Perspectives in Biology and Medicine

Man in the Cold. American Lecture Series. By J. LeBlanc. Springfield, 111.: Charles C Thomas, 1975. Pp. 208. $15.50. This volume might well be considered to be the third of a series on "Man and Cold," although none of the three books are intentionally related. The first was Physiology of Heat Regulation by Newburgh, published in 1949. The second, by Burton and Edholm, was entitled Man in a Cold Environment, and appeared in 1955. All three summarize the then current knowledge of the relationship of lowered temperatures to the physiology of human subjects. All three are widely inclusive, presenting evidence gathered from animals and man from widely scattered areas of the earth. The tables of contents of all three volumes show striking similarity. They all deal with adaption to climate, responses to locally applied cold, regulation of bodily temperature, heat loss, heat production, metabolic changes, use of clothing, and vascular responses to cold. LeBlanc has in addition, a chapter on endocrines and cold. Even in early history, cold has been essentially disagreeable for man, so much so that modalities for overcoming cold have not only been sought assiduously, but even worshipped, as, for example, the proclaiming of gods of sun and of fire in many cultures. Occasionally some physician or other astute observer recommended the use of cold for palliation or cure of wounds or other pain-producing problems. Hippocrates and Galen were among these. In the first half of this century Adolph was prominent in elucidating the physiological changes that occur during hypothermia. About the time when his experimental results were becoming known, clinical applications were made in several places in attempts to stop growth of malignant tissues. Although fruitless for treatment of malignancies, these situations did show that human subjects could tolerate temperatures of 30°-32° F, for a week, in spite of some respiratory and circulatory alterations that occurred. These alterations gave impetus to the further study of man in cold environments, which is the chief consideration of LeBlanc's book. Excellent reviews have appeared in recent years which deal with moderate and deep induced hypothermia of man for clinical purposes. These essentially deal with man as he is rendered Poikilothermie. Swan's article [1] presents the current status of the matter with an interesting historical background and succinctly includes ideas for profitable future use of cold for therapy of clinical abnormalities . The paper by Black, Van Devanter, and Cohen [2] is a well-written review of research done in the field between 1970 and 1975, again with clinical emphasis. LeBlanc's scientific curiosity has been aided by improved methods of mensuration and by development of easier and faster transportation. The author took advantage of these to make his own contributions to the field, which have largely been concerned with metabolism and physiology of individuals that became exposed to lower-than-normal temperatures and who consequently became mildly hypothermic but were still homeothermic in response. LeBlanc seized opportunities to observe responses of men who had lived in temperate climates and were then transferred to cold locations. He was able to use them as their own control subjects, and also to compare their activities with those of the natives in the colder regions who were subjected to the same stimuli. Important Perspectives in Biology and Medicine · Autumn 1976 161 features which helped LeBlanc make his work valuable were the availability and purity of relatively new pharmacological agents, including TSH, catecholamines, and beta-blocking agents. The present work will help the reader comprehend what is presently known concerning man's response to cold. references 1.Henry Swan. Surgery, 73:736, 1973. 2.P. R. Black, S. Van Devanter, and L. H. Cohen. J. Surg. Res., 20:49, 1976. Robert W. Virtue 727 Birch Street Denver, Colorado 80220 The New Humanism. By Max Hamburgh. New York: Philosophical Library, 1975. Pp. 195. $9.75. One of the functions of a teacher is to show the neophyte where to get information—that is, to lead him to water. Hamburgh also makes him drink if he reads the book. How? By copious quotations from the literature—paragraphs, sometimes pages. These extracts are well chosen, considering the subject, such as those from Tonybee...