Oral history of Victor McKusick

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Victor A. McKusick was born in 1921 in Parkman, Maine. Dr. McKusick attended Tufts University from 1940 to 1942. However, because of World War II, Johns Hopkins Medical School had a lack of students and so suspended the requirement of a baccalaureate degree in order to apply for admission to the medical school. McKusick applied for admission to Johns Hopkins Medical School in his sixth semester of undergraduate studies and was accepted, graduating in 1946. Dr. McKusick is known for his work as the University Professor of Medical Genetics and the Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins Hospital as well as for his work as the chief editor of Mendelian Inheritance of Man (MIM). In this history, Dr. McKusick discusses his time at and contributions to Johns Hopkins University. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Oral history of Thomas Turner

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Thomas Bourne Turner was born in Frederick, Maryland. He completed his undergraduate work at St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, and went on to receive his medical degree from the University of Maryland. Turner joined the faculty at Johns Hopkins Medical School in the late 1920s and became a dean in 1957. He is best known for his work in infectious disease and microbiology. Turner left his position at the medical school during World War II in order to head up the Army's syphilis eradication program. He returned to his professorship afterward. In this history, Turner recounts his education and his career. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Ten years from today

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Seven Johns Hopkins scholars predict what the audience might expect in 1968 in various fields of science. Dr. Dayton Carritt, assistant director of the Chesapeake Bay Institute, considers the future of earth sciences: rockets will orbit the earth and send back weather information, nuclear power will be developed, and ocean circulation will be studied for possible food production. In the area of life sciences, biology professor William McElroy discusses nutritional requirements to relieve diseases, trapping solar energy, the physiology of space travel, insights on aging, and other possibilities in a "golden age of medicine." Professor of microbiology Thomas B. Turner predicts space medicine, electronic equipment for the handicapped, public protection against radioactivity, better surgical methods for transplants, and the reduction or elimination of heart disease, polio, and cancer. Professor Charles Singleton maintains that the humanities will continue to survive as long as we ask "What is a man?" and "What does it mean to be where we are?" In communications, chemistry professor Donald Hatch predicts the extension of television networks as well as 3-D television programs and programs on demand. Professor of physics Theodore Berlin lists future energy issues such as control of thermonuclear fusion reactions, problems with radioactive wastes, application of atomic energy (but not in homes or vehicles), transformation of devices to control energy, and development of solid fuels and solar energy. According to Francis Clauser, professor of aeronautics, in the realm of space travel, commercial airlines will fly at supersonic speeds; guided missiles and anti-missile devices will be the backbone of defense; the U.S. will enjoy peaceful space travel with the Russians; and a rocket will go to the moon. To reinforce this view, Wernher von Braun, in a taped segment, predicts that the U.S. will launch a man into outer space, he will orbit and return to earth. He says an unmanned rocket will also land on Mars. Milton S. Eisenhower, the president of Johns Hopkins University, sums up their findings by pointing out the importance of education in all these endeavors.