This volume includes eight essays delivered at the University of Pennsylvania Bicentennial Conference. The lectures included are:
Ancient Mesopotamia and the Beginnings of Science. E. A. Speiser.
Some Fundamental Concepts in Ancient Astronomy. Otto E. Neugebauer.
Medicine and Surgery in Ancient Egypt. Hermann Ranke.
Medieval Medicine. Henry E. Sigerist.
The Rise of Modern Scientific Medicine. Richard H. Shryock.
Two Centuries of Surgery. Evarts A. Graham.
Logicohistorical Study of Mechanism, Vitalism, Naturalism. Edgar A. Singer.
The Mathematical Way of Thinking. Hermann Weyl.
The nature of the occasion and the repute of the contributors indicate erudite contributions.