PRIZE THESIS. AN EXPERIMENTAL INQUIRY, CONCERNING THE PRESENCE OF
1839. Item #87019
PERCY, JOHN. PRIZE THESIS. AN EXPERIMENTAL INQUIRY, CONCERNING THE PRESENCE OF ALCOHOL IN THE VENTRICLES OF THE BRAIN, AFTER POISONING BY THAT LIQUID; TOGETHER WITH EXPERIMENTS, ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE PHYSIOLOGICAL ACTION OF ALCOHOL: FOR WHICH, A GOLD MEDAL WAS AWARDED BY THE MEDICAL FACULTY OF THE UNIVERSITY EDINBURGH. London: Hamilton, Adams, and Co.; A. and C. Black, Edinburgh; and Hicklin, Nottingham, 1839. One plate, of laboratory apparatus, inserted before p. 9. Slim 8vo. [iv], 112 pp. Contemporary cloth binding shows general shelfwear and soiling. Ex library, with bookplate, a couple of ink stamps, and remnants of a shelf label on spine. Front hinge is starting and the first gathering is partially sprung. About very good. Although Percy was elected physician to the Queen's Hospital, Birmingham, in 1839, he never practiced medicine; instead he pursued his interest in chemistry and metallurgy, with great success. He was elected to the Royal Society in 1847; and, as professor at the Metropolitan School of Science (later the Royal School of Mines), he exerted a profound influence on British metallurgy. Many of his pupils achieved great distinction, with many of their inventions and discoveries being greater than Percy's own. Through his teaching, which was both methodical and innovative, Percy transformed metallurgy from a repertoire of practices into a scientific discipline. This prize thesis is his first publication. (Wellcome IV, p. 334; D.S.B. 10, p. 511-512; D.N.B.).
Price: $150.00