Recent events: Osler Day Activities 2022
Medical Student Research Symposium
The Library’s reopening events began with a celebration of student work on Tuesday 1 November: the Medical student research symposium, featured participants in the Del Maestro Family William Osler Medical Student Essay Awards and recipients of the Molina Foundation Medical Student Osler Library Research Awards. Learn about humanities research conducted by McGill Medical Students! The essay presentations were one factor in determining this year’s award winners.
Watch the medical student research presentations here:
Del Maestro Family William Osler Medical Student Essay Awards contestants:
- Yoel Yakobi (first place), "Concessions, Coercions, and Coveted Conversions: Papal Injunctions against Jewish Physicians in the Renaissance."
- Alba Sanchez-Allakhverdieva (second place), "Beyond the Origins of the Institute Philippe-Pinel: Exploring the Relationship between Forensic Psychiatry and the Deinstitutionalization Movement in Quebec."
- Devon Haseltine (third place - tie), “Optimizing Global Food Security for a Sustainable and Healthy Tomorrow.”
- Rushali Gandhi (third place - tie), “On the Presence of Unaccounted Bias: The Saga of Samuel George Morton’s Skull Collection and Race.”
Molina Foundation Medical Student Osler Library Research Award recipients:
- Saman Arfaie, “Leonardo da Vinci's Medical Library: Mining the Secrets of Genius, and Creativity.”
- Ali Fazlollahi, “Passing the Torch: Education During the Golden Age of Neurosurgery at the Montreal Neurological Institute.”
45th Annual Osler Lectureship: Policing The Womb In the Wake of the American Judiciary with Michele Goodwin, Chancellor’s Professor of Law, UCI
Our colleagues in the Department of Social Studies of Medicine hosted the annual Osler Lectureship: Professor Michele Goodwin, “Policing The Womb In the Wake of the American Judiciary.” Professor Goodwin addressed the rising tensions involving reproductive freedom in the United States. Starting with the recent Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, she exposed the errors in the decision and ultimately the opportunistic reading of American history by the Court’s majority. She turned to the current state of affairs in American reproductive health, including girls and women fleeing their home states to make it to safety or sanctuary states, but also how those efforts are being targeted and potentially criminalized. Professor Goodwin concluded by pointing out what’s next to ensure reproductive freedom for all persons.
Watch the lecture here:
Professor Joseph W. Lella Symposium
On Thursday 3 November, the Professor Joseph W. Lella Symposium featured a plenary lecture by McGill’s Trenholm Dean of Libraries, Dr. Guylaine Beaudry.
Watch the symposium here:
- Professor Margaret Lock, “Musings on Joseph Lella: Colleague and Friend.”
- Professor Bernard Brais (recorded video), “Remembering Joseph Lella as Sir William Osler: A Student’s Recollection.”
- Brendan Ross, “A Journey through Medical School with the Osler Library as Companion.”
- Dr. Rolando Del Maestro, “The Osler Gift, the Beginning: Deed, Wills and Memorandums.”
- Jeremy Norman, “The Organization of the Bibliotheca Osleriana Catalogue & its Influence.”
- Dr. Guylaine Beaudry, “Fiat Lux at McGill: Integrating Traditional Library Services and Digital Technology for Current and Future Generations of Students and Researchers.”
- Dr. Mario Molina, “W.W. Francis and the Opening of a Library.”
- Dr. Milton Roxanas, “My Personal Journey with Osler.”
- Dr. Vivien Lane, “5 Significant Women in Osler’s Life.”
- Dr. Maia Woolner, “Finding Time at the Osler Library” (not shown on the recording).
Other recent events and exhibitions
Scholarship at the Source: Allister Neher on Art and Anatomy in Nineteenth-Century Britain.
