Harvey, William

There are truths that today, with the heights of our knowledge, seem perfectly obvious, and it is difficult to suggest even that was a time when people did not know them, and to discover still arguing about something. One of these truths - the systemic circulation in living organisms - was born especially painful and difficult. Within a half thousand years of the cult of Galen in medicine, . obviously, . very long and reactionary cult in the history of science, . people thought, . if the arterial and venous blood - the fluid are different, . and since the first "movement spreads, . Heat and Life ", . the second is designed to "feed the organs.,

. Dissidents were tolerated
. Spanish physician Michael Servetus in his book, devoted several pages of circulation: they described an open pulmonary circulation. Also in 1553 the clergy burned it as an "apostate" written with his "heretical" books, and only three copies were not included in the Protestant fire which ashes in Geneva of the author. Indeed seven circles of hell were those, . who came to the circle of blood circulation; There were several, . these brave pioneers, . which people put monuments: in Madrid - Miguel Servet, . Bologna - Carlo Ruini, . in Pisa - Andrea Chezalpino, . England - William Harvey, . - To, . Who made the last point.,

. William Harvey was born April 1, 1578 in Folkstoune in Kent, the son of a prosperous merchant
. The eldest son and principal heir, he, unlike the brothers was indifferent to the prices of silk and the weary conversations with captains of chartered schooners. William gladly changed the "business" first on a narrow bench of Canterbury College, and then for many years voluntarily imprisoned ourselves under the arches of Cambridge. In twenty years, burdened with all the "truth" medieval logic and natural philosophy, becoming a highly educated man, he did not yet know how. He is attracted by the natural sciences, he intuitively feels what they will find space to its sharp mind. According to the custom of the time scholars, Harvey goes to a five-year journey, hoping to gain a foothold in distant countries vague and timid tendency toward medicine. He went to France, then in Germany.

In 1598 he went to the University of Padua. Here William enchanted listening to the lectures of the famous anatomist Fabrice d'Akvapendente. This scientist discovered in the veins of the special valves. True, he did not understand their meaning, and for him they were only a detail of the structure of veins.

Harvey reflect on the role of these valves. But some thought for a scientist is not enough. We need experience, experiment. And Harvey began to experiment on himself. Tied up his hand, he saw the hand below the ligation shortly stiff, veins swelled, his skin darkened. Then Harvey made experiments on dogs. He tied her shoelace both legs. And again bandage below his feet began to swell, and the veins to swell. When swollen Vienna on one leg was an incision, a cut of dripped thick dark blood.

Again flashed lancet. Now Vienna was an incision on the other foot, but higher dressing. Of the cuts are not leaked a single drop of blood
Clearly, the following ligation Vienna is full of blood and blood on the bandage it does not. What could this oznachatN answer suggests itself, but Harvey did not hurry with. He was very careful researcher and a lot of time checking their experiments and observations, in no hurry with the conclusions

In 1602, William received his doctorate and settled in London. In 1607, he received a chair at the London College of Physicians, and in 1609, Harvey took the place of doctors in the hospital of St.. Bartholomew. A scientist with degrees from two universities is rapidly becoming fashionable. Physician and marries a very profitable. He had practiced in the most illustrious families of England, and his friendship with Francis Bacon helped him get a place "emergency physician of King James I. In 1623 he was appointed court physician. Favoring Harvey inherits a young Charles I. In 1625 Harvey became an honorary physician at his court.

. The royal physician - this little man with long, issinyachernymi hair and dark complexion, like all sunburned face - makes a great career, but Harvey is more interested in science
. It reveals the various animals, mostly cats, dogs, calves. Prepares a scientist and the corpses of people: the prohibition of the corpses open longer existed. And every time he saw the veins and arteries, cut the heart atria and ventricles studied. Every year, Harvey better and better versed in the network of blood vessels, the structure of the heart has ceased to be a puzzle to him.

. In 1616 he was offered the chair of anatomy and surgery at the College of Physicians, and the following year, he expounded his views on the circulation
. During the lecture the first time Harvey expressed his conviction that the blood in the body is continuously drawn - is circulating, and that the central point of circulation is the heart. Thus, Harvey disproved Galen's theory that. the center of circulation is the liver.

It has been nearly fifteen years to the day when a young doctor watched as the swelling of his bandaged hand. Mystery of the way of blood in the body has been solved. Harvey outlined the scheme of blood. But, describing her findings at a lecture, he refused to publish it. Cautious scientist engaged in new experiments and observations. It is circumstance and unhurried, and only in 1628, when Harvey's fifty years old and not at home in England, but at a Frankfurt goes his "Anatomical study of the motion of the heart and blood in animals". A thin little book - 72 pages - has made him immortal.

