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Charles Loomis Dana
(25 Mar 1852 - 12 Dec 1935)
American neurologist who was a a prominent New York physician. He contributed much to medical literature in his field, including Text-book of Nervous Diseases (1892) which by 1925 was in its tenth edition. He applied exceptional forensic ability in the trial of Charles J. Guiteau, about which he wrote in the Medical Record (5 Jul 1882).
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Science Quotes by Charles Loomis Dana (3 quotes)
All admit that the mountains of the globe are situated mostly along the border regions of the continents (taking these regions as 300 to 1000 miles or more in width), and that over these same areas the sedimentary deposits have, as a general thing, their greatest thickness. At first thought, it would seem almost incredible that the upliftings of mountains, whatever their mode of origin, should have taken place just where the earth’s crust, through these sedimentary accumulations, was the thickest, and where, therefore, there was the greatest weight to be lifted. … Earthquakes show that even now, in this last of the geological ages, the same border regions of the continents, although daily thickening from the sediments borne to the ocean by rivers, are the areas of the greatest and most frequent movements of the earth’s crust. (1866)
[Thus, the facts were known long ago; the explanation by tectonic activity came many decades later.]
[Thus, the facts were known long ago; the explanation by tectonic activity came many decades later.]
— Charles Loomis Dana
In 'Observations on the Origin of Some of the Earth’s Features', The American Journal of Science (Sep 1866), Second Series, 42, No. 125, 210-211.
Perhaps today there is a greater kindness of tone, as there is greater ingenuity of expression to make up for the fact that all the real, solid, elemental jests against doctors were uttered some one or two thousand years ago.
— Charles Loomis Dana
In 'The Evil Spoken of Physicians', The Proceedings of the Charaka Club (1902), 1, 80.
The old fashioned family physician and general practitioner ... was a splendid figure and useful person in his day; but he was badly trained, he was often ignorant, he made many mistakes, for one cannot by force of character and geniality of person make a diagnosis of appendicitis, or recognize streptococcus infection.
— Charles Loomis Dana
New York Medical Journal (1913), 97, 1.
In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion.
(1987) -- 
