{"product_id":"the-medicine-cabinet-of-curiosities-9780805088540","title":"The Medicine Cabinet of Curiosities","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDelightful doses of medical miscellany about wacky doctors and their curious patients, from their smallest bones (the stapes) to their heaviest organs (the liver)\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn this addictive collection of trivia, Nicholas Bakalar, the \"Vital Signs\" columnist for \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, spoons out the things you never realized you really want to know about your body and your health. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBakalar shares the wonders of medicine, from medical firsts (in 1667, the first survivor of a blood transfusion received sheep's blood) to medical onlys (rabies is the only infectious disease that is 100 percent curable when treated and 100 percent fatal if not). He takes a tour of diseases that belong in horror movies: liquefying organs, flesh-eating bacteria, mushrooms sprouting in the throat. He notes remarkable remedies, such as dark chocolate, which can stand in for blood-pressure pills. And he dissects the chemistry of the human body (including the 0.0000000000000015259 percent that is radium). \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWith a specialist's attention to the funny bone as well as the gray matter, Bakalar's \u003ci\u003eThe Medicine Cabinet of Curiosities \u003c\/i\u003etickles the curiosity of both the healthy and the hypochondriac, following Voltaire's dictum that \"the art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNicholas Bakalar, \u003c\/b\u003e a longtime \"Vital Signs\" columnist for \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, is the author or co-author of many books, including \u003ci\u003eWhere the Germs Are: A Scientific Safari\u003c\/i\u003e. He has also reported on health and science news for \u003ci\u003eDiscover \u003c\/i\u003emagazine, \u003ci\u003eWildlife Conservation\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eNational Geographic News\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in New York City.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"St. Martin's Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50845350887698,"sku":"9780805088540","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_a54c3224-4df8-48a6-b69d-cc99d8a8403f.jpg?v=1737349060","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-medicine-cabinet-of-curiosities-9780805088540","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}