Science

This is the film Challenge: Science Against Cancer accompanied by a French soundtrack. It illustrates the importance of continued research in laboratories around the world in order to solve the problem of cancer, and aims to explain the current difficulties in identifying causes and cures. It begins with an overview of the birth of man from one cell and explores the complexity of the human body. It shows the isolation and testing of cancer cells and explains the effects of heredity and environment on normal cells.

This film is excerpted from the full-length Challenge: Science Against Cancer. Portions are presented in French and portions in English. A patient, Mr. Davis, enters the medical office. He is shown to have a treatable cancerous lesion on his face. Several doctors discuss the case and the recommended treatment. The film shows cells and cell division, laboratories, the use of microscopes, and experiments with mice. The treatment for Mr. Davis begins immediately and uses radium.

This silent, animated educational film introduces the relationship between sexual intercourse and conception. Animated drawings illustrate how conception occurs and the manner in which various birth control devices, surgical methods, and the contraceptive pill function. The film is without spoken commentary and is designed to be used by professional personnel. An instruction guide was produced for use with the film but is not held in the NLM collection.

This film is intended to explain to pregnant women whose babies are soon to be born what to expect from the labor and delivery experience. It addresses how to distinguish false labor from true labor, when to pack a bag for the hospital, what procedures will be carried out to prep the woman for delivery, the types of anesthetic a doctor might order, and techniques for minimizing discomfort. Changes in the cervix and uterus are illustrated with animation techniques, while the birth of the baby, including episiotomy and use of forceps, are shown in a real hospital room.

[This film has been edited from its full length of 64 minutes] In a filmed lecture format, obstetrician Dr. Joseph DeLee demonstrates on anatomical models (in the lecture hall) and with live patients (filmed previously) the use of forceps to deliver an infant, as well as the proper technique for episiotomy. He begins by showing images of scores of different forceps' designs from all over the world, mentioning each inventor by name. He explains why forceps are a necessary instrument for the safe delivery of many babies, and how to assess a patient's need for this intervention.

This military training film outlines for the Navy enlisted woman the routines she must establish and the habits she must acquire to remain in the best physical condition for performing her assigned duties.

Designed for adolescent girls, this educational film focuses on the developments that take place as a young girl matures into adulthood. It discusses changes in growth rate, development of body hair, development of acne, and the maturing of the female reproductive system, including menstruation. The changing male reproductive system is also discussed briefly.

[This film has been edited from its full length of 69 minutes] This film teaches the method of laparotrachelotomy or low cervical cesarean section. At the beginning of the film the instructor lectures and demonstrates the method through the use of diagrams. An actual laparotrachelotomy is performed at the end of the film. Filmed at the Chicago Lying-In Hospital.

The first segment of this film is titled "A Baby's Day at Twelve Weeks." Over footage of a 12-week-old baby and his mother, Arnold Gesell of the Yale Clinic of Child Development explains the developmental importance of each aspect of the baby's day, which begins as he wakes, stretches, and yawns. His yawn sends extra oxygen to his brain. Stretching makes his heart beat more strongly. He recognizes his mother and nurses at her breast. He naps in his crib. Gesell says babies show their individuality even in the way they sleep and wake up.

This film features a middle-aged, experienced midwife named Mrs. Mary Cooley. Throughout the film, Mrs. Cooley helps two women, Ida and Marybell, throughout their pregnancies and deliveries. Ida, a mother of two, is very responsible and attends regular checkups, whereas Marybell confesses to have never seen a doctor and has had one miscarriage and one stillborn infant. Mrs. Cooley takes both women to the doctor for regular blood and urine tests, explains to them what they should eat to have healthy pregnancies, and helps get their homes ready.