Holey Moly! The history of digestion(chosen for Nov 9 discussion)

The story of Dr. William Beaumont and a man-turned-science-experiment.

In 1822, Alexis St. Martin was accidentally shot in the stomach and treated by Dr. Beaumont. He was expected to die from his wounds, but remarkably he survived - with a hole in his stomach.

Dr. Beaumont doing what any opportunistic scientist would do, used this strange case to study digestion in the human body. For the next 11 years, St. Martin and Beaumont conducted a series of experiments ranging from the simple observation of normal digestion to the effects that temperature, exercise and even emotions have on the digestive process.

• Experiments 42 to 52 of Beaumont's 1833 book
• The episode of Radiolab that covers this story

Supplement: The whole 1833 book, Experiments and observations on the gastric juice, and the physiology of digestion, by William Beaumont. Flip through it for interesting pictures and descriptions.