Joy in the Void

Joy in the Void

The Nature of Change

The Nature of Change

Why Computers? Why Me?

Why Computers? Why Me? Strategies for Organizational Acceptance of the New Computer Technologies

Preface

Dr. Richard Byrne’s 1976 Keynote presentation at BIO '76 offered sage advise to all biomedical photographers, medical illustrators, and biocommunicators that focused on embracing computer technology. Perhaps now, more than ever for many of us, his universal message still rings true.

Getting the Word Out

Getting the Word Out.....

Publisher's Comments

Introduction to the Journal of Biocommunication, Issue 45-2. Included are comments from the Journal of Biocommunication's Editor-in-Chief.

The Role of German Academic Medicine and Science in the Medical Crimes of the Third Reich and the Shoah: The Continuing Legacy

Despite the revelations of the Nuremberg Medical Trial and subsequent prosecutions, the reality is that with particular respect to medicine and the role of leading academic and scientific institutions during the so-called "Third Reich," the postwar period war was marked by a "Great Silence." With few exceptions, this silence continued until the 1980's, when increasing systematic scholarly research and inadvertent discoveries revealed the significant role played by the German and Austrian medical profession during the Nazi period and the Shoah. The discoveries included body parts of victims of Nazi terror in the collections of university institutes of anatomy and scientific research. The Pernkopf Atlas of Human Anatomy represents a legacy from Nazi medicine. Although it includes images from Nazi victims, its accuracy makes it a valued resource in surgery. The Vienna Protocol is a new halachic responsum on the question of what to do with newly discovered remains from Nazi victims and their data, and can provide guidance in the ethical reasoning on whether to use the Pernkopf atlas. Photo credit: Faculty of Medicine of the University of Vienna under it's newly appointed dean, Prof. Eduard Pernkopf, immediately after the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany that occurred in March 1938. Used with permission of the Österreichische Nationalbibliothek (Austrian National Library, Vienna, Austria).

Nerve Surgeons’ Assessment of the Role of Eduard Pernkopf ’s Atlas of Topographic and Applied Human Anatomy in Surgical Practice

Pernkopf's Atlas of Anatomy contains anatomical plates with detailed images of the peripheral nerves. Its use is controversial due to the author's association with the "Third Reich" and the potential depiction of victims of the Holocaust. The ethical implications of using this atlas for informing surgical planning have not been assessed. Our objectives were: (1) assess the role of Pernkopf's atlas in nerve surgeons' current practice, and (2) determine whether a proposal for its ethical handling may provide possible guidance for use in surgery and surgical education. Published in NEUROSURGERY, Volume 84, Number 2, February 2019Presented at the American Society of Peripheral Nerve, 27th Annual Meeting,Phoenix, Arizona, January 12-14, 2018.Copyright ©2018 by the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, republished in the JBC Special Issue with permission. Image credit: Table of Contents image provided by the Medical University of Vienna, MUW-AD-003250-5-ABB-376

Guest Editor's Remarks

The 2019 Toronto Symposium, THE VIENNA PROTOCOL: Medicine's Confrontation with Continuing Legacies of its Nazi Past, was sponsored by Biomedical Communications, Institute of Medical Science, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto and the Neuberger Centre for Holocaust Education. https://www.holocaustcentre.com/hew-2019/the-vienna-protocol Prof. Leila Lax, coordinated the Symposium and was inspired by its presenters to create an online collection of Holocaust education resources. She is grateful to the Editor-in-Chief, Gary Schnitz and the Journal of Biocommunication Management Board for their dedication to scholarship, ethics, and the advancement of knowledge, in support of this Special Issue, that deals with contemporary controversies from a dark time in history, that is part of our professional legacy - and memory. This Special Issue is dedicated to the memory of the victims portrayed in the Pernkopf atlas. Image credit: Table of Contents image provided by the Medical University of Vienna, MUW-AD-003250-5-ABB-151.

The History of Eduard Pernkopf’s "Topographische Anatomie des Menschen"

This historical article by Professor David Williams first appeared in the Journal of Biocommunication in 1988. Based on the author's own experiences with Pernkopf illustrator Franz Batke in 1980 and 1981, the article offered the first historical overview of Eduard Pernkopf’s "Topographische Anatomie des Menschen." The author offers insight into the personal lives and unique work of the Pernkopf illustrators. The Editors wish to thank David for allowing the Journal to republish this seminal article. Original 1988 Abstract:Frequently misunderstood because of the history of the time in which it was produced, Eduard Pernkopf's Topographische Anatomie des Menschen nevertheless represents the pinnacle of color anatomic illustration. The more than 800 magnificent watercolor paintings of human anatomy found in Pernkopf's atlas occupied a number of Viennese artists for three decades. This article closely examines the work and its creators.