Heroes and Scoundrels: Boneheads and Brainiacs Book

Boneheads and Brainiacs: Heroes and Scoundrels of the Nobel Prize in Medicine

By Moira Dolan MD

Even the greatest minds in medicine have been terribly, terribly wrong.

The inventor of the lobotomy won a Nobel prize in medicine for destroying his

patients' brains. Another Nobel laureate thought malaria cured syphilis. The

discoverer of anaphylactic shock also researched the spirit world and ESP. A

pioneer of organ transplants was an ardent eugenicist, while the founder of

sports physiology heroically spoke out against Nazism.

Boneheads and Brainiacs profiles the winners of the Nobel Prize in Medicine

from 1901 to 1950―a surprisingly diverse group of racists, cranks, and

opportunists, as well as heroes, geniuses, and selfless benefactors of

humanity. Forget all the ivory tower stereotypes of white-coated doctors

finding miracle cures. Boneheads and Brainiacs reveals the messy human reality

behind medical progress, in a highly entertaining book written for the ordinary

reader.

Some were bad scientists; others were great scientists and lousy human beings.

But the majority of these researchers produced knowledge that now saves

millions of lives―priceless discoveries like the role of vitamins in nutrition,

the dangers of radiation, treatments for diabetes and deadly infectious

diseases, and more. Boneheads and Brainiacs showcases the enthralling,

all-too-human personal lives that made modern medicine possible.

Paperback – March 10, 2020