On June 6, 1822, at a frontier fort on a small island in Lake Michigan, Beaumont was asked to attend a young French-Canadian fur trapper named Alexis St. Martin, who had been shot in the left lower chest and stomach. The wound never sealed off. Through this hole, Beaumont inserted bits of food, observed the chemical process of digestion, and siphoned samples of gastric juice. Since St. Martin sometimes became irritable during these experiments, Beaumont observed that anger can hinder one's digestion. Beaumont's book, though technical, is sure to be critically acclaimed for its persevering research. 1833.

Additional information can be found at http://www.james.com/beaumont/dr_life.htm.

Available from Science News Books. Dover, 320 p., paperback, $10.95.

From Science News, Vol. 156, No. 25 & 26, December 18 & 25, 1999, p. ii. Copyright © 1999, Science Service.