Join us during Science Literacy Week for a discussion by scholar and author Allister Neher upon themes from his recent book, Art and Anatomy in Nineteenth-Century Britain. Dr. Neher will discuss how art and anatomy were closely tied during this era, with anatomists attending drawing classes and art students attending lessons in anatomy. Two of the three figures at the centre of Neher’s study are usually known for their connections to the medical world: John Bell was an anatomist and surgeon, and Robert Carswell was a pathologist. Charles Landseer, the third figure, was a famous artist who studied anatomy with Sir Charles Bell, John Bell’s younger brother. Some of their works, which are among the Osler Library holdings, will be on display at the library and will feature in Dr. Neher’s talk.
Watch the event on the McGill Library's Youtube Channel!
Cure Yourself by Electricity! Personal Electrotherapeutic Devices in Canada and Beyond c. 1880s-1930s
Curated by Dr. Maia Woolner, Cure Yourself by Electricity showcases the history of portable electrotherapeutic devices during the end of the nineteenth century and the first decades of the twentieth century. Through objects, advertising, and print culture, the exhibit explores the relationship between electric technologies and the body, gendered medical consumerism, and health in popular culture. Featuring devices, texts, and images from the Osler Library of the History of Medicine and the Museum of Healthcare at Kingston, Cure Yourself by Electricity will delight viewers with its presentation of these peculiar devices.
Dr. Maia Isabelle Woolner is a historian and storyteller. Her work in the history of science and medicine investigates why we think the way we do about health and illness, and in particular, mental illness. With a focus on image-making, timekeeping, measurement practices, and patient narratives, her research seeks to connect the history of psychiatry and psychology to broader movements in culture and society.
Past exhibitions and presentations
- Show and Tell: The Secrets of Women / Montrer et racontrer : les secrets des femmes. Local artist Caroline Boileau and McGill-trained historian Margaret Carlyle interact with a few of the Osler Library's new acquisitions (and some older ones!) in an attempt to demystify medical history during a feminist dialogue of discovery. 15 December 2021. Enjoy the event here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEOJVltN-_Y.
- Research and the Osler. An evening celebrating medical student humanities research supported by the Osler Library. Featured speakers: Lilly Groszman, "Untold Medical History: Montreal’s Days of Shame;" Brendan Ross, "The Chinese Apotheosis of Dr. Norman Bethune: The Making of a Medical Folk Hero;" Faith Wallis, "Osler the Student." Watch the symposium: https://youtu.be/VakT8WDlfOg.
- The many faces of Norman Bethune. A moderated discussion held virtually on 23 March 2021. Watch the discussion: https://youtu.be/ZEtprnIxDE4.
- Perspectives on Sir William Osler in the 21st century. Virtual symposium hosted by our colleagues in the Department of Social Studies of Medicine on February 3, 2021. Moderated by Suzanne Morton (McGill University) and featuring panelists Jenna Healey (Queen's University), Samir Shaheen-Hussain (McGill University), Nadeem Toodayan (University of Queensland), André Lametti (McGill University), Mary Hague-Yearl (McGill University), and Christoph Gradmann (University of Oslo). Read summaries of each of the talks, written by the medical students from the McGill Osler Society. Watch the symposium: https://youtu.be/tUFzsaNaiOI.
- Osler Day, featuring the Del Maestro Family William Osler Medical Student Essay Awards (recording available here: https://youtu.be/62SM8BFDAiQ) and the 43rd Annual Osler Lectureship, Wednesday November 4th, 2020.
- Poetry Matters - Shane Neilson Thursday, February 13, 2020. A poet, physician, and critic from New Brunswick, Shane Neilson focuses on the articulation of pain and disordered affect through poetic form. As poet and editor, he comments on the emergent area of "disability poetics"; as a physician, he considers the value of poetry in medical practice.
- Osler Day, featuring the Pam and Rolando Del Maestro William Osler Medical Students Essay Awards and the 42nd Annual Osler Lectureship, Wednesday, November 6th, 2019.
- "The Reception of Galen's Pharmacology in Latin", talk by Mary Louise Nickerson Travel Grant awardee Dr. Iolanda Ventura, Department of Classical Philology and Italian Studies, Università di Bologna, Wednesday, October 23, 2019, 17:00 in ARTS 160. Sponsored by the McGill Medievalists Annual Rare Books Talk.
