Golding Bird
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Golding Bird (9 December 1814 – 27 October 1854) was a British
medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
and a Fellow of the
Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...
. He became a great authority on
kidney disease Kidney disease, or renal disease, technically referred to as nephropathy, is damage to or disease of a kidney. Nephritis is an inflammatory kidney disease and has several types according to the location of the inflammation. Inflammation can ...
s and published a comprehensive paper on urinary deposits in 1844. He was also notable for his work in related sciences, especially the medical uses of electricity and
electrochemistry Electrochemistry is the branch of physical chemistry concerned with the relationship between electrical potential difference, as a measurable and quantitative phenomenon, and identifiable chemical change, with the potential difference as an outco ...
. From 1836, he lectured at
Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...
, a well-known teaching hospital in London and now part of
King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...
, and published a popular textbook on science for medical students called ''Elements of Natural Philosophy''. Having developed an interest in chemistry while still a child, largely through self-study, Bird was far enough advanced to deliver lectures to his fellow pupils at school. He later applied this knowledge to medicine and did much research on the chemistry of urine and of
kidney stones Kidney stone disease, also known as nephrolithiasis or urolithiasis, is a crystallopathy where a solid piece of material (kidney stone) develops in the urinary tract. Kidney stones typically form in the kidney and leave the body in the urine s ...
. In 1842, he was the first to describe oxaluria, a condition which leads to the formation of a particular kind of stone. Bird, who was a member of the
London Electrical Society The London Electrical Society was established in 1837 to enable amateur electricians to meet and share their interests in “experimental investigation of Electrical Science in all its various branches”. Although it initially flourished the societ ...
, was innovative in the field of the medical use of electricity, designing much of his own equipment. In his time, electrical treatment had acquired a bad name in the medical profession through its widespread use by
quack Quack, The Quack or Quacks may refer to: People * Quack Davis, American baseball player * Hendrick Peter Godfried Quack (1834–1917), Dutch economist and historian * Joachim Friedrich Quack (born 1966), German Egyptologist * Johannes Quack (b ...
practitioners. Bird made efforts to oppose this quackery, and was instrumental in bringing medical
electrotherapy Electrotherapy is the use of electrical energy as a medical treatment. In medicine, the term ''electrotherapy'' can apply to a variety of treatments, including the use of electrical devices such as deep brain stimulators for neurological dise ...
into the mainstream. He was quick to adopt new instruments of all kinds; he invented a new variant of the
Daniell cell The Daniell cell is a type of electrochemical cell invented in 1836 by John Frederic Daniell, a British chemist and meteorologist, and consists of a copper pot filled with a copper (II) sulfate solution, in which is immersed an unglazed earthenw ...
in 1837 and made important discoveries in
electrometallurgy Electrometallurgy is a method in metallurgy that uses electrical energy to produce metals by electrolysis. It is usually the last stage in metal production and is therefore preceded by pyrometallurgical or hydrometallurgical operations. The electr ...
with it. He was not only innovative in the electrical field, but he also designed a flexible stethoscope, and in 1840 published the first description of such an instrument. A devout Christian, Bird believed Bible study and prayer were just as important to medical students as their academic studies. He endeavoured to promote Christianity among medical students and encouraged other professionals to do likewise. To this end, Bird was responsible for the founding of the Christian Medical Association, although it did not become active until after his death. Bird had lifelong poor health and died at the age of 39.


Life and career

Bird was born in
Downham, Norfolk Downham Market, sometimes simply referred to as Downham, is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It lies on the edge of the Fens, on the River Great Ouse, approximately 11 miles south of King's Lynn, 39 miles west of Norwich and 30 ...
, England, on 9 December 1814. His father (also named Golding Bird) had been an officer in the
Inland Revenue The Inland Revenue was, until April 2005, a department of the British Government responsible for the collection of direct taxation, including income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, corporation t ...
in Ireland, and his mother, Marrianne, was Irish. He was precocious and ambitious, but childhood
rheumatic fever Rheumatic fever (RF) is an inflammatory disease that can involve the heart, joints, skin, and brain. The disease typically develops two to four weeks after a streptococcal throat infection. Signs and symptoms include fever, multiple painful jo ...
and
endocarditis Endocarditis is an inflammation of the inner layer of the heart, the endocardium. It usually involves the heart valves. Other structures that may be involved include the interventricular septum, the chordae tendineae, the mural endocardium, or the ...
left him with poor posture and lifelong frail health. He received a
classical education Classical education may refer to: *''Modern'', educational practices and educational movements: **An education in the Classics, especially in Ancient Greek and Latin **Classical education movement, based on the trivium (grammar, logic, rhetoric) an ...
when he was sent with his brother Frederic to stay with a clergyman in Wallingford, where he developed a lifelong habit of self-study. From the age of 12, he was educated in London, at a private school that did not promote science and provided only a classical education. Bird, who seems to have been far ahead of his teachers in science, gave lectures in chemistry and botany to his fellow pupils. He had four younger siblings, of whom his brother Frederic also became a physician and published on botany. In 1829, when he was 14, Bird left school to serve an
apprenticeship Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a Tradesman, trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners ...
with the
apothecary ''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...
William Pretty in Burton Crescent, London. He completed it in 1833 and was licensed to practise by the
Worshipful Society of Apothecaries The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London is one of the livery companies of the City of London. It is one of the largest livery companies (with over 1,600 members in 2012) and ranks 58th in their order of precedence. The society is a m ...
at Apothecaries' Hall in 1836. He received this licence without examination because of the reputation he had gained as a student at Guy's, the London teaching hospital where he had become a medical student in 1832 while still working at his apprenticeship. At Guy's he was influenced by
Thomas Addison Thomas J Addison (April 179329 June 1860) was an English physician, chef, and scientist. He is traditionally regarded as one of the "great men" of Guy's Hospital in London. Among other pathologies, he discovered Addison's disease (a degenerati ...
, who recognised his talents early on. Bird was an ambitious and very capable student. Early in his career he became a Fellow of the Senior Physical Society, for which a thesis was required. He received prizes for medicine,
obstetrics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...
, and
ophthalmic surgery Eye surgery, also known as ophthalmic or ocular surgery, is surgery performed on the eye or its adnexa, by an ophthalmologist or sometimes, an optometrist. Eye surgery is synonymous with ophthalmology. The eye is a very fragile organ, and requ ...
at Guy's and the silver medal for botany at Apothecaries' Hall. Around 1839 to 1840, he worked on breast disease at Guy's as an assistant to Sir
Astley Cooper Sir Astley Paston Cooper, 1st Baronet (23 August 176812 February 1841) was a British surgeon and anatomist, who made contributions to otology, vascular surgery, the anatomy and pathology of the mammary glands and testicles, and the patholog ...
. Bird graduated from the
University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...
with an MD in 1838 and an MA in 1840 while continuing to work in London. St Andrews required no residence or examination for the MD. Bird obtained his degree by submitting testimonials from qualified colleagues, which was common practice at the time. Once qualified in 1838, at the age of 23, he entered
general practice General practice is the name given in various nations, such as the United Kingdom, India, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa to the services provided by general practitioners. In some nations, such as the US, similar services may be describe ...
with a surgery at 44 Seymour Street,
Euston Square Euston Square is a large square in the London Borough of Camden in Central London. It lies on Euston Road, and Euston railway station and Euston bus station are on its northernmost side. Although “Euston Square” strictly refers to the squ ...
, London, but was unsuccessful at first because of his youth. In the same year, however, he became physician to the
Finsbury Dispensary The Finsbury Dispensary, more fully the Finsbury Dispensary for Administering Advice and Medicines to the Poor, was a charitable dispensary giving medical treatment to poor people in Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London. It was founded i ...
, a post he held for five years. By 1842, he had an income of £1000 a year from his private practice. Adjusted for inflation, this amounts to a spending power of about £ now. At the end of his career, his income was just under £6000. He became a licentiate of the
Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...
in 1840, and a
fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...
in 1845. Bird lectured on
natural philosophy Natural philosophy or philosophy of nature (from Latin ''philosophia naturalis'') is the philosophical study of physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior throu ...
,
medical botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...
and urinary pathology from 1836 to 1853 at Guy's. He lectured on '' materia medica'' at Guy's from 1843 to 1853 and at the Royal College of Physicians from 1847 to 1849. He also lectured at the Aldersgate School of Medicine. Throughout his career, he published extensively, not only on medical matters, but also on electrical science and chemistry. Bird became the first head of the electricity and
galvanism Galvanism is a term invented by the late 18th-century physicist and chemist Alessandro Volta to refer to the generation of electric current by chemical action. The term also came to refer to the discoveries of its namesake, Luigi Galvani, specif ...
department at Guy's in 1836, under the supervision of Addison, since Bird did not graduate until 1838. In 1843, he was appointed assistant physician at Guy's, a position for which he had lobbied hard, and in October that year he was put in charge of the children's
outpatient A patient is any recipient of health care services that are performed by healthcare professionals. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, nurse, optometrist, dentist, veterinarian, or other health care ...
s ward. Like his electrotherapy patients, the children were largely
poor relief In English and British history, poor relief refers to government and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty. Over the centuries, various authorities have needed to decide whose poverty deserves relief and also who should bear the cost of hel ...
cases who could not afford to pay for medical treatment and were much used for the training of medical students. It was generally accepted at this time that poor relief cases could be used for experimental treatment, and their permission was not required. Bird published in the hospital journal a series of reports on childhood diseases, based on case studies from this work. Marrying Mary Ann Brett in 1842, Bird moved from his family home at 22 Wilmington Square,
Clerkenwell Clerkenwell () is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an ancient parish from the mediaeval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The well after which it was named was redisco ...
, to 19 Myddelton Square. They had two daughters and three sons, the second of whom,
Cuthbert Hilton Golding-Bird Cuthbert Hilton Golding-Bird (1848–1939) was an English surgeon at Guy's Hospital, fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, and lecturer to medical students. He was skilled in histology, invented a dilator for use in tracheotomy, tracheotomies ...
(1848–1939), became a notable surgeon.Payne and McConnell"Golding-Bird, Cuthbert Hilton (1848–1939)"
''Plarr's Lives of the Fellows Online'', retrieved an

