As much as she wanted to disassociate herself from her father, Svetlana Alliluyeva might have resembled him in character. Fiercely independent, extremAs much as she wanted to disassociate herself from her father, Svetlana Alliluyeva might have resembled him in character. Fiercely independent, extremely intelligent and very well educated, she was restless, impulsive and slightly paranoid. Just like Stalin, she didn't attach herself to any possessions and broke up readily with people. At the same time, probably unlike him, she was quite naïve. She didn’t understand or care about money, and was duped out of all of it. Formally married three times and in many more long lasting relationships, she always looked ahead hoping that happiness lay ahead patiently waiting around the next corner and saw a promise of domesticity where there was none. Yet, she remained a happy and satisfied woman through most of her life. Or, at least this is what her biographer, Rosemary Sullivan, has us believe. Rosemary is definitely her friend, and is positively inclined towards her subject. To her great credit, I wasn’t really interested in Stalin’s daughter, yet I read through the book with keen interest. It seems to me very well researched, balanced and low on sensationalism. I would have probably wanted to hear Svetlana’s voice more often, but only some of the letters and very few fragments of her books are quoted. ...more
Interesting and well written portrayals of Delbruck and Gamov- only 'ordinary geniuses'- as Segre playfully calls them, yet far from ordinary scientisInteresting and well written portrayals of Delbruck and Gamov- only 'ordinary geniuses'- as Segre playfully calls them, yet far from ordinary scientists and human beings. Max Delbruck is best known for his work on macrophages (how bacteria become resistant to viruses through mutation) which paved the road for genetics and genetic code discovery, and for which he got the Nobel prize in Physiology and Medicine. Gamov is a flamboyant Russian physicist who is the father of the Big Bang theory. Both of them were proteges of Niels Bohr, knew each other and lived roughly at the same time. Both came from countries that became oppressive for freethinking scientists in the thirties of the twentieth century and both of them found asylum in the States during the Second World War. They both had the audacity to propose extraordinary theses and spur research that would open new areas in science and then abandon it when they were becoming too comfortable in it and start to work in completely different fields.
3.5/5...more
This novel is written by a physician about another physician alive almost two centuries ago and deals with an interesting ethical and moral dilemma. IThis novel is written by a physician about another physician alive almost two centuries ago and deals with an interesting ethical and moral dilemma. It’s based a on a real life story of doctor Beaumont and, by today’s standards, his ethically questionable experimentation on a young man whose life he saved. In 1822 Dr. William Beaumont, an assistant surgeon in the American army stationed on Mackinac Island on Lake Huron, Michigan, found himself called to an accident in which a young French Canadian voyageur, Alexis St. Martin, took a full blast from an accidental discharge from a gun at a very close proximity. The wound involved both lungs and stomach, was big and complicated and there was little hope that the young man would survive. Beaumont saved the young trapper’s life but as the wound was healing it became a big fistula into his stomach. Beaumont then, instead of surgically closing it, saw it as a research opportunity and in time became obsessed with probing it and studying digestion through it. The procedure went on for years and had reluctant acquiesce from Alexis who was first dependent on the surgical care of the wound, and then on financial support from Beaumont. As to the pain inflicted by the procedure, we are told that it wasn’t so much the pain as the discomfort and the feeling of nausea and faintness that the young man was experiencing.
By modern ethical and moral standards what Beaumont did is very questionable, even if what propelled him forward was the need for serving humanity as much as the thirst for his own fame. To judge him by our own standards alone would be anachronistic, though. We know from the book that his contemporaries were divided in the appraisal of his efforts- some condemned it, some praised it and found it highly commendable. What real value it has had in furthering our knowledge of digestion the book doesn’t say. My impression is that it remained obscure and not many scientists got acquainted with it. Beaumont, being no scientist, did not conduct his research according to any strict research standards either. As to fistulas, Pavlov, to whom we owe Pavlov’s ‘conditioned reflex’, surgically made fistulas in dogs’ cheeks and stomachs to collect their saliva and gastric acid and study digestion. At least Alexis’ fistula was accidental.
Both of them and countless others used live subjects for experimentation to further medical knowledge. As Better Angels of Our Nature by Pinker informs us the ethical and moral standards have changed over the ages and are still changing in the direction of progress and minimization of pain, humility and towards providing informed consent. And, that’s a great development and one that we hopefully won’t veer from.
The book is quite engrossing and well written to boot. Reminiscent a bit of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks in its subject matter. ...more
It’s a very interesting book. I would say that Schiff's approach to Cleopatra was not only feminist, but also, and possibly foremost, critical. She diIt’s a very interesting book. I would say that Schiff's approach to Cleopatra was not only feminist, but also, and possibly foremost, critical. She did not take historians' accounts on their face value; she vigilantly evaluated everything they said, and provided her own commentary. Her images of Cleopatra, Cesar and Mark Anthony are fascinating, and the portrayal of Egyptian, Roman and Middle Eastern society quite eye opening. 4.5/5...more
It's an interesting small book. Memories of a friend. The author of this book appears in the third part of the Millenium Trilogy as a fictional owner It's an interesting small book. Memories of a friend. The author of this book appears in the third part of the Millenium Trilogy as a fictional owner and publisher of Millennium friendly magazine on immigrant and racist issues. Which he turns out to be in reality as well, and a long term Larsson's friend. The book is not really a biography, it's an expanded (into 140 pages) eulogy. It shows Larsson as a tireless champion for the disadvantaged- immigrants, women, and an anti-racist activist; never sleeping, completely dedicated to his cause, chain-smoking and endless coffee drinking, and with some characteristics of both Bloomkvist and Salander. ...more
This is an excellent and very thorough biography of Che Guevara, very well put into the context of the world politics of the time. It is a huge book aThis is an excellent and very thorough biography of Che Guevara, very well put into the context of the world politics of the time. It is a huge book and you spend a lot of time with it, but in the end you can’t help admiring this intellectual of iron convictions and unbelievable integrity even if you don’t entirely share his views. Highly recommended. ...more
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