39

2. Merton, P. in The Spinal Cord. London, 1953.

later during recovery. Both mechanically and electricallyinduced responses were virtually lost while a direct responsewas easily obtained. At the height of the attack a just-detectable response was obtained on reinforcement, and duringrecovery, although the reflex had not returned to normal,reinforcement was fully effective.Spontaneous pain was almost absent during the actual recor-

ding, and there was no hyperaesthesia to the shock. It seemed

unlikely that there could have been any pathological afferentinflow sufficient to depress the reflex.We interpret these findings as showing that the reflex was

interrupted on the sensory side, neither the alpha nor gammaefferents being probably affected.We were struck by the absence of any motor disability in

spite of almost complete interruption of the reflex arc, andcannot help doubting the importance of the monosynapticreflex or of the " gamma servo "2 in human movement.

A. J. BULLEBA. C. DORNHORST.

St. Thomas’ Hospital Medical School,London, S.E.1.

Obituary

LASAR DUNNER

M.D. Berlin

Born in Cologne in 1885, Dr. Dunner came to Englandas a refugee before the war. In 1940 he took an appoint-ment under Dr. David Diamond at the tuberculosis

dispensary in Hull, where his extensive knowledge oftuberculosis and other chest diseases made him a valuedmember of the staff.

During the late 1930s, Diamond had begun to collect case-

histories of boiler-scalers who showed evidence of pneumoco-niosis, and in consequence Dunner became interested inindustrial chest diseases. After Diamond’s death during a

bombing raid, Dunner took over the investigation, and he pro-duced a series of papers on occupational disease of the lungsin boiler-scalers. Afterwards, with his colleagues Dr. Robert

Hardy, Dr. Richard Hermon, and Mr. D. J. T. Bagnall, he tookadvantage of the wealth of clinical material in Hull: their paperson lung disease in workers exposed to the dusts of graphiteand ultramarine were followed by observations on the effectsof sulphur dioxide and fumes of coke fires on the lungs, as wellas by studies of dockers who handle grain and seeds. He alsowrote on iron fettlers’ pneumoconiosis. Apart from these con-tributions to industrial medicine, he published well over a

hundred papers on clinical and experimental work in chestdiseases. He retained his youthful vigour and inquiring mind,and at the time of his death-which took place when he wason holiday in Germany on June 6-he was preparing an Englishversion of one of his textbooks on the differential diagnosis oflung disease, now in its second German edition. Cosmopolitanand multilingual, he was a man of great charm, a keen traveller,and an inveterate correspondent. He had never visited theUnited States, but was elected to honorary membership of theAmerican College of Chest Physicians-which gave him muchpleasure.

Dr. Dunner came to this country at an age when hecould not adapt himself fully to the English atmosphereand personalities: he was unmarried, and in some

respects he was a lonely figure. But he had courage andpersistence, and it was entirely through his efforts thatan industrial chest diseases clinic was set up in Hull,where, as honorary medical director, he continued hisinvestigations after retiring from the chest clinic in 1955.Generous and unsparing of himself on behalf of his

patients, he will long be remembered in the city andcountry of his adoption.

Surgeon Rear-Admiral B. Pickering Pick, C.B.E., died

on July 3 at the age of 79.

Notes and News

1. Joint F.A.O./W.H O. Expert Committee on Nutrition. Fifth report.F A O. Nutrition Meetings report series no. 19 Rome, 1958. Pp. 55

Obtainable from H M Stationery Office 3s.

CIBA FOUNDATIONAt a dinner held at Apothecaries Hall on June 26 to celebrate

the tenth anniversary, Sir Henry Dale said that the CibaFoundation filled a new kind of need and a real one. Derivingits initial stimulus and continuous support from the Swiss firmof Ciba, it existed to promote international cooperation inmedical and chemical research-cooperation which included

friendly controversy and friendly rivalry, " for unanimity is thelast thing we want in scientific research Much of its success

had come from the choice of its director, and Dr. G. E. W.Wolstenholme headed a staff of " almost apocryphal efficiencyand complete devotion ". Replying for the founders, Dr. R.

Kappeli said that the list of participants in the Foundation’s

symposia included the most illustrious names in research fromalmost every country. The founders wanted to promoteresearch across the barrier of frontiers, and their idealism

came of their contact with scientists. Lord Adrian believed thatthe Foundation was becoming steadily more important as an

international centre. The choice of London for its establishmentwas due as much to Britain’s geographical situation as to

her standing in the medical world. Though London had some80,000 beds in hotels, these (remarked Lord Adrian)

"

are mostlyeither occupied or not of a kind to invite occupation ": theFoundation gave visiting scientists somewhere to sleep outsidethe meeting-room. Replying to the toast of The Guests from Over-seas, proposed in neurological terms by Sir Russell Brain, Prof.A. H. T. Theorell said that when he was young the connectionbetween so-called pure scientists and manufacturing firms wascorrect but not cordial. Today the attitude had changed onboth sides: firms like Ciba were producing first-rate productson a basis of sound research, and the attitude of the purescientists had become less pure-to the benefit of all parties.Messrs. Ciba could not have given a better demonstration ofthe international character of their project than by putting itin London, though their obvious choice was Switzerland. Butwith all the wisdom of its founders it would have failed butfor the masterly way in which it was run.On behalf of the trustees, Sir Russell Brain presented three books

to Dr. Wolstenholme-one of them dated 1706, entitled WholesomeAdvice against the Use of Hot Liquors, especially Tea, Coffee,Chocolate, and Strong Waters.