10 March 2012.
Another son, Percival Golding-Bird, became a priest in Rotherhithe, Bird was a Fellow of the
Linnaean Society The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...
(elected 1836), the Geological Society (elected 1836) and the
Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
(elected 1846). He joined the
Pathological Society of London The Pathological Society of London was founded in 1846 for the "cultivation and promotion of Pathology by the exhibition and description of specimens, drawings, microscopic preparations, casts or models of morbid parts." Its first meeting was he ...
(which eventually merged into the
Royal Society of Medicine The Royal Society of Medicine (RSM) is a medical society in the United Kingdom, headquartered in London. History The Society was established in 1805 as Medical and Chirurgical Society of London, meeting in two rooms in barristers’ chambers ...
) when it was formed in 1846. He also belonged to the
London Electrical Society The London Electrical Society was established in 1837 to enable amateur electricians to meet and share their interests in “experimental investigation of Electrical Science in all its various branches”. Although it initially flourished the societ ...
founded by
William Sturgeon William Sturgeon (22 May 1783 – 4 December 1850) was an English physicist and inventor who made the first electromagnets, and invented the first practical British electric motor. Early life Sturgeon was born on 22 May 1783 in Whittington, ...
and others. This body was very unlike the elite scholarly institutions; it was more like a
craft guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...
with a penchant for spectacular demonstrations. Nevertheless, it had some notable members, and new machines and apparatus were regularly discussed and demonstrated. Bird was also a
Freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
from 1841 and was the
Worshipful Master In Craft Freemasonry, sometimes known as Blue Lodge Freemasonry, every Masonic lodge elects or appoints Masonic lodge officers to execute the necessary functions of the lodge's life and work. The precise list of such offices may vary between the ...
of the St Paul's lodge in 1850. He left the Freemasons in 1853. Bird was vain, with a tendency to self-promotion, and his driving ambition occasionally led him into conflict with others. He was involved in a number of very public disputes in contemporary medical journals, including the dispute with the Pulvermacher Company and a dispute over the development of the stethoscope. However, he was said to give his patients his undivided attention and a complete commitment to their welfare. He was a fine speaker, a good lecturer and an eloquent debater. Diagnosed with heart disease by his brother in 1848 or 1849, Bird was forced to stop work. By 1850, however, he was again working as hard as ever and had extended his practice so much that he needed to move to a larger house in Russell Square. But in 1851, acute
rheumatism Rheumatism or rheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the joints or connective tissue. Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including art ...
led Bird to take an extended holiday with his wife in
Tenby Tenby ( cy, Dinbych-y-pysgod, lit=fortlet of the fish) is both a walled seaside town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, on the western side of Carmarthen Bay, and a local government community. Notable features include of sandy beaches and the Pembroke ...
, where he pursued investigations in botany, marine fauna and cave life as pastimes. These long summer breaks were repeated in 1852 and 1853 at
Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignton ...
and Tenby. Even on holiday, his fame caused him to receive many requests for consultations. In 1853, he purchased an estate, St Cuthbert, for his retirement in
Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...
, but it needed some work, and he could not leave London until June 1854. Meanwhile, he continued to see patients, but only in his house, despite seriously deteriorating health. He died on 27 October 1854 at St Cuthbert from a
urinary tract infection A urinary tract infection (UTI) is an infection that affects part of the urinary tract. When it affects the lower urinary tract it is known as a bladder infection (cystitis) and when it affects the upper urinary tract it is known as a kidney ...
and suffering from
kidney stone Kidney stone disease, also known as nephrolithiasis or urolithiasis, is a crystallopathy where a solid piece of material (kidney stone) develops in the urinary tract. Kidney stones typically form in the kidney and leave the body in the urine s ...
s. His early death at 39 may have been due to a combination of lifelong frail health and overwork, which Bird himself knew to be destroying him. He is buried in Woodbury Park Cemetery, Tunbridge Wells. After his death, Mary instituted the Golding Bird Gold Medal and Scholarship for sanitary science, later named the Golding Bird Gold Medal and Scholarship for bacteriology, which was awarded annually at Guy's teaching hospital. The prize was instituted in 1887 and was still being awarded in 1983, although it is no longer a current prize. From 1934 onwards, a Golding Bird Gold Medal and Scholarship was also awarded for obstetrics and
gynaecology Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined are ...
. Among the notable recipients of the medal were Nathaniel Ham (1896), Alfred Salter (1897), Russell Brock (1926), John Beale (1945), and
D. Bernard Amos Dennis Bernard Amos (April 16, 1923 – May 15, 2003) was a Great Britain, British born United States, American immunologist. National Academies Press called Amos "one of the most distinguished scientists of the genetics of individuality of the twen ...
(''circa'' 1947–1951).


Collateral sciences

The collateral sciences are those sciences that have an important role in medicine but do not form part of medicine themselves, especially physics, chemistry, and botany (because botany is a rich source of drugs and poisons). Until the end of the first half of the 19th century, chemical analysis was rarely used in medical diagnosis – there was even hostility to the idea in some quarters. Most of the work in this area at that time was carried out by researchers associated with Guy's. By the time Golding Bird was a medical student at Guy's, the hospital already had a tradition of studying physics and chemistry as they related to medicine. Bird followed this tradition and was particularly influenced by the work of
William Prout William Prout FRS (; 15 January 1785 – 9 April 1850) was an English chemist, physician, and natural theologian. He is remembered today mainly for what is called Prout's hypothesis. Biography Prout was born in Horton, Gloucestershire in 1 ...
, an expert in chemical physiology. Bird became well known for his knowledge of chemistry. An early example dates from 1832, when he commented on a paper on the
copper sulphate Copper sulfate may refer to: * Copper(II) sulfate, CuSO4, a common compound used as a fungicide and herbicide * Copper(I) sulfate Copper(I) sulfate, also known as cuprous sulfate, is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula Cu2 SO4. I ...
test for
arsenic poisoning Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, bu ...
, delivered by his future brother-in-law R. H. Brett to the Pupils' Physical Society. Bird criticised the test's positive result when a green precipitate is formed, claiming the test was inconclusive because precipitates other than
copper arsenite Scheele's Green, also called Schloss Green, is chemically a cupric hydrogen arsenite (also called copper arsenite or acidic copper arsenite), . It is chemically related to Paris Green. Scheele's Green was invented in 1775 by Carl Wilhelm Sche ...
can produce the same green colour. Bird did not limit himself to challenging his future brother-in-law. In 1834, Bird and Brett published a paper on the analysis of blood serum and urine, in which they argued against some work by Prout. Prout had said (in 1819) that the pink sediment in urine was due to the presence of ammonium purpurate, but Bird's tests failed to verify this. Though Bird was still only a student and Prout held great authority, Prout felt it necessary to reply to the challenge. In 1843, Bird tried to identify the pink compound; he failed, but was convinced it was a new chemical and gave it the name ''purpurine''. This name did not stick, however, and the compound became known as uroerythrin from the work of
Franz Simon Sir Francis Simon (2 July 1893 – 31 October 1956), was a German and later British physical chemist and physicist who devised the gaseous diffusion method, and confirmed its feasibility, of separating the isotope Uranium-235 and thus made a ...
. Its structure was finally identified only in 1975. Around 1839, recognising Bird's abilities in chemistry, Astley Cooper asked him to contribute to his book on breast disease. Bird wrote a piece on the chemistry of milk, and the book was published in 1840. Although the book is primarily about human anatomy, it includes a chapter on
comparative anatomy Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy of different species. It is closely related to evolutionary biology and phylogeny (the evolution of species). The science began in the classical era, continuing in t ...
covering several species, for which Bird carried out an analysis of dog and porpoise milk. Also in 1839, Bird published his own ''Elements of Natural Philosophy'', a textbook on physics for medical students. Taking the view that existing texts were too mathematical for medical students, Bird avoided such material in favour of clear explanations. The book proved popular and remained in print for 30 years, although some of its mathematical shortcomings were made good in the fourth edition by Charles Brooke.


Electricity

In 1836, Bird was put in charge of the newly formed department of electricity and galvanism under the supervision of Addison. While this was not the first hospital to employ electrotherapy, it was still considered very experimental. Previous hospital uses had either been short-lived or based on the whim of a single surgeon, such as John Birch at
St Thomas' Hospital St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS teaching hospital in Central London, England. It is one of the institutions that compose the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. Administratively part of the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foun ...
. At Guy's, the treatment was part of the hospital system and became well known to the public, so much so that Guy's was parodied for its use of electricity in the ''New Frankenstein'' satirical magazine. In his electrotherapy, Bird used both
electrochemical Electrochemistry is the branch of physical chemistry concerned with the relationship between electrical potential difference, as a measurable and quantitative phenomenon, and identifiable chemical change, with the potential difference as an outc ...
and
electrostatic Electrostatics is a branch of physics that studies electric charges at rest (static electricity). Since classical times, it has been known that some materials, such as amber, attract lightweight particles after rubbing. The Greek word for amber ...
machines (and later also
electromagnetic induction Electromagnetic or magnetic induction is the production of an electromotive force (emf) across an electrical conductor in a changing magnetic field. Michael Faraday is generally credited with the discovery of induction in 1831, and James Clerk ...
machines) to treat a very wide range of conditions, such as some forms of
chorea Chorea (or choreia, occasionally) is an abnormal involuntary movement disorder, one of a group of neurological disorders called dyskinesias. The term ''chorea'' is derived from the grc, χορεία ("dance"; see choreia), as the quick movem ...
. Treatments included peripheral nerve stimulation,
electrical muscle stimulation Electrical muscle stimulation (EMS), also known as neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) or electromyostimulation, is the elicitation of muscle contraction using electric impulses. EMS has received an increasing amount of attention in the ...
and
electric shock therapy Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a psychiatric treatment where a generalized seizure (without muscular convulsions) is electrically induced to manage refractory mental disorders.Rudorfer, MV, Henry, ME, Sackeim, HA (2003)"Electroconvulsive th ...
. Bird also used his invention, the electric moxa, to heal
skin ulcer An ulcer is a sore on the skin or a mucous membrane, accompanied by the disintegration of tissue. Ulcers can result in complete loss of the epidermis and often portions of the dermis and even subcutaneous fat. Ulcers are most common on the skin of ...
s.


