The Discovery of Insulin by Michael Bliss

The Discovery of Insulin by Michael Bliss

When insulin was discovered in the early 1920s, even jaded professionals marveled at how it brought starved, sometimes comatose diabetics back to life. In this now-classic history, Michael Bliss unearths a wealth of material, ranging from the unpublished memoirs of scientists to the confidential appraisals of insulin by members of the Nobel Committee. He also resolves a long-standing controversy that dates back to the awarding of the Nobel to F. G. Banting and J. J. R. Macleod for their work on insulin: because each insisted on sharing the prize with an additional associate, medical opinion was intensely divided over the allotment of credit for the discovery. Bliss also offers a wealth of new detail on such subjects as the treatment of diabetes before insulin and the life-and-death struggle to manufacture it.

"Using previously unpublished, suppressed, or privately circulated documents, Bliss sets forth the full story of the epochal discoveryIt is a tale of frustration, tension, and acute personal rivalry.... But the book has moments of pure delight.... Thoroughly researched and well written, The Discovery of Insulin deserves a place on the bookshelf along-side such eye-openers as James Watson's The Double Helix and Nicholas Wade's The Nobel Duel." - Washington Post "The definitive history... well written, highly readable." - London Review of Books "The story of insulin's discovery ought to be a novel... but Michael Bliss's splendid account is just as absorbing as any fiction." - Isis "Bliss's excellent account of the insulin story is a rare dissection of the anatomy of scientific discovery, and serves as a model of how rigorous historical method can correct the myths and legends sometimes perpetrated in the scientific literature." - New Republic "Scrupulously researched and compellingly readable... I whole-heartedly recommend it to anyone with an interest in diabetes, medical history, or medical scandal and gossip." - British Medical Journal"

Michael Bliss is University Professor Emeritus at the University of Toronto, a recipient of the Order of Canada, and an honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He is the award-winning author of many books, including William Osler: A Life in Medicine and Harvey Cushing: A Life in Surgery.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780226058993
ISBN 10	0226058999
Title	The Discovery of Insulin
Author	Michael Bliss
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	The University of Chicago Press
Year published	2007-07-26
Number of pages	308
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable