Overview

Ernest Starling (1866-1927) was a pre-eminent figure in the golden age of British Physiology. His name is usually associated with his Law of the Heart, but his discovery of secretin (the first hormone) whose mode of action was explained) and his work on capillaries were more important contributions. He coined the word 'hormone' one hundred years ago. His analysis of capillary function demonstrated that equal and opposite forces move across the capillary wall - an outward (hydrostatic) force and an inward (osmotic) force derived from plasma proteins. Starling was much more than a gifted scientist. He held passionate views on many subjects - education, London University, Germany, the British Government, etc. - and was not slow to voice them. Time has shown most of his views to be right, but their publication may have hampered his worldly success. Working on defence against poison gas during WWI, he crossed swords with the war office. After resigning his commission as colonel, he became chairman of the committee supervising British nutrition and successfully introduced food rationing. Prodigiously energetic, he also designed and developed the medical school at University College.; His life was bursting at the seams, and this biography captures is exhilarating flavour, interweaving details of his research and politics with his family, mountaineering, music and ballroom dancing.

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9786611049942

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