Electrical equipment

It was already clear from the work of
Michael Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic inducti ...
that electricity and galvanism were essentially the same. Bird realised this, but continued to divide his apparatus into electrical machines, which (according to him) delivered a high voltage at low current, and galvanic apparatus, which delivered a high current at low voltage. The galvanic equipment available to Bird included
electrochemical cell An electrochemical cell is a device capable of either generating electrical energy from chemical reactions or using electrical energy to cause chemical reactions. The electrochemical cells which generate an electric current are called voltaic o ...
s such as the
voltaic pile upright=1.2, Schematic diagram of a copper–zinc voltaic pile. The copper and zinc discs were separated by cardboard or felt spacers soaked in salt water (the electrolyte). Volta's original piles contained an additional zinc disk at the bottom, ...
and the
Daniell cell The Daniell cell is a type of electrochemical cell invented in 1836 by John Frederic Daniell, a British chemist and meteorologist, and consists of a copper pot filled with a copper (II) sulfate solution, in which is immersed an unglazed earthenw ...
, a variant of which Bird devised himself. Also part of the standard equipment were
induction coil An induction coil or "spark coil" (archaically known as an inductorium or Ruhmkorff coil after Heinrich Rühmkorff) is a type of electrical transformer used to produce high-voltage pulses from a low-voltage direct current (DC) supply. p.98 To ...
s which, together with an interrupter circuit, were used with one of the electrochemical cells to deliver an electric shock. The electrical (as opposed to galvanic) machines then available were friction-operated
electrostatic generator An electrostatic generator, or electrostatic machine, is an electrical generator that produces ''static electricity'', or electricity at high voltage and low continuous current. The knowledge of static electricity dates back to the earliest ci ...
s consisting of a rotating glass disc or cylinder on which silk flaps were allowed to drag as the glass rotated. These machines had to be hand-turned during treatment, but it was possible to store small amounts of
static electricity Static electricity is an imbalance of electric charges within or on the surface of a material or between materials. The charge remains until it is able to move away by means of an electric current or electrical discharge. Static electricity is na ...
in
Leyden jar A Leyden jar (or Leiden jar, or archaically, sometimes Kleistian jar) is an electrical component that stores a high-voltage electric charge (from an external source) between electrical conductors on the inside and outside of a glass jar. It typi ...
s for later use. By 1849, generators based on
Faraday's law of induction Faraday's law of induction (briefly, Faraday's law) is a basic law of electromagnetism predicting how a magnetic field will interact with an electric circuit to produce an electromotive force (emf)—a phenomenon known as electromagnetic inducti ...
had become advanced enough to replace both types of machines, and Bird was recommending them in his lectures. Galvanic cells suffered from the inconvenience of having to deal with the
electrolyte An electrolyte is a medium containing ions that is electrically conducting through the movement of those ions, but not conducting electrons. This includes most soluble salts, acids, and bases dissolved in a polar solvent, such as water. Upon dis ...
acids in the surgery and the possibility of spillages; electrostatic generators required a great deal of skill and attention to keep them working successfully. Electromagnetic machines, on the other hand, have neither of these drawbacks; the only criticism levelled by Bird was that the cheaper machines could only deliver an
alternating current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in whic ...
. For medical use, particularly when treating a problem with nerves, a unidirectional current of a particular polarity was often needed, requiring the machine to have split rings or similar mechanisms. However, Bird considered alternating current machines suitable for cases of amenorrhœa."On the therapeutic employment of electricity"
''British and Foreign Medico-chirurgical Review'', vol. 3, no. 6, pp. 373–387, April 1849.
The required direction of current depended on the direction in which electric current was thought to flow in nerves in the human or animal body. For motor functions, for instance, the flow was taken to be from the centre towards the muscles at the extremities, so artificial electrical stimulation needed to be in the same direction. For sensory nerves, the opposite applied: flow was from the extremity to the centre, and the positive electrode would be applied to the extremity. This principle was demonstrated by Bird in an experiment with a living frog. A supply of frogs was usually on hand, as they were used in the frog galvanoscope. The electromagnetic
galvanometer A galvanometer is an electromechanical measuring instrument for electric current. Early galvanometers were uncalibrated, but improved versions, called ammeters, were calibrated and could measure the flow of current more precisely. A galvanom ...
was available at the time, but frogs' legs were still used by Bird because of their much greater sensitivity to small currents. In the experiment, the frog's leg was almost completely severed from its body, leaving only the sciatic nerve connected, and electric current was then applied from the body to the leg. Convulsions of the leg were seen when the muscle was stimulated. Reversing the current, however, produced no movement of the muscle, merely croaks of pain from the frog. In his lectures, Bird describes many experiments with a similar aim on human sensory organs. In one experiment by Grapengiesser, for instance, electric current is passed through the subject's head from ear to ear, causing a sound to be hallucinated. The ear connected to the positive terminal hears a louder sound than that connected to the negative. Bird designed his own
interrupter An interrupter in electrical engineering is a device used to interrupt the flow of a steady direct current for the purpose of converting a steady current into a changing one. Frequently, the interrupter is used in conjunction with an inductor (c ...
circuit for delivering shocks to patients from a voltaic cell through an induction coil. Previously, the interrupter had been a mechanical device requiring the physician to turn a cog wheel or employ an assistant to do so. Bird wished to free his hands to apply the electricity more exactly to the required part of the patient. His interrupter worked automatically by magnetic induction at a reasonably fast rate.Golding Bird
"Observations on induced electric currents, with a description of a magnetic contact-breaker"
''Philosophical Magazine'', vol. 12, no. 71, pp. 18–22, January 1838.
The faster the interrupter switches, the more frequently an electric shock is delivered to the patient; the aim is to make the frequency as high as possible. Bird's interrupter had the medically disadvantageous feature that current was supplied in opposite directions during the make and break operations. Treatment often required the current to be supplied in one specified direction only. Bird produced a unidirectional interrupter using a mechanism now called split rings. This design suffered from the disadvantage that automatic operation was lost and the interrupter had once again to be hand-cranked. Nevertheless, this arrangement remained a cheaper option than electromagnetic generators for some time.


Treatments

Three classes of electrotherapy were in use. One was the electric bath, which consisted of sitting the patient on an insulated stool with glass legs and connecting the patient to one
electrode An electrode is an electrical conductor used to make contact with a nonmetallic part of a circuit (e.g. a semiconductor, an electrolyte, a vacuum or air). Electrodes are essential parts of batteries that can consist of a variety of materials de ...
, usually the positive one, of an electrostatic machine. The patient's skin became charged as if he or she were in a "bath of electricity". The second class of treatment could be performed while the patient was in the electric bath. This consisted of bringing a negative electrode close to the patient, usually near the spine, causing sparks to be produced between the electrode and the patient. Electrodes of various shapes were available for different medical purposes and places of application on the body. Treatment was applied in several sessions of around five minutes, often blistering the skin. The third class of treatment was electric shock therapy, in which an electric shock was delivered from a galvanic battery (later electromagnetic generators) via an induction coil to greatly increase the voltage. It was also possible to deliver electric shocks from the charge stored in a Leyden jar, but this was a much weaker shock. Electric stimulation treatment was used to treat nervous disorders where the nervous system was unable to stimulate a required glandular secretion or muscle activity. It had previously been successfully used to treat some forms of asthma. Bird used his apparatus to treat Sydenham's chorea (St Vitus's dance) and other forms of
spasm A spasm is a sudden involuntary contraction of a muscle, a group of muscles, or a hollow organ such as the bladder. A spasmodic muscle contraction may be caused by many medical conditions, including dystonia. Most commonly, it is a muscle c ...
, some forms of paralysis (although the treatment was of no use where nerves had been physically damaged),
opiate An opiate, in classical pharmacology, is a substance derived from opium. In more modern usage, the term ''opioid'' is used to designate all substances, both natural and synthetic, that bind to opioid receptors in the brain (including antagonis ...
overdose (since it kept the patient awake), bringing on
menstruation Menstruation (also known as a period, among other colloquial terms) is the regular discharge of blood and mucosal tissue from the inner lining of the uterus through the vagina. The menstrual cycle is characterized by the rise and fall of hor ...
where this had failed (
amenorrhoea Amenorrhea is the absence of a menstrual period in a woman of reproductive age. Physiological states of amenorrhoea are seen, most commonly, during pregnancy and lactation (breastfeeding). Outside the reproductive years, there is absence of mense ...
), and
hysteria Hysteria is a term used colloquially to mean ungovernable emotional excess and can refer to a temporary state of mind or emotion. In the nineteenth century, hysteria was considered a diagnosable physical illness in women. It is assumed that ...
, a supposed disease of women. Paralysed bladder function in young girls was attributed to the now archaic condition of hysteria. It was treated with the application of a strong electric current between the
sacrum The sacrum (plural: ''sacra'' or ''sacrums''), in human anatomy, is a large, triangular bone at the base of the spine that forms by the fusing of the sacral vertebrae (S1S5) between ages 18 and 30. The sacrum situates at the upper, back part ...
and the pubis. Although the treatment worked, in that it caused the bladder to empty, Bird suspected in many cases it did so more through fear and pain than any therapeutic property of electricity. Electric shock treatment had become fashionable among the public, but often was not favoured by physicians except as a last resort. Its popularity led to many inappropriate treatments, and fraudulent practitioners were widespread. Quack practitioners claimed the treatment as a cure for almost anything, regardless of its effectiveness, and made large sums of money from it. Bird, however, continued to stand by the treatment when properly administered. He convinced an initially sceptical Addison of its merits, and the first publication (in 1837) describing the work of the electrifying unit was authored by Addison, not Bird, although Bird is clearly, and rightly, credited by Addison. Having the paper authored by Addison did a great deal to gain acceptability in a still suspicious medical fraternity. Addison held great authority, whereas Bird at this stage was unknown. Bird's 1841 paper in ''Guy's Hospital Reports'' contained an impressively long list of successful case studies. In 1847 he brought the subject fully into the realm of ''materia medica'' when he delivered the annual lecture to the Royal College of Physicians on this subject. He spoke out tirelessly against the numerous quack practitioners, in one case exposing railway telegraph operators who were claiming to be medical electricians, although they had no medical training at all. In this way, Bird was largely responsible for the rehabilitation of electrical treatment among medical practitioners. His work, with Addison's support, together with the increasing ease of using the machines as the technology progressed, brought the treatment into wider use in the medical profession.


Electric moxa

Bird invented the ''electric moxa'' in 1843. The name is a reference to the
acupuncture Acupuncture is a form of alternative medicine and a component of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in which thin needles are inserted into the body. Acupuncture is a pseudoscience; the theories and practices of TCM are not based on scientifi ...
technique of
moxibustion Moxibustion () is a traditional Chinese medicine therapy which consists of burning dried mugwort ('' wikt:moxa'') on particular points on the body. It plays an important role in the traditional medical systems of China, Japan, Korea, Vietna ...
and was probably influenced by the introduction of
electroacupuncture Electroacupuncture is a form of acupuncture where a small electric current is passed between pairs of acupuncture needles. According to some acupuncturists, this practice augments the use of regular acupuncture, can restore health and well-bei ...
, in which the needles are augmented by an electric current, two decades earlier in France. The electric moxa, however, was not intended for acupuncture. It was used to produce a suppurating sore on the skin of the patient to treat some conditions of inflammation and congestion by the technique of counter-irritation. The sore had previously been created by much more painful means, such as
cautery Cauterization (or cauterisation, or cautery) is a medical practice or technique of burning a part of a body to remove or close off a part of it. It destroys some tissue in an attempt to mitigate bleeding and damage, remove an undesired growth, or ...
or even burning charcoal. Bird's design was based on a modification of an existing instrument for the local electrical treatment of hemiplegia, and consisted of a silver electrode and a zinc electrode connected by copper wire. Two small blisters were produced on the skin, to which the two electrodes were then connected and held in place for a few days. Electricity was generated by electrolytic action with body fluids. The blister under the silver electrode healed, but the one under the zinc electrode produced the required suppurating sore. The healing of the blister under the silver electrode was of no importance for a counter-irritation procedure, but it suggested to Bird that the electric moxa might be used for treating obstinate
leg ulcer Venous ulcer is defined by the American Venous Forum as "a full-thickness defect of skin, most frequently in the ankle region, that fails to heal spontaneously and is sustained by chronic venous disease, based on venous duplex ultrasound testing." ...
s. This was a common complaint among the working classes in Bird's time, and hospitals could not admit the majority of cases for treatment. The moxa improved the situation by enabling those affected to be treated as outpatients. The silver electrode of the moxa was applied to the ulcer to be healed, while the zinc electrode was applied a few inches away to a place where the upper layer of skin had been cut away. The whole apparatus was then bandaged in place as before. The technique was successfully applied by others on Bird's recommendation. Thomas Wells later discovered that it was unnecessary to damage the skin under the zinc plate. He merely moistened the skin with vinegar before applying the zinc electrode.


Pulvermacher controversy

There was some controversy over Bird's endorsement of a machine invented by one I. L. Pulvermacher that became known as
Pulvermacher's chain The Pulvermacher chain, or in full as it was sold the Pulvermacher hydro-electric chain, was a type of voltaic battery sold in the second half of the 19th century for medical applications. Its chief market was amongst the numerous quack practi ...
. The main market for this device was the very quack practitioners that Bird so detested, but it did actually work as a generator. Bird was given a sample of this machine in 1851 and was impressed enough to give Pulvermacher a testimonial stating that the machine was a useful source of electricity. Bird thought that it could be used by physicians as a portable device. Electrically, the machine worked like a voltaic pile, but was constructed differently. It consisted of a number of wooden
dowel A dowel is a cylindrical rod, usually made of wood, plastic, or metal. In its original manufactured form, a dowel is called a ''dowel rod''. Dowel rods are often cut into short lengths called dowel pins. Dowels are commonly used as structural ...
s, each with a
bifilar winding A bifilar coil is an electromagnetic coil that contains two closely spaced, parallel windings. In engineering, the word ''bifilar'' describes wire which is made of two filaments or strands. It is commonly used to denote special types of winding ...
of copper and zinc coils. Each winding was connected to the next dowel by means of metal hooks and eyes, which also provided the electrical connection. The electrolyte was provided by soaking the dowels in vinegar. Naively, Bird appears to have expected Pulvermacher not to use this testimonial in his advertising. When Pulvermacher's company did so, Bird suffered some criticism for unprofessional behaviour, although it was never suggested that Bird benefited financially, and Bird stated in his defence that the testimonial was only ever intended as a letter of introduction to physicians in Edinburgh. Bird was particularly upset that Pulvermacher's company had used quotations from Bird's publications about the benefits of electrical treatment and misrepresented them as describing benefits of Pulvermacher's product. Bird also criticised Pulvermacher's claim that the chain could be wrapped around an affected limb for medical treatment. Although the flexible nature of its design lent itself to wrapping, Bird said that it would be next to useless in this configuration. According to Bird, the patient's body would provide a conductive path across each cell, thus preventing the device from building up a medically useful voltage at its terminals.


Electrochemistry

Bird used his position as head of the department of electricity and galvanism to further his research efforts and to aid him in teaching his students. He was interested in
electrolysis In chemistry and manufacturing, electrolysis is a technique that uses direct electric current (DC) to drive an otherwise non-spontaneous chemical reaction. Electrolysis is commercially important as a stage in the separation of elements from n ...
and repeated the experiments of
Antoine César Becquerel Antoine César Becquerel (7 March 178818 January 1878) was a French scientist and a pioneer in the study of electric and luminescent phenomena. Life He was born at Châtillon-sur-Loing (today Châtillon-Coligny). After passing through the École ...
,
Edmund Davy Edmund Davy FRS (1785 – 5 November 1857)Christopher F. Lindsey, 'Davy, Edmund (1785–1857)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200 accessed 6 April 2008/ref> was a professor of chemistry at the Royal Cork Inst ...
and others to extract metals in this way. He was particularly interested in the possibility of detecting low levels of heavy metal poisons with this technique, pioneered by Davy. Bird also studied the properties of
albumen Egg white is the clear liquid (also called the albumen or the glair/glaire) contained within an egg. In chickens it is formed from the layers of secretions of the anterior section of the hen's oviduct during the passage of the egg. It forms arou ...
under electrolysis, finding that the albumen coagulated at the
anode An anode is an electrode of a polarized electrical device through which conventional current enters the device. This contrasts with a cathode, an electrode of the device through which conventional current leaves the device. A common mnemonic is ...
because
hydrochloric acid Hydrochloric acid, also known as muriatic acid, is an aqueous solution of hydrogen chloride. It is a colorless solution with a distinctive pungent smell. It is classified as a strong acid Acid strength is the tendency of an acid, symbol ...
was produced there. He corrected an earlier erroneous conclusion by W. T. Brande that high electric current caused coagulation at the
cathode A cathode is the electrode from which a conventional current leaves a polarized electrical device. This definition can be recalled by using the mnemonic ''CCD'' for ''Cathode Current Departs''. A conventional current describes the direction in whi ...
also, showing that this was entirely due to fluid flows caused by the strong electric field. The formation of copper plates on the cathode was noticed in the Daniell cell shortly after its invention in 1836. Bird began a thorough investigation of this phenomenon in the following year. Using solutions of
sodium chloride Sodium chloride , commonly known as salt (although sea salt also contains other chemical salts), is an ionic compound with the chemical formula NaCl, representing a 1:1 ratio of sodium and chloride ions. With molar masses of 22.99 and 35.45 g ...
,
potassium chloride Potassium chloride (KCl, or potassium salt) is a metal halide salt composed of potassium and chlorine. It is odorless and has a white or colorless vitreous crystal appearance. The solid dissolves readily in water, and its solutions have a salt ...
and ammonium chloride, He succeeded in coating a mercury cathode with
sodium Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na (from Latin ''natrium'') and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 of the periodic table. Its only stable iso ...
,
potassium Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (from Neo-Latin ''kalium'') and atomic number19. Potassium is a silvery-white metal that is soft enough to be cut with a knife with little force. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmosphe ...
and
ammonium The ammonium cation is a positively-charged polyatomic ion with the chemical formula or . It is formed by the protonation of ammonia (). Ammonium is also a general name for positively charged or protonated substituted amines and quaternary a ...
respectively, producing
amalgams Amalgam most commonly refers to: * Amalgam (chemistry), mercury alloy * Amalgam (dentistry), material of silver tooth fillings ** Bonded amalgam, used in dentistry Amalgam may also refer to: * Amalgam Comics, a publisher * Amalgam Digital, an in ...
of each of these. Not only
chloride The chloride ion is the anion (negatively charged ion) Cl−. It is formed when the element chlorine (a halogen) gains an electron or when a compound such as hydrogen chloride is dissolved in water or other polar solvents. Chloride salts ...
s were used;
beryllium Beryllium is a chemical element with the symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a steel-gray, strong, lightweight and brittle alkaline earth metal. It is a divalent element that occurs naturally only in combination with other elements to form mi ...
, aluminium and
silicon Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. It is a hard, brittle crystalline solid with a blue-grey metallic luster, and is a tetravalent metalloid and semiconductor. It is a member of group 14 in the periodic tab ...
were obtained from the
salts In chemistry, a salt is a chemical compound consisting of an ionic assembly of positively charged cations and negatively charged anions, which results in a compound with no net electric charge. A common example is table salt, with positively cha ...
and
oxide An oxide () is a chemical compound that contains at least one oxygen atom and one other element in its chemical formula. "Oxide" itself is the dianion of oxygen, an O2– (molecular) ion. with oxygen in the oxidation state of −2. Most of the E ...
s of these elements. In 1837, Bird constructed his own version of the Daniell cell. The novel feature of Bird's cell was that the two solutions of copper sulphate and
zinc sulphate Zinc sulfate is an inorganic compound. It is used as a dietary supplement to treat zinc deficiency and to prevent the condition in those at high risk. Side effects of excess supplementation may include abdominal pain, vomiting, headache, and ...
were in the same vessel, but kept separate by a barrier of
Plaster of Paris Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...
, a common material used in hospitals for setting
bone fracture A bone fracture (abbreviated FRX or Fx, Fx, or #) is a medical condition in which there is a partial or complete break in the continuity of any bone in the body. In more severe cases, the bone may be broken into several fragments, known as a '' ...
s. Being porous, Plaster of Paris allows
ion An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by conve ...
s to cross the barrier, while preventing the solutions from mixing. This arrangement is an example of a single-cell Daniell cell, and Bird's invention was the first of this kind. Bird's cell was the basis for the later development of the porous pot cell, invented in 1839 by
John Dancer John Benjamin Dancer (8 October 1812 – 24 November 1887) was a British scientific instrument maker and inventor of microphotography. He also pioneered stereography. Life By 1835, he controlled his father's instrument making business in Li ...
.Coley, p. 367
Morus, pp. 177–183
Watt and Philip, pp. 90–92
Bird's experiments with his cell were important for the new discipline of
electrometallurgy Electrometallurgy is a method in metallurgy that uses electrical energy to produce metals by electrolysis. It is usually the last stage in metal production and is therefore preceded by pyrometallurgical or hydrometallurgical operations. The electr ...
. An unforeseen result was the deposition of copper on and within the plaster, without any contact with the metal electrodes. On breaking apart the plaster it was found that veins of copper were formed running right through it. So surprising was this result that it was at first disbelieved by electrochemical researchers, including Faraday. Deposition of copper and other metals had previously been noted, but only on metal electrodes. Bird's experiments sometimes get him credit for being the founder of the industrial field of electrometallurgy. In particular, Bird's discovery is the principle behind
electrotyping Electrotyping (also galvanoplasty) is a chemical method for forming metal parts that exactly reproduce a model. The method was invented by Moritz von Jacobi Moritz Hermann or Boris Semyonovich (von) Jacobi (russian: Борис Семёнови ...
. However, Bird himself never made practical use of this discovery, nor did he carry out any work in metallurgy as such. Some of Bird's contemporaries with interests in electrometallurgy wished to bestow the credit on Bird in order to discredit the commercial claims of their rivals. Bird thought there was a connection between the functioning of the nervous system and the processes seen in electrolysis at very low, steady currents. He knew that the currents in both were of the same order. To Bird, if such a connection existed, it made
electrochemistry Electrochemistry is the branch of physical chemistry concerned with the relationship between electrical potential difference, as a measurable and quantitative phenomenon, and identifiable chemical change, with the potential difference as an outco ...
an important subject to study for biological reasons.


Chemistry


Arsenic poisoning

In 1837 Bird took part in an investigation of the dangers posed by the
arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, but ...
content of cheap candles. These were
stearin Stearin , or tristearin, or glyceryl tristearate is an odourless, white powder. It is a triglyceride derived from three units of stearic acid. Most triglycerides are derived from at least two and more commonly three different fatty acids. Like o ...
candles with
white arsenic Arsenic trioxide, sold under the brand name Trisenox among others, is an inorganic compound and medication. As an industrial chemical, whose major uses include in the manufacture of wood preservatives, pesticides, and glass. As a medication, i ...
added, which made them burn more brightly than ordinary candles. The combination of cheapness and brightness made them popular. The investigation was conducted by the Westminster Medical Society, a student society of Westminster Hospital, and was led by
John Snow John Snow (15 March 1813 – 16 June 1858) was an English physician and a leader in the development of anaesthesia and medical hygiene. He is considered one of the founders of modern epidemiology, in part because of his work in tracing the so ...
, later to become famous for his public health investigations. Snow had previously investigated arsenic poisoning when he and several fellow students were taken badly ill after he introduced a new process for preserving
cadaver A cadaver or corpse is a dead human body that is used by medical students, physicians and other scientists to study anatomy, identify disease sites, determine causes of death, and provide tissue to repair a defect in a living human being. Stud ...
s at the suggestion of lecturer Hunter Lane. The new process involved injecting arsenic into the blood vessels of the corpse. Snow found that the arsenic became airborne as a result of chemical reactions with the decomposing corpse, and this was how it was ingested. Bird's part in the candle investigation was to analyse the arsenic content of the candles, which he found to have recently been greatly increased by the manufacturers. Bird also confirmed by experiment that the arsenic became airborne when the candles were burnt. The investigators exposed various species of animal and bird to the candles in controlled conditions. The animals all survived, but the birds died. Bird investigated the bird deaths and analysed the bodies, finding small amounts of arsenic. No arsenic was found on the feathers, however, indicating that poisoning was not caused by breathing airborne arsenic, since arsenic in the air would be expected to adhere to the feathers. However, Bird found that large amounts of arsenic were in the birds' drinking water, indicating that this was the route taken by the poison.


Carbon monoxide poisoning

Although it had been known how to prepare
carbon monoxide Carbon monoxide (chemical formula CO) is a colorless, poisonous, odorless, tasteless, flammable gas that is slightly less dense than air. Carbon monoxide consists of one carbon atom and one oxygen atom connected by a triple bond. It is the simple ...
since 1776, it was not at first recognised that
carbon monoxide poisoning Carbon monoxide poisoning typically occurs from breathing in carbon monoxide (CO) at excessive levels. Symptoms are often described as "flu-like" and commonly include headache, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion. Large e ...
was the mechanism of death and injury from stoves burning
carbon Carbon () is a chemical element with the symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent In chemistry, the valence (US spelling) or valency (British spelling) of an element is the measure of its combining capacity with o ...
aceous fuels. A coroner's inquest into the death in 1838 of James Trickey, a nightwatchman who had spent all night by a new type of charcoal burning stove in
St Michael, Cornhill St Michael, Cornhill, is a medieval parish church in the City of London with pre-Norman Conquest parochial foundation. It lies in the ward of Cornhill. The medieval structure was lost in the Great Fire of London, and replaced by the present bui ...
, concluded that the poison involved was carbonic acid (that is,
carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...
) rather than carbon monoxide. Both Bird and Snow gave evidence to the inquest supporting poisoning by carbonic acid. Bird himself started to suffer ill effects while collecting air samples from the floor near the stove. However, the makers of the stove, Harper and Joyce, produced a string of their own expert witnesses, who convinced the jury to decide that death was caused by
apoplexy Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...
, and that "impure air" was only a contributing factor. Among the unscientific claims made at the inquest by Harper and Joyce were that carbonic gas would rise to the ceiling (in fact it is heavier than air and, according to Bird, would lie in a layer close to the floor, just where the sleeping Trickey's head would rest) and that "deleterious vapour" from the coffins in the vaults had risen into the church. After the inquest Joyce threatened to sue a journal which continued to criticise the stove for its lack of ventilation. In a subsequent clarification, Bird made it clear that any stove burning carbonaceous fuel was dangerous if it did not have a chimney or other means of ventilation. In fact, Trickey had only been placed in the church in the first place at the suggestion of Harper, who was expecting him to give favourable reports of the new stove's performance. Bird read a paper to the Senior Physical Society in 1839, reporting on tests he conducted of the effects on sparrows of poisoning by carbonaceous fumes. This paper was of some importance and resulted in Bird giving his views to the
British Association The British Science Association (BSA) is a charity and learned society founded in 1831 to aid in the promotion and development of science. Until 2009 it was known as the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA). The current Chie ...
in the same year. (He acted as a secretary to the chemical section of the British Association in Birmingham.) Bird also presented the paper at the Westminster Medical School, where Snow took a special interest in it. Until then, Snow and many others had believed that carbonic acid acted merely by excluding
oxygen Oxygen is the chemical element with the symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group in the periodic table, a highly reactive nonmetal, and an oxidizing agent that readily forms oxides with most elements as wel ...
. The experiments of Bird and others convinced him that it was harmful in its own right, but he still did not subscribe to Bird's view that it was an active poison. Also in 1839, Bird published a comprehensive paper in ''Guy's Hospital Reports'', complete with many case histories, in which he documents the state of knowledge. He realised that at least some cases of poisoning from stoves were due not to carbonic acid, but to some other agent, although he still had not identified it as carbon monoxide.


Urology

Bird did a great deal of research in
urology Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and '' -logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary-tract system and the reproductive org ...
, including the chemistry of both
urine Urine is a liquid by-product of metabolism in humans and in many other animals. Urine flows from the kidneys through the ureters to the urinary bladder. Urination results in urine being excretion, excreted from the body through the urethra. Cel ...
and kidney stones, and soon became a recognised expert. This work occupied a large proportion of his effort, and his writings on urinary sediments and kidney stones were the most advanced at the time. His work followed on from, and was much influenced by, that of
Alexander Marcet Alexander John Gaspard Marcet FRS (1 August 1770 – 19 October 1822), was a Genevan-born physician who became a British citizen in 1800. His wife Jane Marcet was a prolific author, whose series of books entitled 'Conversations' treated topic ...
and William Prout. Marcet was also a physician at Guy's; Prout held no position at Guy's, but was connected with the hospital and well known there. For instance, when Marcet discovered a new constituent of kidney stones,
xanthic oxide Xanthine ( or ; archaically xanthic acid; systematic name 3,7-dihydropurine-2,6-dione) is a purine base found in most human body tissues and fluids, as well as in other organisms. Several stimulants are derived from xanthine, including caffeine, ...
, he sent it to Prout for analysis. Prout discovered a new substance himself in 1822, a constituent of urine which he named
melanic acid Homogentisic acid (2,5-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid) is a phenolic acid usually found in ''Arbutus unedo'' (strawberry-tree) honey. It is also present in the bacterial plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. phaseoli, ''Xanthomonas campestris'' p ...
, because it turned black on contact with air. Bird studied and categorised the collection of stones at Guy's, concentrating particularly on the crystal structures of the nuclei, since stone formation followed once there was a nucleus on which to form. He considered the chemistry of the nuclei to be the most important aspect of stone formation. Bird identified many species of stone, classified by the chemistry of the nucleus, but decided that they all fell within two overall groups: organic stones caused by a malfunctioning bodily process, and excessive inorganic salts causing sediment on which the stone could
nucleate In thermodynamics, nucleation is the first step in the formation of either a new thermodynamic phase or structure via self-assembly or self-organization within a substance or mixture. Nucleation is typically defined to be the process that dete ...
. In 1842, Bird became the first to describe oxaluria, sometimes called Bird's disease, which is sometimes caused by an excess of oxalate of lime in the urine. This is the most common type of kidney stone. The most common cause of kidney stones is now known to be an excess of calcium in the urine, not oxalate, though Calcium oxalate stones are the most common type, it is the excess of calcium that is the most common cause of their formation. Some people do however have an excess of oxalate in their urine and form Calcium oxalate stones because of that; this can be related to diet, hereditary factors or intestinal diseases. Today we know the most common type of kidney stones are Calcium oxalate (about 74%), Calcium Phosphate, (about 20%), and uric acid (about 4% overall but more common in obese people and those with gout). In his great work ''Urinary Deposits'', Bird devotes much space to the identification of chemicals in urine by microscopic examination of the appearance of crystals in it. He shows how the appearance of crystals of the same chemical can vary greatly under differing conditions, and especially how the appearance changes with disease. ''Urinary Deposits'' became a standard text on the subject; there were five editions between 1844 and 1857. In the fourth edition Bird added a recommendation to wash out the bladder in cases of alkaline urine, after an experiment by Snow showed that stale urine became alkaline when fresh urine was slowly dripped into it. Bird knew that alkaline urine encouraged phosphate precipitation and the consequent encrustation and stone formation. The last edition of ''Urinary Deposits'' was updated after Bird's death by Edmund Lloyd Birkett. Bird was the first to recognise that certain forms of
urinary cast Urinary casts are microscopic cylindrical structures produced by the kidney and present in the urine in certain disease states. They form in the distal convoluted tubule and collecting ducts of nephrons, then dislodge and pass into the urine, wher ...
s are an indication of
Bright's disease Bright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that are described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. It was characterized by swelling and the presence of albumin in the urine, and was frequently accompanied b ...
. Casts were first discovered by
Henry Bence Jones Henry Bence Jones FRS (31 December 1813 – 20 April 1873) was an English physician and chemist. Early life Bence Jones was born at Thorington Hall, Stoke-by-Nayland, Suffolk, the son of Lieutenant Colonel William Jones, an officer in the 5th ...
. They are microscopic cylinders of
Tamm-Horsfall protein Uromodulin (UMOD), also known as Tamm–Horsfall protein (THP), is a Zona pellucida-like domain-containing glycoprotein that in humans is encoded by the ''UMOD'' gene. Uromodulin is the most abundant protein excreted in ordinary urine. Gene ...
that have been precipitated in the kidneys and then released into the urine; we know now these casts are normal findings unless they contain cells within them; these cellular casts indicating an abnormality in the kidneys.


Vitalism

A prevalent idea in the 18th and early 19th centuries was that illness was a result of the condition of the whole body. The environment and the activity of the patient thus played a large part in any treatment. The epitome of this kind of thinking was the concept of the
vital force Vitalism is a belief that starts from the premise that "living organisms are fundamentally different from non-living entities because they contain some non-physical element or are governed by different principles than are inanimate things." Wher ...
, which was supposed to govern the chemical processes within the body. This theory held that organic compounds could only be formed within living organisms, where the vital force could come into play. This belief had been known to be false ever since
Friedrich Wöhler Friedrich Wöhler () FRS(For) HonFRSE (31 July 180023 September 1882) was a German chemist known for his work in inorganic chemistry, being the first to isolate the chemical elements beryllium and yttrium in pure metallic form. He was the firs ...
succeeded in synthesising
urea Urea, also known as carbamide, is an organic compound with chemical formula . This amide has two amino groups (–) joined by a carbonyl functional group (–C(=O)–). It is thus the simplest amide of carbamic acid. Urea serves an important r ...
from inorganic precursors in 1828. Nevertheless, the vital force continued to be invoked to explain organic chemistry in Bird's time. Sometime in the middle of the 19th century, a new way of thinking started to take shape, especially among younger physicians, fuelled by rapid advances in the understanding of chemistry. For the first time, it became possible to identify specific chemical reactions with specific organs of the body, and to trace their effects through the various functional relations of the organs and the exchanges between them. Among these younger radicals were Bird and Snow; among the old school was William Addison (a different person from Bird's superior at Guy's). Addison disliked the modern reliance on laboratory and theoretical results favoured by the new generation, and challenged Richard Bright (who gave his name to Bright's disease) when Bright suggested that the source of the problem in
oedema Edema, also spelled oedema, and also known as fluid retention, dropsy, hydropsy and swelling, is the build-up of fluid in the body's tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may include skin which feels tight, the area ma ...
was the kidneys. Addison preferred to believe that the condition was caused by intemperance or some other external factor, and that since the whole body had been disrupted, it could not be localised to a specific organ. Addison further challenged Bright's student, Snow, when in 1839 Snow suggested from case studies and laboratory analysis that oedema was associated with an increase in
albumin Albumin is a family of globular proteins, the most common of which are the serum albumins. All the proteins of the albumin family are water-soluble, moderately soluble in concentrated salt solutions, and experience heat denaturation. Albumins ...
in the blood. Addison dismissed this as a mere
epiphenomenon An epiphenomenon (plural: epiphenomena) is a secondary phenomenon that occurs alongside or in parallel to a primary phenomenon. The word has two senses: one that connotes known causation and one that connotes absence of causation or reservation ...
. Bird disagreed with Snow's proposed treatment, but his arguments clearly show him to be on the radical side of the debate, and he completely avoided whole-body arguments. Snow had found that the proportion of urea in the urine of his patients was low and concluded from this that urea was accumulating in the blood, and therefore proposed
bloodletting Bloodletting (or blood-letting) is the withdrawal of blood from a patient to prevent or cure illness and disease. Bloodletting, whether by a physician or by leeches, was based on an ancient system of medicine in which blood and other bodily flu ...
to counter this. Bird disputed that increased urea in the blood was the cause of kidney disease and doubted the effectiveness of this treatment, citing the results of
François Magendie __NOTOC__ François Magendie (6 October 1783 – 7 October 1855) was a French physiologist, considered a pioneer of experimental physiology. He is known for describing the foramen of Magendie. There is also a ''Magendie sign'', a downward ...
, who had injected urea into the blood, apparently with no ill effects. It is not clear whether Bird accepted Snow's reasoning that urea must be accumulating, or whether he merely adopted it for the sake of argument; while a student in 1833, he had disputed this very point with another of Bright's students, George Rees.
Justus von Liebig Justus Freiherr von Liebig (12 May 1803 – 20 April 1873) was a German scientist who made major contributions to agricultural and biological chemistry, and is considered one of the principal founders of organic chemistry. As a professor at t ...
is another important figure in the development of the new thinking, although his position is ambiguous. He explained chemical processes in the body in terms of addition and subtraction of simple molecules from a larger organic molecule, a concept that Bird followed in his own work. But even the materialistic Liebig continued to invoke the vital force for processes inside ''living'' animal bodies. This seems to have been based on a belief that the entire living animal is required for these chemical processes to take place. Bird helped to dispel this kind of thinking by showing that specific chemistry is related to specific organs in the body rather than to the whole animal. He challenged some of Liebig's conclusions concerning animal chemistry. For example, Liebig had predicted that the ratio of uric acid to urea would depend on the level of activity of a species or individual; Bird showed this to be false. Bird also felt that it was not enough simply to count atoms as Liebig did, but that an explanation was also required as to why the atoms recombined in one particular way rather than any other. He made some attempts to provide this explanation by invoking the electric force, rather than the vital force, based on his own experiments in electrolysis.


