This book provides an historical and philosophical overview of Western medicine along with commentary about how past principles affect current problems in biomedicine like genetic engineering, transhumanism, and a commitment to environmentalism. The book spans Ancient, Hippocratic and Galenic texts, Medieval writings, Modern contributions, and contemporary discoveries in the history and philosophy of medicine, including the growing role of technology in the practice of medicine. This book is of essential reading material for scholars and students interested in the history and philosophy of science as it relates to medicine, as well as those interested in the normative consequences of the study of nature for our contemporary world, particularly as it relates to medicine, environmental ethics, and genetic engineering.

Michael Boylan is Professor of Philosophy at Marymount University. He has published on biomedicine and the history and philosophy of science from the ancient Western world to contemporary biology and medicine. He is the author of several books on the history and philosophy of science, including: Method and Practice in Aristotle's Biology, Genetic Engineering, and The Origins of Ancient Greek Science: Blood-A Philosophical Study. Boylan was the lead author of The Academy of Orthopedic Surgery Ethics Handbook in the United States (1998-2001)