Proteus

Proteus

Proteus

Since Ovid, the concept of metamorphosis has been an irresistible temptation for writers, not only as a metaphor for shifting personal identity but as a way of exploring ideas of cultural and political transition. The essays in this volume show how authors from Ovid, Chaucer, and Shakespeare to Thomas Mann, Karen Blixen, and 20th-century science fiction writers, have used this pervasive concept to raise fundamental questions about the nature and agency of radical change. Among the broad topics addressed are how shifts in scientific understanding intersect with and even effect transformations in literary expression; the differing values attached to the language of metamorphosis over time; and the connection between these values and structures of power, particularly gender relations. In addition to the editors, the contributors are Darko Suvin, Alessandro Perutelli, Elsa Linguanti, Douglas Burnham, Enrico Giaccherini, Lia Pacinotti, Michael St John, Rocco Coronato, Silvia Bruti, Elisabetta Cori, Judith Rorai Milanesi, Catherine Burgass, Luca Biagiotti, Stefania Magnoni, Daniel Weavis, Julian North, Ashley Chantler, Martin Halliwell, Patrick Quinn, Roberta Ferrari, Silvia Bigliazzi, and Nicoletta Caputo.

Rheumatoid Arthritis and Proteus

Rheumatoid Arthritis and Proteus explores the idea that Rheumatoid arthritis is caused by a urinary tract infection as a result of Proteus bacteria. Rheumatoid arthritis is a severe, painful and crippling disease affecting millions of people throughout the world, especially women. Genetic studies over the last 30 years have shown that individuals who possess the white cell blood groups HLA-DR1/4 carry a susceptibility sequence and are more likely to develop the disease. This book uses the methods of Sir Karl Popper, the philosopher of science, to present 12 “Popper sequences” which have been identified to indicate that Proteus is the causative agent of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Rheumatoid Arthritis and Proteus proposes that Anti-Proteus therapies should be followed as early as possible to prevent the crippling and irreversible joint deformities that occur in Rheumatoid Arthritis.