Flexible stethoscope

Bird designed and used a flexible tube stethoscope in June 1840, and in the same year he published the first description of such an instrument. In his paper he mentions an instrument already in use by other physicians (Drs. Clendinning and Stroud), which he describes as the "snake
ear trumpet An ear trumpet is a tubular or funnel-shaped device which collects sound waves and leads them into the ear. They were used as hearing aids, resulting in a strengthening of the sound energy impact to the eardrum and thus improved hearing for a dea ...
". He thought this instrument had some severe technical faults; in particular, its great length led to poor performance. The form of Bird's invention is similar to the modern stethoscope, except that it has only one earpiece. An ill-tempered exchange of letters occurred in the ''London Medical Gazette'' between another physician, John Burne, and Bird. Burne claimed that he also used the same instrument as Clendinning and Stroud and was offended that Bird had not mentioned him in his paper. Burne, who worked at the
Westminster Hospital Westminster Hospital was a hospital in London, England, founded in 1719. In 1834 a medical school attached to the hospital was formally founded. In 1939 a newly built hospital and medical school opened in Horseferry Road, Westminster. In 1994 the ...
, pointed with suspicion to the fact that Bird's brother Frederic also worked there. In a reply full of anger and sarcasm, Bird pointed out that in his original paper he had already made clear that he claimed no credit for the earlier instrument. Bird found the flexible stethoscope convenient as it avoided uncomfortably leaning over patients (as would be required by a rigid stethoscope) and the earpiece could be passed to other doctors and students to listen. It was particularly useful for Bird, with his severe rheumatism, as he could apply the stethoscope to the patient from a seated position.


''Elements of Natural Philosophy''

When Bird took up lecturing on science at Guy's, he could not find a textbook suitable for his medical students. He needed a book that went into some detail of physics and chemistry, but which medical students would not find overwhelmingly mathematical. Bird reluctantly undertook to write such a book himself, based on his 1837–1838 lectures, and the result was ''Elements of Natural Philosophy'', first published in 1839. It proved to be spectacularly popular, even beyond its intended audience of medical students, and went through six editions. Reprints were still being produced more than 30 years later in 1868. The fourth edition was edited by Charles Brooke, a friend of Bird's, after the latter's death. Brooke made good many of Bird's mathematical omissions. Brooke edited further editions and, in the sixth edition of 1867, thoroughly updated it. The book was well received and was praised by reviewers for its clarity. The ''Literary Gazette'', for instance, thought that it "teaches us the elements of the entire circle of natural philosophy in the clearest and most perspicuous manner". The reviewer recommended it as suitable not just for students and not just for the young, saying that it "ought to be in the hands of every individual who desires to taste the pleasures of divine philosophy, and obtain a competent knowledge of that creation in which they live". Medical journals, on the other hand, were more restrained in their praise. The ''
Provincial Medical and Surgical Provincial may refer to: Government & Administration * Provincial capitals, an administrative sub-national capital of a country * Provincial city (disambiguation) * Provincial minister (disambiguation) * Provincial Secretary, a position in Can ...
'', for instance, in its review of the second edition, thought that it was "a good and concise elementary treatise ... presenting in a readable and intelligible form, a great mass of information not to be found in any other single treatise". But the ''Provincial'' had a few technical quibbles, among which was the complaint that there was no description of the construction of a stethoscope. The ''Provincial'' reviewer thought that the book was particularly suitable for students who had no previous instruction in physics. The sections on magnetism, electricity and light were particularly recommended. In their review of the 6th edition, ''Popular Science Review'' noted that the author was now named as Brooke and observed that he had now made the book his own. The reviewers looked back with nostalgia to the book they knew as "the Golding Bird" when they were students. They note with approval the many newly included descriptions of the latest technology, such as the
dynamo file:DynamoElectricMachinesEndViewPartlySection USP284110.png, "Dynamo Electric Machine" (end view, partly section, ) A dynamo is an electrical generator that creates direct current using a commutator (electric), commutator. Dynamos were the f ...
s of Henry Wilde and
Werner von Siemens Ernst Werner Siemens (von Siemens from 1888; ; ; 13 December 1816 – 6 December 1892) was a German electrical engineer, inventor and industrialist. Siemens's name has been adopted as the SI unit of electrical conductance, the siemens. He foun ...
, and the
spectroscope An optical spectrometer (spectrophotometer, spectrograph or spectroscope) is an instrument used to measure properties of light over a specific portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, typically used in spectroscopic analysis to identify mate ...
of Browning. The scope of the book was wide-ranging, covering much of the physics then known. The 1839 first edition included
statics Statics is the branch of classical mechanics that is concerned with the analysis of force and torque (also called moment) acting on physical systems that do not experience an acceleration (''a''=0), but rather, are in static equilibrium with ...
, dynamics,
gravitation In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stron ...
,
mechanics Mechanics (from Ancient Greek: μηχανική, ''mēkhanikḗ'', "of machines") is the area of mathematics and physics concerned with the relationships between force, matter, and motion among physical objects. Forces applied to objects r ...
,
hydrostatics Fluid statics or hydrostatics is the branch of fluid mechanics that studies the condition of the equilibrium of a floating body and submerged body " fluids at hydrostatic equilibrium and the pressure in a fluid, or exerted by a fluid, on an imm ...
,
pneumatics Pneumatics (from Greek ‘wind, breath’) is a branch of engineering that makes use of gas or pressurized air. Pneumatic systems used in industry are commonly powered by compressed air or compressed inert gases. A centrally located and elec ...
,
hydrodynamics In physics and engineering, fluid dynamics is a subdiscipline of fluid mechanics that describes the flow of fluids—liquids and gases. It has several subdisciplines, including ''aerodynamics'' (the study of air and other gases in motion) and ...
,
acoustics Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including topics such as vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician ...
,
magnetism Magnetism is the class of physical attributes that are mediated by a magnetic field, which refers to the capacity to induce attractive and repulsive phenomena in other entities. Electric currents and the magnetic moments of elementary particles ...
, electricity,
atmospheric electricity Atmospheric electricity is the study of electrical charges in the Earth's atmosphere (or that of another planet). The movement of charge between the Earth's surface, the atmosphere, and the ionosphere is known as the global atmospheric electr ...
,
electrodynamics In physics, electromagnetism is an interaction that occurs between particles with electric charge. It is the second-strongest of the four fundamental interactions, after the strong force, and it is the dominant force in the interactions of a ...
,
thermoelectricity The thermoelectric effect is the direct conversion of temperature differences to electric voltage and vice versa via a thermocouple. A thermoelectric device creates a voltage when there is a different temperature on each side. Conversely, when ...
,
bioelectricity In developmental biology, bioelectricity refers to the regulation of cell, tissue, and organ-level patterning and behavior as the result of endogenous electrically mediated signaling. Cells and tissues of all types use ion fluxes to communicate e ...
,
light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 tera ...
,
optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultraviole ...
, and
polarised light Polarization (also polarisation) is a property applying to transverse waves that specifies the geometrical orientation of the oscillations. In a transverse wave, the direction of the oscillation is perpendicular to the direction of motion of the ...
. In the 1843 second edition Bird expanded the material on electrolysis into its own chapter, reworked the polarised light material, added two chapters on "thermotics" (
thermodynamics Thermodynamics is a branch of physics that deals with heat, work, and temperature, and their relation to energy, entropy, and the physical properties of matter and radiation. The behavior of these quantities is governed by the four laws of the ...
 – a major omission from the first edition), and a chapter on the new technology of photography. Later editions also included a chapter on
electric telegraph Electrical telegraphs were point-to-point text messaging systems, primarily used from the 1840s until the late 20th century. It was the first electrical telecommunications system and the most widely used of a number of early messaging systems ...
y. Brooke was still expanding the book for the sixth and final edition. New material included the magnetic properties of iron in ships and spectrum analysis.


Christian works

Bird was a committed Christian throughout his life. Despite his extremely busy professional life, he meticulously observed the Sabbath and saw to the Christian education of his children. He showed generosity to the poor, offering them treatment at his house every morning before going about his professional schedule. After it became clear that the remainder of his life was going to be very limited, he devoted much time to his religion. He wanted to promote Christian teachings and Bible reading among medical students. From 1853 Bird organised a series of religious meetings of medical professionals in London, aiming to encourage physicians and surgeons to exert a religious influence over their students. For several years prior to 1853, student prayer meetings had been held in some of the London hospitals, particularly St Thomas'. Bird aimed to mould this movement into a formal association, an ambition which was to crystallise as the Christian Medical Association. He was heavily influenced in this by the Medical Missionary Society of
John Hutton Balfour John Hutton Balfour (15 September 1808 – 11 February 1884) was a Scottish botanist. Balfour became a Professor of Botany, first at the University of Glasgow in 1841, moving to the University of Edinburgh and also becoming the 7th Regius Kee ...
at
Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted ...
. Bird aimed to form a national body with a chapter in each teaching hospital; a prototype student group was already in existence at Guy's. He was strongly opposed by some sections of the medical profession, who felt that students should concentrate on their studies. Among the insults levelled at Bird were " saponaceous piety" and being a Mawworm. This opposition continued after the formation of the Association. The constitution of the new Christian Medical Association was agreed at Bird's home on 17 December 1853 in a meeting of medical and surgical teachers and others. It was based on a draft prepared by the Guy's student group. Bird died before the inaugural public meeting of the Association in November 1854 at
Exeter Hall Exeter Hall was a large public meeting place on the north side of the Strand in central London, opposite where the Savoy Hotel now stands. From 1831 until 1907 Exeter Hall was the venue for many great gatherings by promoters of human bettermen ...
. Bird was quick to defend the virtuousness of students. In November 1853, in a reply to a letter from a student in the ''Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal'' complaining of a lack of moral care from his superiors, Bird attacked the prevalent public view that students were "guilty of every kind of open vice and moral depravity". Bird laid much of the blame for this public opinion on the caricatures of students in the writings of
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
. He went on to say that the behaviour and character of students had greatly improved over the preceding ten years. He attributed this improvement in part to the greatly increased study requirements imposed on students, but also in part to Christian influences acting on them. He also commented that pious students had once been ridiculed, but were now respected.Balfour, 47–48


Works


''Elements of Natural Philosophy; being an experimental introduction to the study of the physical sciences''
London: John Churchill, 1839 .
''Lectures on Electricity and Galvanism, in their physiological and therapeutical relations''
delivered at the Royal College of Physicians, in March 1847, London: Wilson & Ogilvy, 1847 . * ''Lectures on the Influence of Researches in Organic Chemistry on Therapeutics, especially in relation to the depuration of the blood'', delivered at the Royal College of Physicians, London: Wilson & Ogilvy, 1848 .
''Urinary Deposits, their diagnosis, pathology and therapeutical indications''
London: John Churchill, 1844 .


