Victor Frankenstein, ovvero il Prometeo moderno nella cinematografia del XX secolo (original) (raw)

Luigi Galvani and animal electricity: two centuries after the foundation of electrophysiology

Trends in Neurosciences, 1997

Luigi Galvani and his famous experiments on frogs carried out in the second half of the 18th century belong more to legend than to the history of science. Galvani not only laid the foundations of a new science, electrophysiology, but also opened the way for the invention of the electric battery, and thus for the development of the physical investigations of electricity. However, in spite of the widespread celebration of his work,Galvani's scientific endeavours have been largely misrepresented in the history of science.The scholar of Bologna has a stereotyped image as an 'occasional' scientist, who started his studies by chance, largely ignored the scientific theories of his time and wandered aimlessly in mental elaborations until the physicist of Pavia, Alessandro Volta, entered the field, correctly interpreted Galvani's results and eventually developed the electric battery. With the present understanding of electrical phenomena in excitable membranes, it is now time to reconsider the real matter raised by Galvani's discoveries and by his hypothesis of an intrinsic 'animal electricity', and to make a clearer evaluation of a revolutionary phase of scientific progress.

Animal electricity and the birth of electrophysiology: the legacy of Luigi Galvani

Brain Research Bulletin, 1998

Preceded by a companion paper on Galvani's life, this article is written on the occasion of the bicentenary of the death of Luigi Galvani. From his studies on the effects of electricity on frogs, the scientist of Bologna derived the hypothesis that animal tissues are endowed with an intrinsic electricity that is involved in fundamental physiological processes such as nerve conduction and muscle contraction. Galvani's work swept away from life sciences mysterious fluids and elusive entities like "animal spirits" and led to the foundation of a new science, electrophysiology. Two centuries of research work have demonstrated how insightful was Galvani's conception of animal electricity. Nevertheless, the scholar of Bologna is still largely misrepresented in the history of science, because the importance of his researches seems to be limited to the fact that they opened the paths to the studies of the physicist Alessandro Volta, which culminated in 1800 with the invention of the electric battery. Volta strongly opposed Galvani's theories on animal electricity. The matter of the scientific controversy between Galvani and Volta is examined here in the light of two centuries of electrophysiological studies leading to the modern understanding of electrical excitability in nerve and muscle. By surveying the work of scientists such as Nobili, Matteucci, du Bois-Reymond, von Helmholtz, Bernstein, Hermann, Lucas, Adrian, Hodgkin, Huxley, and Katz, the real matter of the debate raised by Galvani's discoveries is here reconsidered. In addition, a revolutionary phase of the 18th century science that opened the way for the development of modern neurosciences is reevaluated.

Luigi Galvani's path to animal electricity

Comptes Rendus Biologies, 2006

In spite of the historical importance of the research that, in the second half of the 18th century, led Luigi Galvani (1737Galvani ( -1798 to lay down the foundation of modern electrophysiology, his scientific personality is largely misrepresented in science history and in popular imagery. He is still considered as a pioneer that by chance incurred some surprising experimental observations and was incapable of pursuing his research in a coherent way. In contrast with these views, Galvani was a high-standard scientist who succeeded, with the strength of experimental science, in demonstrating, in animals, electricity in a condition of disequilibrium between the interior and the exterior of excitable fibres. This electricity, called 'animal electricity', was deemed responsible for nerve conduction. By studying the scientific endeavours of Galvani, through his published and unpublished material, and by situating them in the historical context of the physiology of the Enlightenment, this paper attempts to trace the elusive and complex path that led Galvani to his extraordinary discovery.

Luigi Galvani and the debate on animal electricity, 1791–1800

Annals of Science, 1987

Galvani's discovery provoked an animated debate that lasted for about a decade. So far, historians have studied only the controversy between Volta and Galvani. I show that a more extensive examination of the response to Galvani's treatise reveals a number of important issues that were characteristic of contemporary physics and physiology but have not much attracted the attention of historians. In particular, the analysis shows the need to reappraise Galvani's role in establishing animal electricity.

Luigi Galvani and the Debate on Animal Electricity 1987

Galvani's discovery provoked an animated debate that lasted for about a decade. So far. historians have studied only the controversy between Voltd and Galrani. I show that a mare extensive examination of the response to Galvani's treatise rcveals a number of im~ortant issues that were characteristic of the contcmporary. . animal electricity. Contents I. Introduction

Animal Electricity in the First Half of the 19th Century

Presented at Midwest Junto, Minneapolis, April 19, 1985, 1985

A debate on whether muscular contractions described by Galvani were caused by an inner animal electricity (Galvani) or by external electricity produced by a contact of different bodies (Volta) was pronounced to have ended in favor of Volta. Subsequently historians suggested that the refuted Galvani's theory was abandoned and rediscovered half a century later by Matteucci and Dubois-Reymond. This paper argues that Galvani's theory had never been abandoned and the research had continued without interruption all these five decades.

Luigi Galvani and the Debate on Animal Electricity

Difficulties in learning Ohm’s Law suggest a need to refocus it from the law for a part of the circuit to the law for the whole circuit. Such a revision may improve understanding of Ohm’s Law and its practical applications. This suggestion comes from an analysis of the history of the law’s discovery and its teaching. The historical materials this paper provides can also help teacher to improve students’ insights into the nature of science.

Luigi Galvani and the foundations of electrophysiology

Resuscitation, 2009

Luigi Galvani became one of the greatest scientists of the 18th century with his research and the development of his theory on animal electricity. His work was appreciated by many scientists. Nevertheless, it gave rise to one of the most passionate scientific debates in history when Alessandro Volta postulated that Galvani had confused intrinsic animal electricity with small currents produced by metals. This debate would result in the creation of electrophysiology, electromagnetism, electrochemistry and the electrical battery. Galvani responded to each of the postulated theories of Volta giving irrefutable proof of the involvement of electricity in the contraction of muscles. However, his work was subsequently abandoned and silenced for many years but his ideas and theories were finally confirmed by the creation of new instruments and the interest of new scientists who helped position Galvani as the father of electrophysiology.