Recreating the laboratory of Santorio Santorio

Who should attend?

Anyone is welcome to attend this public event.

Who was Santorio?

A hugely influential scientist but eclipsed by his friend and contemporary Galileo (1561 - 1634), Santorio was the first to develop and apply scientific methods to the measurement of the human body.

What did Santorio invent?

Many of the instruments still used in medicine today! The thermometer, the 'pulsometer', and most remarkably his 'weighing chair'. For 30 years he measured everything he ate and drank and discovered what he called 'insensible perspiration'.

We now understand this as metabolism.

What do we want to do?

We want to recreate Santorio's instruments and experiments. This will provide unique insights into how the science of medical measurement developed. Historians of medicine and science will be able to establish how this pioneer worked and how his results compare with those obtained using modern techniques.

How can you help?

This workshop will bring together researchers, academics, and members of the public from a wide range of backgrounds to discuss how we should take this project forward. No specific experience necessary - just an interest in being a part of the first ever recreation of a seventeenth-century laboratory!

Registration

For more details and to register your interest please contact Jo Welsman (j.r.welsman2@exeter.ac.uk).