Journal articles

* Bird's first publication of his modification of the Daniell cell, ''Report of the Seventh Meeting of the British Society for the Advancement of Science'', vol. 6 (1837), p. 45, London: J. Murray, 1838.
"Observations on induced electric currents, with a description of a magnetic contact-breaker"
''Philosophical Magazine'', vol. 12, no. 71, pp. 18–22, January 1838. * "Observations on the existence of saline combinations in an organized state, in vegetable matter", ''The Magazine of Natural History'', vol. 2, pp. 74–78, February 1838. * "Observations on indirect chemical analysis", ''Philosophical Magazine'', vol. 12, no. 74, pp. 229–232, March 1838. * "Experimental researches on the nature and properties of albumen", ''Philosophical Magazine'', vol. 12, no. 79, pp. 15–22, July 1838. * "Observations on some peculiar properties acquired by plates of platina, which have been used as electrodes of a voltaic battery", ''Philosophical Magazine'', vol. 12, no. 83, pp. 379–386, November 1838.
"Mucous and purulent secretions"
''Guy's Hospital Reports'', vol. 3, pp. 35–59, 1838.
"Notice respecting the artificial formation of a basic chloride of copper by voltaic influence"
''Report of the Eighth Meeting of the British Society for the Advancement of Science'', vol. 7 (1838), pp. 56–57, London: J. Murray, 1839.
"Notice respecting the deposition of metallic copper from is solutions by slow voltaic action at a point equidistant from the metallic surfaces"
''Report of the Eighth Meeting of the British Society for the Advancement of Science'', vol. 7 (1838), pp. 57–59, London: J. Murray, 1839. * "Observations on some of the products of nitric acid on alcohol", ''Philosophical Magazine'', 1838.
Summarised
in ''Report of the Eighth Meeting of the British Society for the Advancement of Science'', vol. 7, pp. 55–56, London: J. Murray, 1839.)
"Observation on poisoning by the vapours of burning charcoal and coals"
''Guy's Hospital Reports'', vol. 4, pp. 75–105, 1839.
"Advantages presented by the employment of a stethoscope with a flexible tube"
''London Medical Gazette'', vol. 1, pp. 440–412, 11 December 1840.
"Report on the value of electricity, as a remedial agent in the treatment of diseases"
''Guy's Hospital Reports'', vol. 6, pp. 84–120, 1841. * "Fatty urine", ''The Medical Times'', vol. 9, no. 223, p. 175, 30 December 1843. * "Treatment of uric acid gravel by phosphate of soda", ''Medical Gazette'', p. 689, 23 August 1844. * "Infantile syphilis", ''Guy's Hospital Reports'', p. 130, April 1845. * "Treatment of disease by moist air", ''Medical Gazette'', p. 999, 3 October 1845. * "The nature of the green alvine evacuations of children", ''The Medical Times'', vol. 13, no. 317, pp. 74–75, 18 October 1845. * "Treatment of disease by moist air", ''The Medical Times'', vol. 13, no. 325, p. 228, 13 December 1845.
"Diseases of children"
''Guy's Hospital Reports'', series 2, vol. 3, pp. 108–141, 1845. * "Acetate of lead in diarrhoea", ''The Medical Times'', vol. 13, no. 337, p. 465, 14 March 1846. * "Case of excessive secretion of the ammonio-magnesium phosphate by the kidneys, with long continued vomiting", ''The Medical Times'', vol. 13, no. 340, pp. 522–523, 4 April 1846.
"Case of internal strangulation of intestine relieved by operation"
from ''Transactions of the Royal Medico-Chirurgical Society'', with John Hilton, London:Richard Kinder, 1847. Bird was frequently mentioned in the transactions of the
Medical Society of London The Medical Society of London is one of the oldest surviving medical societies (being organisations of voluntary association, rather than regulation or training) in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1773 by the Quaker physician and philanthrop ...
. Some examples are:
"Transactions of the Medical Society of London, Oct 16"
''The Medical Times'', vol. 9, no. 213, pp. 39–40, 21 October 1843. Report on the poisoning of a watch enameller by arsenic vapour.
"Transactions of the Medical Society of London, Jan 15 1844"
''The Medical Times'', vol. 9, no. 227, pp. 271–274, 27 January 1844. Report on a case of a child with inflammatory croup.


References


Bibliography

* Balfour, John Hutton
''Biographical Sketch of the late Dr. Golding Bird''
Edinburgh: Thomas Constable and Co., 1855 . *Brock, William H., ''Justus Von Liebig: The Chemical Gatekeeper'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002 . *Brooke, Charles; Bird, Golding,
Elements of Natural Philosophy
', London: John Churchill and Sons 1867 . *Carleton, Bukk G., ''Uropoietic Diseases'', New York: Boericke & Runyon, 1900 . *Chapman, Henry Thomas, ''The Treatment of Obstinate Ulcers and Cutaneous Eruptions on the Leg, Without Confinement'', London: John Churchill, 1859 . *Coley, N. G.
"The collateral sciences in the work of Golding Bird (1814–1854)"
''Medical History'', vol. 13, iss. 4, pp. 363–376, October 1969. *Foregger, Richard
"John Snow's early research on carbon dioxide"
''Anesthesiology'', vol. 21, iss. 1, pp. 20–25, January/February 1960. * Lardner, Dionysius
''Electricity, Magnetism, and Acoustics''
London: Spottiswoode & Co. 1856 . *Lee, H. S. J., ''Dates in Urology'', New York: Parthenon Pub. Group, 2000 . *Morus, Iwan Rhys, ''Frankenstein's Children: Electricity, Exhibition, and Experiment in Early-nineteenth-century London'', Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1998 . *Payne, J. F.; McConnell, Anita, "Bird, Golding (1814–1854)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edition, May 2008
accessed 6 March 2011
(subscription required). *Pfeiffer, Carl J., ''The Art and Practice of Western Medicine in the Early Nineteenth Century'', Jefferson, N. C.: McFarland & Co., 1985 . *Rosenfeld, Louis, ''Four Centuries of Clinical Chemistry'', Amsterdam: Gordon & Breach Science, 1999 . *Rosenfeld, Louis
"The Chemical Work of Alexander and Jane Marcet"
''Clinical Chemistry'', vol. 47, pp. 784–792, 2001, American Association for Clinical Chemistry. *Rosenfeld, Louis
"Justus Liebig and ''Animal Chemistry''"
''Clinical Chemistry'', vol. 49, pp. 1696–1707, 2003. *Schmidt, Jacob Edward, ''Medical Discoveries: Who and When'', Springfield: Thomas, 1959 . *Simpson, Brian A.
''Electrical Stimulation and the Relief of Pain''
Elsevier Health Sciences, 2003 . *Smellie, James
''A Few Observations on the Influences of Electro-galvanism in the Cure of Chronic Rheumatism, Certain Forms of Paralysis, Nervous, and other Complaints''
London: William Horsell and R Pemberton Junior, 1858 . *Steel, Robert
"Dr. Golding Bird, the physician"
''Doing Good, or, the Christian in Walks of Usefulness'', pp. 206–214, Philadelphia: Perkinpine and Higgins, 1859. *Steventon, Glyn B.; Mitchell, Steve C., ''Molecules of Death'', London: Imperial College Press, 2007 . *Talbott, John Harold, ''A Biographical History of Medicine'', New York: Grune & Stratton, 1970 . *Vinten-Johansen, Peter, ''Cholera, Chloroform, and the Science of Medicine: a Life of John Snow'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003 . *Watt, Alexander; Philip, Arnold, ''Electroplating and Electrorefining of Metals'', Palm Springs: Watchmaker Publishing, 2005 (originally published 1889). * Wermuth, Camille Georges, ''The Practice of Medicinal Chemistry'', Burlington, MA: Academic Press, 2008 . * Wilks, Samuel, "Evolution of the stethoscope", ''Popular Science'', vol. 22, no. 28, pp. 488–491, February 1883 . * Wilks, Samuel; Bettany, G. T.
"Dr. Golding Bird"
''A Biographical History of Guy's Hospital'', London: Ward, Lock, Bowden & Co. 1892 . * Winslow, Octavius
''Life in Jesus: A Memoir of Mrs. Mary Winslow''
New York: Robert Carter and Brothers, 1860 .


External links


Golding Bird (1814–1854)
1840 portrait by Alexander Craig held at the Wellcome Library (BBC – Your Paintings)

(Friends of Woodbury Park Cemetery)

(King's College London Archives)
Archives at the Royal College of Surgeons of England relating to Golding Bird and Cuthbert Golding-Bird
(AIM25) {{DEFAULTSORT:Bird, Golding 1814 births 1854 deaths 19th-century English medical doctors Alumni of the University of St Andrews Electrotherapy Fellows of the Geological Society of London Fellows of the Linnean Society of London Fellows of the Royal Society People from Downham Market Urological conditions British urologists Battery inventors People associated with electricity