5 experiments that parents spent on their children

Until relatively recently, experiments on humans have not been considered as something out of the ordinary. And some very obsessed researchers did not see anything wrong, even to experiment on their own children ...

1. The psychologist studying the reaction of his son to tickle

In 1933, psychologist Clarence Leuba planned to find out why we laugh when we tickle - obeying the innate instinct or because we see idiotic smiles of those who is with us is doing. The most suitable object for the experimental Leuba found his own son - still a baby.

First of all, in the name of science Leuba banned in his home every tickle, except for specially designated sessions, which he conducted himself. Moreover, he strictly forbade his wife to laugh and smile even when she touched the baby's skin. Apparently, the subject of the study seemed to him important enough to deprive the child's usual childhood pleasures.

Further, in order to be sure that the child does not respond to the expression of his own face, Leuba fashioned yourself a huge mask of cardboard, with tiny holes for the eyes. Putting on this nightmare, the scientist carefully tickled certain parts of the child's body, starting from the armpits.

Everything went according to plan until the experiment was not ruined Leuba's wife, who once forgotten and laughed, shaking her sitting in her lap little son. As this blatant incident responded Leuba - history is silent. We only know that after the professor's wife soon became pregnant the second child, and soon professor spent his schekotatelny experiment with a newborn daughter. This time the experience was able to successfully complete and bring important scientific conclusion: "children laugh, even if you do not know, so it is accepted."

2. The scientist who invented the vaccine, infecting his son with smallpox

In the late 18th century English physician Edward Jenner was trying to prove his theory that if people deliberately infect non-lethal cowpox, then recovered, they will be safe from really terrible human smallpox.

Today, we know that Jenner was right, but at that time the whole theory of vaccination was based only on observations of people who worked with cows and rarely sick human smallpox.

It is quite clear that the scientific community reacted to the idea of ​​intentional contamination skeptical, so Jenner decided to risk, and to conduct an experiment on his own little son - Edward Junior. The historical moment of infection with cowpox own son was even immortalized in sculpture:

The vaccination at the time was not just a prick. Jenner made to hand the boy cut with a scalpel and the wound liberally smeared with pus formed previously taken from this patient. After the baby is ill with a mild form of smallpox, Jenner has he brought him a real, human smallpox - if the theory were true, then the infection should not have happened. Then the same thing he has done with a few more little boys - now the neighborhood.

Fortunately, Jenner was right, and the calculations were justified - or in history, he would have stayed mad killer of young children, but not a hero-inventor of the vaccine.

3. The scientist, who checked on his son how dangerous burn jellyfish

In 1964, an Australian toxicologist named Jack Barnes studied the relationship burns, poisonous jellyfish with the development of so-called "Irukandji syndrome" - a set of very unpleasant symptoms that have been observed in some Australian swimmers.

First of all, Barnes has caught a few jellyfish, which he suspected pathogens mystical Irukandji syndrome. After that was required to conduct an experiment, or, more simply, to give captured jellyfish sting someone. For this purpose, we have selected a group of "guinea pigs", which entered the local lifeguard, he ... Barnes and his nine year old son Nick.

The experiment revealed that jellyfish venom actually causes Irukandji syndrome, and along with the fact that patients are experiencing terrible suffering - worse than a woman in childbirth. 20 minutes after the start of the experiment the entire group in convulsions taken to the ambulance to the nearest hospital.

Fortunately, they all recovered.

4. The scientist, who doomed his own son to imprisonment, to get him to learn a dead language

In 1881, a native of Lithuania on behalf of Eliezer Ben-Yehuda immigrated to Palestine and suddenly realized that all Jews immigrated speak different languages ​​unknown to him, which is why the organization of the circumcision of his newborn son has proved to be extremely problematic. Then Ben-Yehuda decided to put life on it, the Jews began to speak on one common language. In fact, this language was already the Jews - Hebrew, but in it, as a mother tongue, no one talked about the third century BC. e. It was used only for religious services. Privilege to be the first carrier revived spoken Hebrew, Ben-Yehuda decided to honor his son Itamar. And then there were some complexities, as in the Old Testament there were no such words, such as "locomotive". So learning Itamar what was happening in the world after the fall of the Roman Empire, it had to invent a lot of new words. It may even seem funny, but ...

Because at that time there were only two carriers of a new version of colloquial Hebrew, Ben-Yehuda has forbidden his son to communicate with anyone but himself. When the house came to visit, Itamar go to bed, that he accidentally heard a word in a foreign language.

Somehow Ben-Yehuda caught his wife for child singing Russian songs. He came into such a rage that began smashing furniture (even scary to think how many new words the boy learned during this scene). So much so, that the poor Itamar forbidden even to listen to the sounds made by animals.

However, I must admit, the training came to fruition after a while other Jews have come to trust Ben-Yehudah their children's education, and, in the end, Hebrew became the official language of Israel.

5. The psychologist, who has raised a chimpanzee as her own baby brother

In the 1930s, scientists still can not figure out which part of the human intellect is required to inheritance and upbringing that instilled. There is even a theory that some of the most intelligent animals - chimpanzees, for example, lack of speech, good manners and morals is due solely to the fact that no one has tried to read them aloud books and even raise them, as the children of men. Even found a psychologist who has decided to conduct a home experiment to test this theory. Psychologist Winthrop Kellogg called, and he had just had a son Donald - a case of the scientist could not miss. Kellogg family acquired a chimpanzee cub and began to raise him as a brother, Donald.

In order to somehow evaluate the intermediate stages of the experiment, Winthrop has developed a sophisticated testing system that "brothers" were held every day. Kellogg checked all that is possible - dexterity, memory, language development, obedience, etc...

Unfortunately, the experiment did not produce the expected results. Chimpanzees and remained chimpanzees. But Donald on the development impact of "brother" had an unexpected way - he was behaving like a chimpanzee.

When the child started to ride a monkey bite and everyone, experiment urgently curtailed.