HSOC 400 Exam

Who was Hippocrates and what is he known for?

Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.) is known as the Father of Medicine and authored 'Airs, Waters, and Places,' emphasizing observation and the theory of the four humors.

What theoretical framework was proposed by Hippocrates regarding health?

Hippocrates proposed the theory of the four humors: blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile.

What major medical text did Avicenna write, and what did it encompass?

Avicenna authored 'The Canon of Medicine,' which consisted of five parts and synthesized theories and practices of Greek medicine.

How did Galen contribute to the field of medicine?

Galen molded the Hippocratic corpus by adding his own thoughts and knowledge gained from animal dissections, strongly influencing medical philosophy for over a thousand years.

What was the significance of bloodletting in medieval medicine?

Bloodletting was a common medical practice believed to restore balance in the body, categorized into periodic (symbolic) and prophylactic (preventive) bloodletting.

What were William Harvey's major contributions to anatomy?

William Harvey discovered blood circulation and estimated the heart's capacity through vivisections and experimental ligation, publishing his findings in 'De Motu Cordis'.

What practices defined traditional Chinese medicine?

Traditional Chinese medicine included methods such as acupuncture, moxibustion, and cupping, focusing on holistic concepts of health.

What ethical issues arose from the use of dissection in the 19th century United States?

Dissection in the U.S. often involved racial dimensions, with African Americans subject to exploitation, abuse, and their bodies being used without consent for medical education.

How did attitudes toward human dissection evolve from ancient to Renaissance times?

Dissection evolved from taboo in ancient Greece, to legal ambiguity in medieval Islam, to accepted educational practice in Renaissance Italy.

What role did Foucault's concept of the 'clinical gaze' play in the medical treatment of patients?

Foucault's 'clinical gaze' emphasizes how a physician's observation dehumanizes the patient, focusing on anatomical and symptomatic details over the individual person.

In which Hippocratic treatise does the theory of the four humors first appear?

The theory of the four humors (blood, phlegm, yellow bile, black bile) first appears in the Hippocratic treatise "On The Nature of Man".

What did Hippocrates value highly in patient care, beyond general observation?

Hippocrates highly valued prognosis and paid close attention to a patient's habits, their environment (where they lived), and their temperament, believing treatments must be tailored to the individual.

What was the primary appeal of humoralism, which dominated classical medicine and formed its heritage?

The appeal of humoralism lay in its comprehensive explanatory scheme, drawing upon bold archetypal contrasts such as hot/cold and wet/dry.

Why did Galen primarily base his anatomical knowledge on animal dissections rather than human ones?

Galen's anatomical knowledge was based on animal dissections because human dissections were taboo at the time.

According to Galen, what made the human body intelligible?

Galen believed the body was intelligible because it was created by a rational Creator, suggesting an inherent anatomical rationality.

Besides Avicenna, name another significant physician and philosopher from the Islamic Golden Age of Medicine who stressed prevention.

Maimonides (c. 1137-1204), a rabbi, philosopher, and physician, stressed prevention rather than just treatment.

How did Ibn Ridwan's approach to health and sickness compare to Hippocrates' "Airs, Waters, and Places"?

Ibn Ridwan embraced a naturalistic view and stated that doctors had to understand the temperament of Egypt to treat people, similar to Hippocrates' emphasis on environment in "Airs, Waters, and Places".

What was the general legalistic stance on human post-mortem dissection in medieval Islam?

There was no explicit prohibition in Islam against dissection or post-mortem examination; the matter was left to jurists using legal reasoning to determine its appropriateness.

What specific long-held belief about the heart, put forth by Galen, did William Harvey disprove?

William Harvey demonstrated there are no pores between the right and left side of the heart in which blood flows, a belief Galen had put forth.

What common myth existed about traditional Chinese medicine regarding anatomical structure, and what was the reality?

The myth was that Chinese medicine was less concerned with anatomical structure; however, it relied heavily on pharmacological knowledge, using numbing medicines (like aconite) and other toxic plants for surgeries and setting bones.

What was periodic bloodletting in the medieval era primarily categorized as?

Periodic bloodletting was typically a symbolic religious practice, often found in monasteries and engaged in by those devoted to a life of religion.

What was prophylactic bloodletting in the medieval era, and what was its medical purpose?

Prophylactic bloodletting was a more common medical preventative practice, undertaken to preserve the body and prevent illness.

When and where does the first recorded case of a human body being opened for inspection in Italy date from?

The first recorded case in Italy of a human body being opened for inspection dates from 1286 in Bologna.

What key belief facilitated the greater acceptance of human dissection in Renaissance Italy compared to Northern Europe?

In Italy, the belief that once a person died, the soul left the body completely allowed for a separation between the spiritual and physical, making dissection more socially acceptable.

Before Andreas Vesalius, what were the three distinct roles involved in a 16th-century dissection for anatomical teaching?

The three roles were the Professor (explained commentaries), the Demonstrator (pointed out structures), and the Surgeon or Barber (prepared the corpse and performed the cutting).

What was the estimated immediate demographic impact of the "Black Death" (second pandemic) on Europe's population from 1347 to 1352?

The "Black Death" is estimated to have wiped out at least 25 million people in Europe, which was approximately 1/3 to 40% (some estimates indicate 60%) of the population.

According to historical theories, what concept related to "foul air" was believed to trigger the Bubonic Plague?

The idea that "miasmas" or foul air, arising from decaying organic matter or swamps, created an "epidemic constitution of the atmosphere" was believed to be a trigger for plague.

What was the basic procedure of inoculation against smallpox?

Inoculation involved taking pus collected from a smallpox pustule and placing it under the skin of a healthy individual to create a mild infection, thereby conferring lifelong immunity.

Who was Dr. Samuel G. Morton, and what controversial field did he champion to justify racial inferiority?

Dr. Samuel G. Morton was a Philadelphia physician who founded the "American School of Ethnology" and published widely on craniometry (the study of brain size/intellect based on skull capacity) to reaffirm existing convictions about racial inferiority.

What was the main argument presented in "Types of Mankind" (1854) by Josiah C. Nott and George R. Gliddon?

The book "Types of Mankind" argued that Black people formed a separate species, positioned midway between whites and chimpanzees, thereby legitimizing polygenesis and anti-Black, proslavery medical views.