meline/William_Harvey By: Jahcinda Jordan, Felicia Williams, Ashley Murray

Summary William Harvey wrote about the heart and circulation of blood throughout his address to the Royal Court Physicians. He found the motion of the heart. First the auricle retracts and because the retraction blood fills the ventricle, it makes the hearts fibers tense making the heart beat, it then sends blood to the arteries. He also believed that the heart was the foundation of life.

Why did William Harvey want to present his findings to the Royal Court Physicians? What was he afraid of? William Harvey wanted to present his findings in an address to the Royal Court Physicians because he wanted to show them his work in their presence. His idea was new, not like the many ideas that have existed for years. He was afraid of being charged with his beliefs if he did his experiments at home or sent his work over seas.

Why were his discoveries about the heart and the circulation of blood so important and perhaps so threatening? It was threatening because before his theory that blood went through arteries, well-known and educated men said that air went through the arteries to the heart. That theory had been around for many years and had been followed through with physicians at the time. It was important because he believed that the heart is the foundation of life and without it, you couldn’t live. The heart pumped the blood, nourishes the body, and quickens the body.