From Fish to Philosopher

336 Pages·1961·17.233 MB·English

by  Homer W. Smith

The Natural History Library
$1.45
NIO
:^rom
Philosoph
HOMER W. SMITH
A Doubleday Anchor
The American Museum ofNatural History

Clifford Harding
BIOLOGY DEPARTMENT
FROM FISH TO PHILOSOPHER
HOMER w. SMITH is onc of the outstanding figures in
modem physiology. Presently Chairman of the Depart-
ment and Professor of Physiology at the New York Uni-
versity School of Medicine, he has undertaken extensive
researches on the structure and function of the kidney,
and has written, in addition to numerous scientific arti-
cles, the following key works on the subject: The Physi-
ology of the Kidney; The Kidney: Structure and Func-
tion in Health and Disease; and Principles of Rerml
Physiology.
Bomin Denver, Colorado, in 1895, ^^ prepared for a
careerinmedicine at the UniversityofDenverwhere he
received his A.B. degree, and went on to Johns Hopkins
University for his Sc.D. degree. As a National Research
CouncilFellowin Physiology, Dr. Smith studied for two
years at the Harvard Medical School. A recipient of the
Passano and Lasker awards, and a former Guggenheim
fellow, he has also been awarded the Presidential Medal
for Merit.
Dr. Smith is a member of the National Academy of
Sciences, theAmericanPhysiological Society, the Ameri-
can Society for Biological Chemists, the Association for
American Physicians, the Society for Experimental Biol-
ogy and Medicine. Formerly president of the Mount
Desert Island Biological Laboratory, he is presently a
trustee of the Bermuda Laboratory for Biological Re-
search.
He is also the author of Kamongo: The Lungfish and
the Padre, a novel; The End of Illusion, and Man and
His Gods.
THE NATURALHISTORYLIBRARYmakesavailablein
paperback format books of enduring interest in
the life and earth sciences. Published in co-
operation with The American Museum of Natu-
ral History by Doubleday Anchor Books, this
series introduces the student and the general
reader to the study of man—his origins, his na-
ture, and his environment—and to the whole
natural world, from sub-microscopic life to the
universe at large.
The series is guided by a board at The Ameri-
can Museum of Natural History consisting of:
Franklyn M. Branley, Associate Astronomer, De-
partment of Astronomy; Charles M. Bogert,
Chairman and Curator, Department of Herpetol-
ogy; E. Thomas Gilliard, Associate Curator, De-
partment of Ornithology; Gordon F. Ekholm,
Curator of Mexican Archaeology, Department of
Anthropology; and Bobb Schaeffer, Curator, De-
partment of Vertebrate Paleontology.

FROM TO
FISH
PHILOSOPHER
HOMER W. SMITH
WITH 11 ILLUSTRATIONS
PUBLISHED IN CO-OPERATION WITH
TEE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
THE NATURAL HISTORY LIBRARY
ANCHOR BOOKS
DOUBLEDAY & COMPANY, INC.
GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK
The Natural History Library Edition, 1961
byspecialarrangementwithLittle, Brownand Company
and CIBA Pharmaceutical Products Inc.
Copyright© 1961byTheAmericanMuseumof
Natural History
Copyright 1953, 1959,byHomerW. Smith
All Rights Reserved
Printedinthe UnitedStatesofAmerica
FOR MARGARET AND HOMER WILSON SMITH