- The humoral basis of race difference? Depictions of race in medicine within the holdings of the Osler Library of the History of Medicine. Talk and workshop led by Mary Hague-Yearl, organized by Robin Simpson in conjunction with Jonathas de Andrade, "Counter-Narratives and other Fallacies," exhibit at the Leonard and Bina Ellen Gallery, Concordia University.
- Sir William Osler's Leonardo da Vinci Collection: Flight, Anatomy and Art. An exhibition curated by Dr. Rolando F. Del Maestro, William Feindel Professor Emeritus in Neuro-Oncology at McGill University and Director, Neurosurgical Simulation and Artificial Intelligence Learning Centre at the Montreal Neurological Institute, 15 April - 30 June 2019. A catalogue to the exhibit is available and can be viewed or downloaded here. Read some press coverage of this exhibit from France.fr: la version française ; English version.
- Osler: The Man You Rarely See. An exhibition of rarely-displayed items relating to William Osler, curated by former Medical History Librarian, Pamela Miller, 15 April - 30 June 2019.
- Predictor Unveiled: The First Reliable Home Pregnancy Test & its Little-Known Connection to Montreal. Panel discussion with Meg Crane (NYC - inventor of the Predictor), Prof. Jenna Healey (Queens Univ.), Prof. Christabelle Sethna (Univ. Ottawa), and Prof. Alanna Thain (McGill Univ.), May 7, 2019.
- Curiosities of Conception; Selections from the Osler Library of the History of Medicine. An exhibit co-curated by Shana Cooperstein and Frances Cullen with contributions from Robin Lynch, Lauren Harnish, Rach Klein, Anya Kowalchuk, and Kristy Kong, 24 January - 15 May 2019.
- Corps qui hantent d'autres corps. An exhibition featuring the work of 2018 Michele Larose-Osler Library Artist-in-Residence, Caroline Boileau, 4 February - 15 April 2019.
- "Universal medicine": Lessons from seventeenth-century England, Keynote address by Lauren Kassell, University of Cambridge, Angelical Conjunctions conference, 12 April 2019.
- Osler Day, featuring the Pam and Rolando Del Maestro William Osler Medical Students Essay Awards and the 41st Annual Osler Lectureship, 7 November 2018.
- The Fabric of the Human Body" (Vesalius, 1543): Images and Icons for the History of Medicine, Lecture by Hélène Cazes. Presented in collaboration with Le Département de langue et littérature françaises and Rare & Special Collections, Osler, Art, and Archives (ROAAr); supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, 30 October 2018.
- De musei fabrica, Exhibition in collaboration with Text’art, a group of six Montreal fibre artists, and the Maude Abbott Medical Museum, 17 May - 20 August 2018.
- Materia Medica, Exhibition by Loren Williams, December 13, 2017 - 4 May 2018.
- Book Launch: Physicianship and the Rebirth of Medical Education, by J. Donald Boudreau, Eric Cassell, and Abraham Fuks, April 26, 2018. Print and e-book available through Library catalogue
- Jean-Martin Charcot and the “Caesarism” of the Faculty of Medicine, Lecture by Dr. Bernard Brais, sponsored by the Medical Students' Osler Society, April 17, 2018.
- Oslerian Treasures: The Father of Modern Medicine, Lecture by Professor Faith Wallis, sponsored by the Medical Students' Osler Society, February 5, 2018.
- Impossible pathologies: re-fragmenting the archive, Exhibition by Lucy Lyons, October 12 - December 12, 2017.
- The Gendered Cultures of Beer and Cheese: the Regulation of Human and Microbial Bodies on the Home and Industrial Scales, 1616 - 2017, September 11 - October 2, 2017.
- Vaccination: Fame, Fear and Controversy, 1798-1998, January 2017 - August 2017.