This small book describes the results were thirty years' experience, observations, autopsy and thought. Its content is strongly contradicted much of what to believe firmly that anatomists and doctors not only a long time, but contemporaries Harvey.
Garvey believed that the heart - is a powerful muscular sac, divided into several chambers. It acts as a pump, and pressure in blood vessels (arteries). The tremors of the heart - a progressive reduction of its divisions: the atria, ventricles, this outward signs of the "pump". Blood moves in circles, always returning to the heart, and these two circles. The large circle moves blood from heart to head to the body surface, all its organs. In the small circle of blood is moving between the heart and lungs. Air in the vessels there, they are filled with blood. The general path of blood: from the right atrium - in the right ventricle, from there - in the light of them - in the left atrium. This is the lesser circulation. He opened Servet, but Harvey did not know this: after all, the book Servetus was burned.

From the left ventricle the blood goes in the way of a great circle. First, on large, then on more and more small arteries it flows to all organs, to the body surface. The return journey to the heart (the right atrium) blood through the veins makes. And in my heart, and blood vessels heading in one direction only: heart valves do not allow reverse current, the valves in the veins, only paved the way toward the heart.

. It gets the blood from arteries to veins, Harvey did not know - without a microscope the way of blood in the capillaries do not follow
. Capillaries opened Italian scientist Malpighi in 1661, t. e. 4 years after the death of Harvey. But Harvey was clear that the passage of blood from the arteries into the veins to look for where there are tiny branching arteries and veins.

Did not know Harvey and the role of the lungs. In his time, not only had no idea of gas exchange, but also the composition of the air was unknown. Harvey only claimed that in the lungs the blood is cooled and changes its composition.

The arguments and evidence contained in the book of Harvey, were very convincing. And yet, as soon as the book appeared, at Harvey poured attacks from all sides. The authority of Galen and other ancient sages was still too big. Among the opponents were Harvey and senior scientists, and many practitioners. Harvey's views were met with hostility. He even nicknamed "charlatan". One of the first exposed Harvey disparaging criticism "king of Anatomists, the personal physician of Maria de 'Medici - Riolan. For Riolanom - Guy Paten (Moliere revenge on him for Harvey, ridiculing in his "Imaginary Invalid"), for Patenom - Hoffman, Cheradini - opponents were far more than pages in his book. "Better error Galen, Harvey is the truth!" - Such was their battle cry. Patients declined his services, anonymous letter reached the King, but for the honor of Charles I, he did not believe slanders and even allowed his medic at Windsor Park to catch the deer for experiments in embryology.

. Harvey had to endure a lot of trouble, but then his teachings are considered more and more
. Young doctors and physiologists went to Harvey's, and a scientist at the end of life waited for the recognition of his discovery. Medicine and Physiology entered a new, truly scientific way. Thus, in the years 1630-1631, he accompanied the Duke Levnoksa a trip to the mainland. In 1633, he traveled with Charles I in Scotland, and in 1636 was in the retinue of Count Arondelya sent to you after Germany.

When the revolution began, the king left London and Harvey followed him. London population and the apartment ransacked Vaytholl Harvey: this destroyed his work on comparative and pathological anatomy and embryology - the result of years of research. Harvey was under Charles I during the Edzhgilskoy battle, and then settled in Oxford, which at the time became the main headquarters of King. Here he was appointed dean of mertonskoy board, but in 1646 Oxford has been taken parliamentary forces and the scientist had to leave the post of dean. Since then, he had completely withdrawn from politics, which, incidentally, had never taken an active part, and moved to London. Here he built for the London College of Physicians of the house, which was placed a library and meeting place of society. Harvey also presented to the agency a collection of natural history products, tools and books.

In recent years, life scientists are engaged in embryology. In 1651 Harvey published his second great work "Studies on the birth of animals". In it he describes the development of embryos, although not in detail, since the microscope had no. Yet he made several discoveries in the history of the development of the embryo, and most importantly - is firmly established that all living things developed from eggs. Of the eggs develop not only the animals lay eggs, but viviparous. Harvey did not see the egg of a mammal - it was opened only in 1826 by Russian scientist Karl Baer - but boldly asserted that the embryo is formed from the mammalian egg. Plant Seeds were treated to eggs of animals.
"All living things from an egg!" - Reads the inscription on the figure, adorning the book Harvey. This was the main idea of the book and became a slogan of the new directions in science, the slogan that struck a heavy blow to proponents of spontaneous generation and lovers of stories about the emerging frogs in the mud and other miracles.
. In recent years, Harvey lived in seclusion
. No longer had to fight for their discovery. New generation of British physiologists and doctors saw him as their patriarch, poets - Dryden and Cowley - written in his honor poems. London medical board has put in the meeting room of his statue, and in 1654 elected its own president. But he refuses honorary chair: "... this duty is too heavy for the old man ... I too take to heart the future of board, to which I belong, and do not want it fell during my presidency. "
Harvey did not like the titles and never molested them. He continues to work. Sometimes in namayavshis creaking stagecoach, he came to his brother Eliabu in the village near Richmond, talked and drank coffee with him. The scientist was very fond of coffee. And in his will separate pot for Eliaba said: "In memory of happy moments that we spent together, oporazhnivaya him.
June 3, 1657, waking up, Harvey felt that he could not speak. He realized that this is the end, saying goodbye to their families simply, easily, for each found a small gift and died quietly and peacefully.