Kersten Hall graduated with an honours degree in biochemistry from St. Anne's College, University of Oxford, and completed a PhD in gene regulation in adenoviruses before working for the School of Medicine at the University of Leeds. He then hung up his lab coat and began to write about science. His book 'The Man in the Monkeynut Coat' (OUP 2014) tells the story of pioneering physicist William Astbury whose research into wool fibres led him to make the very first studies of the structure of DNA. The book was shortlisted for the 2015 British Society for the History of Science Dingle Prize and was featured on a list of 'Books of 2014' in The Guardian. He is currently a visiting fellow in the School of Philosophy, Religion and History of Science at the University of Leeds where his research concerns the history of molecular biology but after a shocking diagnosis with Type 1 diabetes ten years ago he turned to the story of insulin.

• Preface


• Looking a Gift Horse in the Mouth?


• Introduction


• Taming the Tiger


• 1: The Pissing Evil - a colourful description of diabetes by 17th century English physician Thomas Willis


• 2: Thick Brown Muck - Canadian scientist Fred Banting wins the Nobel Prize for the discovery of insulin... and is furious


• 3: The Vision of Ezekiel - clinicians are stunned at the power of insulin to save lives, but it proves to be a double-edged sword


• 4: A Greek Tragedy - German clinician Georg Zuelzer snatches defeat from the jaws of victory


• 5: The Wasp's Nest - insulin proves to be a poisoned chalice for its discoverers


• 6: Be Careful What You Wish For - the case of Romanian scientist Nicolai Paulesco underlines the truth of an old proverb


• 7: 'In Praise of Wool' - the humble wool fibre sets in motion a revolution in biochemistry


• 8: A Boastful Undertaking - a discovery made in a fume-filled stable offers the key to unlocking insulin


• 9: The Blobs That Won a Nobel Prize - or two, all thanks to some coloured spots on a piece of filter paper


• 10: The Prophet in the Labyrinth - biochemist Erwin Chargaff helps unlock the secrets of DNA, but fears where this may lead


• 11: The Clone Wars - a conflict in which insulin proves to be a decisive weapon


• 12: Wall Street Gold - in an act of modern day alchemy, insulin makes stock market history


• 13: 'Don't You Want Cheap Insulin?' - What is it exactly that we want from science? And does the story of insulin have any lessons for us today?


• Bibliography


• Figures List and Acknowledgements for Images


• Acknowledgements


• End notes