Foreword

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, seeking to increase the scholarly usefulness of our collections and enrich the intellectual life of the Library, made a grant in 1982 to the American Philosophical Society establishing a fellowship program in bibliography, research scholarship, and staff development. The major thrust of the program is to provide fellowships for younger scholars who will prepare bibliographic studies on topics well represented in the Library's collections.

Dr. Lily E. Kay, assistant professor of the history of science at the University of Chicago, was a Mellon Fellow in Bibliography in 1986-88. During the first year of her residence in the Library, she completed her thoughtful description and analysis of our manuscript holdings in history of physiology, biochemistry, and biophysics for the period 1900-1960 which constitutes the core of this publication. The second half of her fellowship was devoted to assisting the Librarian in collection development in modern history of science.

Dr. Kay's education and professional career uniquely prepared her for the writing of Molecules, Cells, and Life. Prior to entering The Johns Hopkins University's history of science doctoral program, she did graduate work in both the physical and life sciences, and was also a research scientist in molecular biology at the Salk Institute, and in biochemistry and physiology at the University of Pittsburgh. All of her work as a Mellon Fellow has been characterized by intellectual rigor, a high degree of energy, and a continuing sense of curiosity.

We would like to acknowledge the generous support of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation that made possible this work and those that will follow.

Preface

From the time of its founding in 1743, America's oldest learned society, the American Philosophical Society, has promoted the practice and study of science as part of its commitment to useful knowledge. Broadly stated, the promotion of useful knowledge was reflected during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in vital cultural roles of the Society's membership and Library. The legacy of the American Philosophical Society in furthering knowledge has continued in the twentieth century through scientific meetings and interdisciplinary symposia, through publications, exhibits, the Library, and scholarly research.

It has been a pleasure and privilege to take part in the research activities at the APS Library through the support of an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellowship. One of the strengths of the Library is its repository of manuscript records in American history; the collections in the history of American science contribute to this strength. Indeed, it has been gratifying to uncover such an abundance of scholarly material on the life sciences and to promote this body of useful knowledge through this annotated bibliography.

The project has benefited immeasurably from my association with the Library's staff. I am particularly grateful to Edward C. Carter II, Librarian, for his continuous scholarly encouragement and generous support. I am also indebted to Beth Carroll-Horrocks, Manuscript Librarian, for her expert guidance, resourceful assistance, and encouragement throughout the research and writing phases of this project. I thank David Rhees, Roy Goodman, Hedi Kyle, Susan Klepp, and Mark Linn for their support; and Nathan Reingold, Philip J. Pauly, and Robert E. Kohler for their critical comments.