This handy little book is a compilation of the five "Heath Clark" lectures delivered by Dr. Fulton at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in 1947. These lectures were essentially a historical review of the background of aviation medicine.
For the purpose of his presentation and to highlight the more important developments in the field of aviation medicine, the author selected the following topics for discussion: (1) Altitude Sickness and Acclimatization (The History of Oxygen), (2) Decompression Sickness (The Genesis of the Tissue Bubble), (3) Pressure Cabins and Explosive Decompression (The Spring of the Air), (4) Effects of Acceleration (Dim-Out and Black-Out, Protective Measures) and (5) Man and the Machine (Problems of Safety in Flight).
Extensive references follow each topic. The volume is attractively illustrated with a choice selection of old and modern figures.
In discussing acceleration and the advent of planes with supersonic speeds the author predicted