter, 1990.
Rush, Benjamin. Medical Inquiries and Observations, upon the Diseases of the Mind. Diss. Philadelphia: Kimber and Richardson, 1812. Print.
The human brain is a vast, unexplainable, and unpredictable organ. This is the way that many modern physicians view the mind. Imagine what physicians three hundred years ago understood about the way their patients thought. The treatment of the mentally ill in the eighteenth century was appalling. The understanding of mental illness was very small, but the animalistic treatment of patients was disgusting. William Hogarth depicts Bethlam, the largest mental illness hospital in Britain, in his 1733 painting The Madhouse1. The public’s view of mental illness was very poor and many people underestimated how mentally ill some patients were. The public and the doctors’ view on insanity was changing constantly, making it difficult to treat those who were hospitalized2. “Madhouses” became a dumping ground for people in society that could not be handled by the criminal justice system. People who refused to work, single mothers, and children who refused to follow orders were being sent to mental illness hospitals3. A lack of understanding was the main reason for the ineptness of the health system to deal with the mentally ill, but the treatment of the patients was cruel and inhumane. The British’s handling of mentally ill patients was in disarray.
Veracity, D. (2006, march 6). Human medical experimentation in the United States: The shocking true history of modern medicine and psychiatry (1833-1965). Retrieved December 19, 2013, from Natural News: http://www.naturalnews.com/019189.html#
“Homeopathy was always regarded, therefore, as the rich man’s therapy’, and the exclusive preserve of the wealthy, privileged and titled” (Francoeur). This was shown as the rich man 's therapy because at the time only wealthy people could afford it. Due to this perception many people were financially unable to pay for homeopathy. This stopped many people from using this treatment since they thought it was only for the upper class, although it was found to be much cheaper than conventional medicine. “British homeopathy could never really shake off its aristocratic gloss, and thus it never established itself at a popular level among lower classes, which was marked contrast to the other sects” (Francoeur). In the United States, homeopathy was easily accepted and more financially available. Constantine Hering played a major role in the use of homeopathy in the United States. Constantine Hering is referred to as the father of American Homeopathy. He founded the Hahnermann Medical College in Philadelphia in 1800. Homeopathy became popular in the United States during the late 1800’s. The increase in homeopathic medicine was due to a rapid spread of deadly diseases. Although Hahnermann had shown the true effect of homeopathy, he received criticism since homeopathy had a negative financial impact on pharmacies and doctors. By having homeopathic remedies that were safer and more cost effective people chose this route
Porter, Roy. The greatest benefit to mankind: a medical history of humanity. New York: W. W. Norton, 19981997. Print.
Hutchinson, Tom “Illness and the hero’s journey: still ourselves and more”, CMAJ. 162.11 (2000):p.1597 web (date accessed).
Stepansky, Paul E., Ph. D. "Category Archives: Medicine in WWI." Medicine Health and History. February 11, 2012. Accessed January 13, 2014. http://adoseofhistory.com/category/military-psychiatry/medicine-in-wwi/.
We are introduced to historical work done by North America, Germany, Great Britain, Belgium, Italy, France, Central Europe, and some minor reference to Poland and Russia. The three main divisions of the text are a gamut of information about the late 19th and early 20th century. It is during this time that Iggers talks about Leopold Ranke and the influence of his brilliant ideas. “It was Ranke's aim to turn history into a rigorous science practiced by professionally trained historians” (Iggers, 2005). Ranke initially introduced the ...
At the turn of the nineteenth century, medicine was hardly the enlightened profession it is today. Medical practices were often barbaric, employing methods that had been used for centuries, yielding little or no results and often killing the patient with a different affliction than the original ailment. Leeching (or blood letting), purgation, poor liquid diets, and cold water dousing were common practices as late as the 1850's. Even after newer, more effective methods of medical treatment had been introduced, many of the physicians, surgeons, and apothecaries hesitated to use them. Fearing the loss of their reputations, they hung on to superstitious beliefs, doubting the effectiveness of su...
American medicine in the late 20th century seems considerably less romantic. Protocols and seven-minute patient visits are supposed to leave physicians tracking blood pressure readings and calibrating Prozac prescriptions. There's no time for wisdom in an HMO, or so the wiser and more ancient of current physicians lament. So it was with certain trepidation that I spent a day last December in an internist's office.
Although church Dogma still dictated over society, scientist began to turn for supernatural causes such as possession and evil spirits to more scientific causes. Hippocrates, who as known as the father of modern medicine, recognize that the brain was the organ that interpreted sensory information from the world and that disease was not only in the body but also in the mind. He also believed that illnesses including mental illnesses were caused by imbalance within the body. In order to treat these illnesses balanced must be restored. One form of treatment thought to restore balance was bloodletting. Bloodletting was assumed to help, in patients that did not die because of the procedure and these practices continued for many years (Breitendfeld, Jurasic, Breitenfeld, 2014).