Bound by Muscle Biological Science, Humanism, and the Lives of A. V. Hill and Otto Meyerhof

by Brown, Andrew

• ISBN13: 9780197582633
• ISBN10: 019758263X
• eBook ISBN(s): 9780197582640
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2022-10-28
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• More Book Details

Summary

In Bound by Muscle, Andrew Brown details the lives and achievements of two physiologists, Archibald Vivian Hill (1886-1977) and Otto Fritz Meyerhof (1884-1951). Hill and Meyerhof shared the 1922 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discoveries related to metabolic changes underlying muscle activity. Bound by Muscle describes how Hill and Meyerhof's lives and careers intersected and diverged and how their work changed the course of biological science.

Bound by Muscle is organized chronologically. The first four chapters consider Hill and Meyerhof's childhoods and early careers; subsequent chapters address the Nobel Prize nomination and award and how their lives were affected by the World Wars. Bound by Muscle details Hill and Meyerhof's scientific breakthroughs and professional accomplishments. The book also examines the historical context that shaped their work and how the two men differed. Hill embodied the pragmatic style of British science. He became an outspoken critic of fascism as well as an effective humanitarian. As a senior scientist, he played major roles in preparing Great Britain for World War II. In contrast, Meyerhof was shy and philosophical. A non-observant Jew, he was reluctant to leave his superb laboratory in Heidelberg as the Nazi threat became apparent. His dramatic eventual escape is described in detail for the first time. Throughout, Bound by Muscle reflects on how individual differences and historical events have shaped the trajectory of science.

Author Biography

Andrew Brown trained and worked as a physician in London. After emigrating to the United States, he practiced as a radiation oncologist in New Hampshire and North Carolina before retiring from clinical work. He is the author of three scientific biographies: The Neutron and the Bomb: A Biography of Sir James Chadwick (OUP, 1997), J. D. Bernal: The Sage of Science (OUP, 2005), and Keeper of the Nuclear Conscience: The Life and Work of Joseph Rotblat (OUP, 2012). He has also published papers on clinical aspects of oncology and nuclear history.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

1. Breakfast at the Hills'
2. Not Even a Physiologist
3. Otto Fritz Meyerhof
4. Heat and Lactic Acid
5. Hill's Brigands and the Great War, 1914-18
6. Post-war Tensions
7. Stockholm and Beyond
8. Revolutions in Physiology and Power
9. Preparing for War
10. 1940 - Backs Against the Wall
11. Deliverance
12. Restoration
13. Legacies

Index