A few weeks ago, I blogged about Fritz Haber and talked about what a legacy means. As I surveyed the anniversaries for This Week in Science History (TWISH), another thought occurred to me: what about credit? For many of the discoveries we talk about in school, there is controversy about to whom they should be credited. The classic example of this is the invention of the radio.
The 1909 Nobel prize in Physics was awarded to Guglielmo Marconi, despite the previously demonstrated work of Nikola Tesla (or Jagadish Chandra Bose for that matter). However, Marconi is largely considered to be the inventor (or father) of radio. Why is that?
This week’s anniversary as another example of credit controversy. On December 27, 1845 Dr. Crawford Long administered ether (as an anesthetic) to relieve her childbirth pains, its first demonstration in childbirth. Long had previously used ether as an anesthetic in the removal of a tumor on March 30, 1842, the first use of surgical anesthetic. While in, I learned the first demonstration of surgical anesthesia was performed by Dr. William TG Morton on October 16, 1946. Why was Dr. Morton credited with its first use? As with many stories from this time period (and before), the issue lies with communication.
Dr. Crawford Long was born in Danielsville, Georgia on November 1, 1815. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia and then his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He was well read enough to know about the work of Humphrey Davy and to understand the effects of nitrous oxide on physiology. He noticed that ether had the same effects as nitrous oxide. This induced him to try to use ether as an anesthetic in the removal of a tumor from the neck of James Venable. Dr. Long told colleagues about his work, but did not publish it until 1849 (in the Southern Medical Journal). Dr. Morton’s work was the first public demonstration of anesthesia and is credited thus. Long would request congressional action of his discovery and has been honored in statue (his is one of two designated monuments representing the state of Georgia) and on a postage stamp (1940), but is widely unknown as the inventor of surgical anesthesia.
Ironically, neither Morton nor Long were the first to use anesthesia. A Chinese doctor, Hua Tuo (華) performed surgery in the 2nd century AD using anesthesia he had developed by mixing wine with herbal extracts he called mafeisan (麻沸). In addition, a Japanese doctor, Hanaoka Seishū (華岡 青洲), performed a partial mastectomy on October 13, 1804, using a general anesthetic he called tsūsensan (based on the recipes from Tuo). Who really deserves the credit?
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