[MPWG] Forthcoming talk at the Embassy of Greece

[Emanuela Appetiti]

Below, I am forwarding you the announcement of a lecture that Alain
Touwaide, Scientific Director of the Institute for the Preservation of
Medical Traditions, will deliver at the Greek Embassy, in Washington DC, on
February 18th. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

THE EMBASSY OF GREECE  

Invites you to a Presentation

"Hippocrates' Legacy in the 21st Century. Revisiting Ancient Greek Medical
Knowledge"
by
Alain Touwaide
Historian of Sciences, Smithsonian Institution
Scientific Director, Institute for the Preservation of Medical Traditions

February 18, 6:30 p.m.

At The Embassy of Greece

2217 Massachusetts Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20008

202-939-1352

RSVP via return e-mail: mourtoupala at greekembassy.org [1]. 

Hippocrates' best known legacy to world medicine is the Oath. It is much
more, however: a whole wealth of medical wisdom, and also a vast knowledge
acquired during the centuries and faithfully transmitted through
generations among the Asclepiads, rigorously screened
and synthesized by
Hippocrates and his disciples, and recorded for future medical practice. 

The formulas for medicines give evidence of the ability of ancient Greek
physicians to skillfully use the many natural resources of the rich
Mediterranean biodiversity. However recognized it might be, this heritage
is now threatened with oblivion, if not disappearance. It lies in old
handwritten books to be found in libraries across the world and exposed to
the unavoidable deterioration of time. To save this heritage and to make it
available for possible new investigations, it is
essential to trace such books, to decipher their texts, and to understand
their vital substance.

In this presentation, Alain Touwaide will illustrate the many facets and
actuality of the Greek medical heritage.

Through an archaeology of ancient medical volumes and their texts, he will
follow the odyssey of Greek medical knowledge from the Mediterranean to the
West. In so doing, he will bring to light the wisdom
painstakingly acquired
by ancient Greek physicians and show how relevant Hippocrates' heritage is
for 21st-century science and medicine.

Alain Touwaide is currently a Historian of Sciences at the Smithsonian
Institution and the Scientific Director of the Institute for the
Preservation of Medical Traditions. Trained as a Classical Philologist and
an Ancient and Medieval Historian, he has taught and conducted research
worldwide. The recipient of many grants, awards and prizes, he has
extensively published on Classical and Byzantine medicine. 

IF YOU PLAN TO ATTEND, PLEASE DO RSVP TO CONNIE MOURTOUPALAS, THE EMBASSY
CULTURAL AFFAIRS OFFICER, AT: mourtoupala at greekembassy.org [2]. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

We really hope you will be interested in this talk and, more generally, in
the activities of the recently established Institute (based at the Natural
History Museum of the Smithsonian Institution), which cover the traditional
uses of plants in ancient times throughout the
Mediterranean. 

Many thanks for your attention and best wishes, 

Emanuela Appetiti   

 [3] 

Emanuela Appetiti
CEO 

ceo at medicaltraditions.org 

+1 202 633 0967 

PO Box 7606
Washington, DC 20044-7606 
USA 

www.medicaltraditions.org [4]  

Links:
------
[1] mailto:mourtoupala at greekembassy.org
[2] mailto:mourtoupala at greekembassy.org
[3] http://medicaltraditions.org/
[4] http://medicaltraditions.org/
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