Prof. A. von Muralt proposed a toast to Sir Harold Hims-worth who had presided over the anniversary symposium.Earlier in the day the Ciba Foundation annual lecture hadbeen given by Prof. Pasteur Vallery-Radotj to whom thankswere expressed by Sir Henry Dale.

NUTRITION WORK OF W.H.O. AND F.A.O.The director-generals of both the World Health Organisation

and the Food and Agriculture Organisation are advised by ajoint expert committee, who report on the technical problemsarising out of the work of the nutrition divisions of the two

Organisations. The 20 sections of the fifth report of thiscommittee testify to the wide range of the nutritional activi-ties of these United Nations agencies. Notable among pastachievements have been the collection and publication of dataon food consumption, the establishment of protein malnutritionas an international disease, the inquiry into the distribution

of endemic goitre, and the publication of the F.A.O. nutritionalstudies. More attention is now being paid to the nutritional

problems of apparently well-fed countries. Food technology,food additives, diet and atherosclerosis, and intake of calciumand strontium 90 are taking their place beside the classical

deficiency diseases as subjects for investigation.POSTGRADUATE COURSES IN OCCUPATIONAL

HEALTHMore and more firms are asking general practitioners to

act as part-time health advisers, and the Ministry of Healthfeel that some doctors may welcome courses on occupationalhealth to help them to deal with this new development in theirwork. Courses of this kind can, with administrative propriety,be provided under section 48 of the National Health ServiceAct and two will be held this autumn: one at the LondonSchool of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (Sept. 28-Oct. 3) and

40

1. Report of the Fourth Conference on Nutrition Problems in LatinAmerica. Food and Agriculture Organisation Nutrition MeetingsReport Series no. 18. Rome. Obtainable from H. M. StationeryOffice Pp. 82. 5s.

another at the Nuffield Department of Occupational Healthat Manchester (Nov. 2-7). It is planned to hold further coursesif these are successful.

NUTRITION IN LATIN AMERICAThe fourth F.A.O. conference on Nutrition Problems in Latin

America was held in Guatemala city in September, 1957. The

report 1 own it shows that endemic goitre remains an importantdisease in many areas; and, despite the recommendations of

previous conferences, iodisation of salt has been undertaken

only sporadically. Protein malnutrition is also widespread in

some countries, and the conference discussed the scientific basisfor the evaluation and fulfilment of protein requirements andalso the principles on which new protein supplements shouldbe tested and standardised. Recommendations for instructionin nutrition are set out and the need for effective nationalnutrition committees is emphasised. The report makes clear

that there are many nutrition problems in Latin America, andthat the machinery for tackling them-governmental, economic,and social-is often lacking.

University of SheffieldDr. R. S. Duff has been appointed senior lecturer in medicine,

Mr. I. E. Gillespie lecturer in surgery, Mr. D. W. Warrelllecturer in obstetrics and gynaecology, Dr. L. Grimshaw lecturerin psychiatry, Dr. T. F. McElligott assistant lecturer in patho-logy, and Dr. Jillian Horner research assistant in medicine.

Mr. S. R. Elsden, Ph.D., head of the department of micro-

biology since its creation in 1952, has been made professorof that subject.

University of WalesDr. O. P. Gray has been appointed senior lecturer in child

health in the Welsh National School of Medicine.

University of GlasgowOn June 22 the degree of M.D. was conferred (in absentia)

on F. W. Campbell and Janet J. Jellard (with commendation),and on T. H. C. Barclay. The D.P.H. was awarded to the follow-ing :

J. C. Baird, W. M. Buchanan, D. R. Edmiston, Stella E. G. Gibson,R. G. Haughie, G. P. Henry, Stephen Lepper, Catherine S. Mac-

Gregor, Ruby McMillan, J. M .Paterson, D. A. Player, Margaret D.Thomson, J. G. Young.

Royal College of Surgeons of EnglandAt a meeting of the council on June 24, with Sir James

Paterson Ross, the president, in the chair, Lord Kindersley waselected to the honorary fellowship.On July 2, Mr. R. V. Cooke and Mr. H. Osmond-Clarke were

elected members of the council.On Thursday, July 23, at 2-30 p.m., at the college, Lincoln’s

Inn Fields, London, W.C.2, Prof. Robert Bradlaw will give a

Menzies Campbell lecture. He will speak on gaudeamus igitur.

Royal College of Surgeons in IrelandThe fellowship of the college has been conferred on I. C.

Bailey, P. H. Osterberg, and G. P. Sankara.

Institute of PsychiatryThe Institute of Psychiatry in the University of London has

received f184,000 from the Isaac Wolfson Foundation, to beused for a new building containing lecture theatres, commonrooms, and other amenities for students and staff. This will be

part of a wider scheme which will include new research labora-tories. Since 1948, when the Maudsley Hospital Medical Schoolbecame, under its present title, one of the fifteen specialisedinstitutes which form the British Postgraduate Medical Fede-ration, over 2500 students and research-workers have workedthere. It is the only university school in this country devotedexclusively to postgraduate education in psychiatry.International Union against the Venereal Diseases andTreponematosesThe general assembly of this union is being organised this

year by the British Federation against the Venereal Diseases.It will be held in County Hall, Westminster, London, S.E.1,from Oct. 13 to 16. Further particulars may be had from Dr.C. S. Nicol, Lydia Department, St. Thomas’ Hospital, S.E.l.

West London Medico-chirurgical SocietyThe 69th annual banquet was held at Apothecaries’ Hall on

June 25, when the Society’s triennial gold medal was presentedto Dr. Alla n Rogers, physiologist to the Trans-Antarctic ex-

pedition.

Proposing the toast of the Society, Sir Allen Daley spokeof the West London Hospital’s alumni, and of the inevitable

changes which will take place when the Charing Cross Hospitalis rebuilt at Fulham. In his reply Mr. Arnold Walker, the

president, described the society’s activities during the pastyear. Mr. Alex Roche proposed The Guests and Kindred Socie-ties, and Dr. J. L. Livingstone, president of the Harveian

Society of London, responded.After the banquet Dr. W. S. C. Copeman, master of the

Society of Apothecaries, spoke about the society’s buildings,which were on view.

International Congress of EndocrinologyThe first International Congress of Endocrinology is to be

held in Copenhagen on July 18-23, 1960. The address of the

congress secretariat is Dr. Svend G. Johnsen, Hormone Depart-ment, Statens Seruminstitut, Copenhagen S.

Medical Insurance AgencyAt the 31st annual meeting, on June 25, Dr. James Fenton,

the chairman, said that the general manager, Mr. A. N. Dixon,will shortly complete 21 years with the agency and that in

recognition of his outstanding services the committee of

management proposed the endowment of two foundationershipsat Epsom College, to be known by his name, by means of a7-year covenant of 1000 p.a. During 1958 all branches sharedin the expansion of the work of the agency. The sums assuredin life and endowment contracts amounted to .7,713,090, thesepolicies being distributed among 33 offices. Among the chari-

table allocations authorised by the meeting was a new

covenant of f500 p.a. for the Squire Sprigge scholarship fundfor girl orphans.

British Medical Association

Entries are invited for the following prizes:Sir Charles Hastings (i75) and Charles Oliver Hawthorne (.50)

clinical prizes; Nathaniel Bishop Harman prize (.100) for research in

hospital practice; provisionally registered practitioners’ essay prize(f50) on "What defects do you now recognise in your medical educa-tion, and how do you think they might be remedied in the future?";medical students’ essay prize (f25) on "Why I chose medicine andwhat I hope to achieve".

Further particulars may be had from the secretary of the

association, B.M.A. House, London, W.C.l.

Dr. Arthur Jarrett, research assistant at University CollegeHospital Medical School, has been appointed to the universityreadership in dermatological histology tenable at that school.

The following have been appointed honorary physicians to theQueen: Dr. T. Lloyd Hughes, senior administrative medical officer,Liverpool Regional Hospital Board; Dr. N. L. Lloyd, chief medicalofficer, Ministry of Supply; Hon. W. S. Maclay, senior medicalcommissioner, Board of Control; Dr. H. E. Seiler, medical officerof health, Edinburgh; Dr. H. K. Snell, director of medical servi-ves, Prison Commission; Dr. G W. H. Townsend, county medicalofficer of health, Buckinghamshire,At a meeting of London County Council on June ?0 it was stated

that in the three years in which comparable measurements had beenmade, the indications were that air-borne radioactive matter over

London had increased about fourfold. At present it was still lessthan a hundredth of the maximum permissible level recommendedby the International Commission of Radiological Protection.

CORRIGENDUMIn the letter from Prof. F .J. Browne (June 27, p. 1282) the address

of Revvi Ltd. was wrongly given as 70, Blackstone Road, London,N 4. In fact this should have been 70, Blackstock Road, London, N.4.

Births, Marriages, and Deaths

BIRTHS

PRICE - On June 27, at Farnborough Hospital, Hampshire, to

Mary (nee Brill) wife of Dr. Douglas Price, Fernhill Cottage,Hawley, Nr. Camberley, a daughter - Cheryl Mary.

DEATHS

ARMiTAGE. — On July, 2, Martha Florence Armitage, M.D., of 86,Prospect Road, Southborough, Tanbridge Wells, aged 93.