- A History of Neuro-Oncology: Canadian Savoir Faire, a talk by Dr. Rolando Del Maestro, MD, PhD, William Feindel Emeritus Professor in Neuro-Oncology, Director of McGill Neurosurgical Simulation Research and Training Centre. This talk encouraged discussion surrounding ideas and individuals that have shaped the world of neuro-oncology, while placing emphasis on Canadian neuro-oncology research. Attendees were encouraged to prepare a ‘Canadian Neuro-Oncology Minute’ that highlighted an individual’s contributions to historical and/or current advancements in Canada and received an autographed copy of Dr. Rolando Del Maestro’s book A History of Neuro-Oncology (2008).
- Rural Medicine in 20th Century Quebec: Stories and Devices, curated by Dr. Richard Fraser, Laura Sang, Joan O’Malley, Marc Provost, Jerry Xie, Meriem Bounnab and Lucy Luo. October 2016 - January 2017.
- Knowing Blood: Medical Observations, Fluid Meanings, curated by Darren N. Wagner and Nick Whitfield. January-September 2016.
- Sanitizing Style: Germ Theory and Fashion at the Turn of the Century, curated by Cynthia Tang and Anna Dysert. September-December 2015.
- On the Surface/Skin Deep, curated by Sylvie Boisjoli and and Shana Cooperstein. Read exhibition talks from the curators in the spring 2015 issue of the Osler Library Newsletter (no. 122). Follow link to an interview with the curators on our blog.
- The Literature of Prescription: Charlotte Perkins Gilman and The Yellow Wallpaper. A Biography of Neurasthenia in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, curated by Prof. Andrea Tone. September - April 2014.
- Designing Doctors, an exhibit talk by Professor Annmarie Adams, McGill School of Architecture. Tuesday, 7 May 2013, 1:00-2:00, Meakins Auditorium (5th floor McIntyre Medical Sciences Building).
- "Neurological Laboratories" to Interdisciplinary "Centres of Brain Research": Otfrid Foerster, Wilder Penfield, and Early Neuroscience in Breslau and Montreal, a Nickerson Fellowship talk by Dr. Frank Stahnisch, Thursday, 2 May 2013, 2:00 - 3:00, Don Bates Seminar Room 101, Department of Social Studies of Medicine, McGill University, 3647 Peel Street.
- Artistic Practice Scientific Vision: British Artistic Anatomy in the Late Eighteenth and Early Nineetenth Century, the catalogue to the exhibit curated by Dr. Allister Neher.
- Our Friend the Sun: Images of Light Therapeutics from the Osler Library Collection, 1901-1944, a lecture given by Dr. Tania Anne Woloshyn (Recorded January 24, 2011). This recording is made possible by a generous gift from Gail Beck, O.Ont., Med’78 and Andrew Fenus, MLS’74.
- Osler Library Lecture: A Relationship Etched in Time: Leonardo da Vinci, the Earl of Arundel and Wenceslaus Hollar, a lecture given by Dr. Del Maestro (Recorded January 10, 2011). This recording is made possible by a generous gift from Gail Beck, O.Ont., Med’78 and Andrew Fenus, MLS’74.
- Our Friend, the Sun: Images of Light Therapeutics from the Osler Library Collection, 1901-1944, the catalogue to the exhibit curated by Dr. Tania Anne Woloshyn.
- 175 Years of the McGill Medical Library
- The Ghafiqi Project
- Margaret Ridley Charlton - Pioneer Medical Librarian. The first person with library training to work at the McGill University Medical Library and, with William Osler, one of the founders of the Medical Library Association.
- Osler's McGill: Medical Education, 1870-1885
- Our Friend the Sun - Images of Light, a lecture given by Dr. Tania Anne Woloshyn (Recorded January 24, 2011).
- Photographic Journey: McIntyre Medical Sciences Building and Osler Library - (Virtual McGill Project)
- A Relationship Etched in Time: Leonardo da Vinci, the Earl of Arundel and Wenceslaus Hollar, a lecture given by Dr. Del Maestro (Recorded January 10, 2011).
- Tour of Osler's Montreal 1870-1885 / Le Montréal de William Osler
- William Osler & the Teaching of Microscopy at McGill