Francesco Paolo de Ceglia

The Blood, the Worm, the Moon, the Witch: Epilepsy in Georg Ernst Stahl's Pathological Architecture

The subject of this paper is Georg Ernst Stahls (16591734) reflections on epilepsy. In the German physicians work, the concept of disease is stratified: it is the morbid idea which causes dysfunctions in the animal economy, as well as irregular motion, overabundance and ultimately an alteration of the corporeal humours. In particular, epilepsy is an affection deriving from an altered functioning of the bodily motions, caused by abnormal blood flow, intestinal worms, anatomical defects, foreign bodies, and the passions of the soul. While a certain medical tradition attributed a nervous origin to epilepsy, Stahl, giving it a humoural genesis, openly shows the theoretical premises on which his physiology rests. So, Stahlian physiology appears to be a non-mechanistic, teleological-inspired, hydraulicism.

From the laboratory to the factory, by way of the countryside: Fifty years of Italian scientific cinema (1908–1958)

The history of the Italian scientific documentary is not very well known nor, with the exception of the pioneer efforts in cinema, is it contemplated in the more complete studies of the evolution of the genre. This article aims to outline the ground covered by Italian scientific cinema in the first 50 years of its existence, from the pioneering works by Roberto Omegna to the industrial documentaries of the 1950s.The history of the Italian scientific documentary is not very well known nor, with the exception of the pioneer efforts in cinema, is it contemplated in the more complete studies of the evolution of the genre. This article aims to outline the ground covered by Italian scientific cinema in the first 50 years of its existence, from the pioneering works by Roberto Omegna to the industrial documentaries of the 1950s.

The Science of Santa Claus: Discussions on the Manna of Nicholas of Myra in the Modern Age

Nicholas of Myra, a bishop who lived between the third and fourth centuries AD, is considered to be the historical character on which the legendary figure of Santa Claus is based. His bones, which were brought to Bari in the Italian region of Apulia in 1087, are known in the Christian world for a particular trait: they exude a substance, considered miraculous by some, called manna. The aim of this paper is to reconstruct the debate that was conducted on natural philosophical grounds during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries on the origins and nature of this liquid.