The Heart

Science News,  March 1, 2008  

• E-mail
• Print
• Link

THE HEART JAMES PETO, ED.

When mummifying a corpse, the ancient Egyptians would discard the brain but leave the heart inside the chest so that the gods could weigh it, Peto writes. Centuries later, the heart remains spiritually significant. It is therefore appropriate that this book, which describes heart medicine, physiology, and anatomy, also embraces social and cultural attitudes about the heart. The book's contributors offer imagery from both religion and rock 'n' roll to exalore how the heart is seen as an organ of love and yearning. Alternating with the chapters are interviews with heart-surgery patients and surgeons who describe their experiences. Edited by the curator of the Wellcome Trust's 2007 exhibition in London on the heart, this book features a diverse collection of heart-centric science art, and thought. Yale Univ. Press, 2007, 254 p., color photos and illus., hardcover, $35.00.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

COPYRIGHT 2008 Science Service, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning