María del Mar Rey Bueno; María Esther Alegre Pérez. The Royal Chemistry Laboratory (1694-1700) (Article in Spanish) . Dynamis, 1996, 16, 261-290.

Summary

Introduction. 1.-1uan de Moya Salazar and the distillation profession. 2.-Founding of the Chemistry Laboratory (1693-1700). 3.-Independence from the Royal Chemistry Laboratory: Ordinances, functions and objectives. 4.-Departure of Vito Cataldo and his assistants. 5.-Juan del Bayle, Handler of Chemical Materials. 6.-An episode of alchemy in the court of Carlos II.

Abstract

One of the most interesting events of the trasformation of science in Spain toward the end of the XVII century was the foundation of the Royal Chemistry Laboratory. This institution, brillantly promoted by the physician Dionisio de Cardona, was condemned to failure from the very beginning, due to the opposition of the Protomedicato and the royal apothecaries in the service of King Charles II. The period studied here, between 1693 and 1700, comprises two different phases: an initial stage (1693-1697) characterized by the struggle between novatores and traditionalists, which ended in triumph for the latter; and a second stage (1697-1700) completely separate from the initial measures, in which the influence of alchemy was marked. This stage can be considered compatible with the series of spells and superstitions that characterized the court of Charles II.

Gunnar Stollberg. Natural and Deliberate Health. Coping with Health in German Autobiographies from the 18th and 19th Centuries.

Ana Cecilia Rodríguez de Romo. Pasteurian Science Through the Antirabies Vaccine: The Case of Mexico (Article in Spanish ) . Dynamis, 1996, 16, 291-316.

Summary

1.-Introduction. 2.-Background. 3.-Pasteurian science. 4.-The Pasteur Institute. 5.-The case of Mexico. 6.-The antirabies vaccine. 7.-Preventive inoculations for rabies. 8.-The José Ramos case. 9.-Miguel Otero. 10.-Results of the vaccine. 11.-Preventive Rabies Inoculations Service, the Antirabies Institute. 12.-Why was there no Pasteur Institute in Mexico? 13.-The Ottoman model. 14.-Final reflections. 15.-Conclusions.

Abstract

The history of the rabies in Mexico is a versatile topic because it provides a chance to study different aspects of the history of Mexican science and medicine. This article reconstructs the sequence of events related to rabies vaccination in Mexico. History is also used as a model to study scientific transfer and scientific imperialism, the use of science by politicians in order to validate their governments, and the impact of French medicine on Mexican medicine. In 1888 the physician Eduardo Liceaga, an important political figure, brought the rabies vaccine to Mexico. President Porfirio Díaz supported Liceaga because he assumed that the vaccine was synonymous with modernity, and hence a sign of good government. We also analyze the reasons why there was no Pasteur Institute in Mexico, even though the conditions that allowed its creation in other countries also existed. Two points are of particular interest: 1) Despite its importance, this topic has not formally been studied in the context of the history of Mexican medicine, and 2) A considerable part of the present research is based on original, unpublished manuscripts in French and Mexican archives.

José M. Cano Pavón. Chemistry Research in Granada During the 20th Century (1900-1975) (Article in Spanish) . Dynamis, 1996, 16, 317-368.

Summary

1.-Introduction. 2.-Quantitative data. 3.-First period, 1900-1936. 3.1.-Organic Chemistry. 3.2.-Inorganic Chemistry. 3.3.-Analytical Chemistry. 4.-The Civil War and postwar period (1937-1955). 4.1.-Inorganic Chemistry. 4.2.-Mineralogy. Edaphology. 4.3.-Analytical Chemistry. Clinical analysis. 4.4.-0rganic Chemistry. Physical Chemistry. 5.-Last period, 1956-1975. 5.1.-Inorganic Chemistry. 5.2.-Mineralogy. Edaphology. Agrochemistry. 5.3.-Analytical Chemistry. 5.4.-0rganic Chemistry. Physical Chemistry. 5.5.-Biochemistry. Physiology. Bromatology. 6.-Final considerations.

Abstract

We studied the development of chemistry research in Granada from 1900 to 1975. Initially we obtained quantitative data on publication output during three arbitrarily-defined subperiods (1900-1936, 1937-1955, and 1956-1975). The most important lines of chemistry research at university and national research council (CSIC) centers in Granada are described, and some considerations on the characteristics of these publications are provided. Scientific research slowly became consolidated during the 1930s. The Civil War led to substantial changes, and during the postwar years the influence of the CSIC led to the predominance of studies on silicates and clays (mineralogy, reactivity, applications) until well into the 1960s. After 1965 research lines became more diversified, with increasing numbers of studies in biochemistry, physiology and analytical chemistry.

M. Teresa Fuentes Caballero. Private Habits and Public Interest. Breast-feeding in Popular Medical Literature. Barcelona 1880-1890 (Article in Spanish) . Dynamis, 1996, 16, 369-398.

Summary

1.-Introduction. 2.-Sources and authors. 2.1.-Selection criteria and general typology. 2.2.-Biographical notes and characteristics of the works analyzed. 3..[J1880s in Barcelona. 4.-Child health problems. 4.1.-Infant mortality in Barcelona: A worrisome problem for physicians. 4.2.-Interest in life for economic reasons. 4.3.-Women's contributions in the fight against child mortality. 4.4.-The breast-feeding question. 4.5.-Why didn´.t women want to breast-feed? 4.6.-The occupation of midwife: Need and rejection. 4.7 .-Standardization of child care.

Abstract

From the latter decades of the 19th century onward, the style of life of the lower classes was threatened by increasing standardization that bourgeois culture introduced in industrial societies. One way in which the patterns of private and public behavior were influenced was by the transmission of new values through different communication channels available at that time. Feeding and hygiene became fundamental subjects in a pattern of cultural change that was favored by politicians and supported by influential institutions and social groups, which moreover played the role of mediator in class conflicts. Breast-feeding was one of the main subjects of popular hygiene and health literature at the end of the century, and represented an attempt not only to palliate infant mortality, but to mold women's behavior and consolidate a certain type of family within a context that required stability, thrift, and work to cope with the dangers of poverty and the rootlessness that were faced by the masses of workers arriving in the industrialized city.

Muriel Neven; Michel Oris. Health and Citizenship in Contemporary Belgium (Article in French) . Dynamis, 1996, 16, 399-426.

Summary

1.-Citizenship. 2.-Health policies of the régime censitaire (1831-1886). 3.-First steps in the alliance between medicine and the state. 4.- To concede without loss of control: Learning about democracy and prevention, 1886-1914. 5.-Defense of the nation and health as a moral duty, 1918-1939. 6.-The «right to health» and the exclusion of sick persons, 1946-1995. 7.-Conclusions.

Abstract

We summarize the relations between the development of health policies and the definition of citizenship in Belgium during the 19th and 20th centuries. In the limited scope of the present article we describe the main developments and offer a plausible introduction to subsequent studies. We aim to show that thanks to the scientific study of the changes that took place during two centuries, we can understand the reasons why there are currently so many contradictions in health policy. It is hoped that our findings will help us to better understand the present and prepare for the future.