Episode 118: Placebos
Distillations | Science History Institute · Science History Institute
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Show Notes
This week, we celebrate April Fools' Day with a little medical trickery. First, we learn about Franz Mesmer's questionable 18th-century cures. Next we hear how fooling the brain is sometimes the only way to get accurate scientific results.
SHOW CLOCK
00:00 Opening Credits
00:31 Introduction
01:08 Mesmerism
05:06 Modern Placebos: A Necessary Hoax?
10:27 Closing Credits
CREDITS
Special thanks to Michal Meyer and Josh Kurz for researching this show. Additional credits available at chemheritage.org/distillations.