Week 21 · Axis 3, Chapter 3 Origins of Medicine (A) · 3 lessons
3
Imhotep and clean hands
Discover P3 Term 2: Axis 3, Chapter 3
GoalTell what a very old medical papyrus and Imhotep show about medicine in Egypt, and test hand washing with sealed bread bags.
New words
papyrus · a long-lasting sheet to write on, made from the stems of the papyrus plantImhotep · a man remembered from ancient Egypt as a wise adviser and healergerms · living things so tiny that we cannot see them without a microscopeobserve · to look carefully and notice details
Explanation
Long ago in Egypt, people wrote on papyrus, a sheet made from the stems of the papyrus plant. A very old medical papyrus, more than three thousand years old, describes how to look at an injury, what to ask the patient, and what might happen next. It may be a copy of an even older text. Imhotep is remembered from ancient Egypt as a wise adviser and healer, but we do not know for sure which texts he wrote. This shows that people in Egypt long ago observed carefully and wrote down what they learned. Today we also know that germs, which are too small to see, can spread from our hands. Washing hands with soap and water helps remove them. In the bread test, we compare sealed bags to observe what happens. The bags are never opened, and the bread is never eaten.
Imhotep, remembered from very long ago→a very old medical papyrus→the great library of Alexandria→big hospitals, hundreds of years ago→hospitals today
Worked examples
wet hands→add soap→rub for 20 seconds→rinse→dry
Hand washing in steps.
The bread test. Three sealed bags: A, bread touched with unwashed hands; B, bread touched with hands washed with soap; C, bread not touched. A grown-up prepares them and seals them. Never open them.
Bag
First spots on day
A (unwashed)
4
B (washed)
6
C (not touched)
none by day 7
One class’s results (yours may differ). Spots first showed on bag A on day 4 and on bag B on day 6. Bag C had none by day 7. B was 6 − 4 = 2 days later than A. One test is not proof, so we repeat it.
Class activity
Sealed bread bags. A grown-up prepares three sealed bags of bread: A touched with unwashed hands, B touched with hands washed with soap and water, C not touched. Keep them together in a safe place. Draw what you see each day for seven days. Never open a bag and never eat the bread. A grown-up throws the bags away unopened at the end. Wash your hands with soap after you look at them. Then do the 3-2-1 reflection: write 3 facts you learned, 2 things you found interesting and 1 question you still have.
Practice
1
What is papyrus?
A sheet to write on, made from the stems of the papyrus plant.
2
Why do we never open the sealed bread bags?
Because things might grow on the bread that we should not touch or breathe in.
3
Spots showed on bag A on day 3 and on bag B on day 5. How many days later was bag B?
5 − 3 = 2 days later.
4
Count to 20 while rubbing soap on your hands. How many seconds is that?
20 seconds. It is a good length of time for washing hands.
