Collecting true blue blood: a journey to the heart of 1960s biology.
Mabel Boyden was a biologist, active in the field of immunochemical research and also a custodian of the Serological Museum at Rutgers University between 1948 and 1974. Her recollection of a trip to obtain the blood of the horseshoe crab is revealing: it contains figures of speech that give a glimpse into the immunological discourse of the mid-1960s; it shows how her thinking was torn between different ways of doing biology; and it offers an insight into the transition of biology into the modern, molecular era.
Collegium Helveticum UZH/ETH Zurich, STW, Schmelzbergstr. 25, CH-8092 Zürich, Switzerland. gisler@collegium.ethz.ch
Priska
P
Gisler
D000818:Animals; D006384:Hemagglutination; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006737:Horseshoe Crabs / Q000502:physiology*; D012699:Serology / Q000266:history*; D014481:United States