Some months ago, hard pressed to define the peculiar genus internist, I described him as a general practitioner of medicine attempting to pursue his art without benefit of instruments beyond those required for physical examination, plus the hypodermic syringe and book of prescription blanks. I might have added that to be a good internist or teacher of medicine he needed more than a passing acquaintance with the kind of knowledge contained in Sodeman's text. With today's insistence on understanding of the reasons behind abnormal functioning of tissues and organs rather than a chief reliance on the morphologic changes detected grossly or microscopically by the pathologist, physiology takes its place as the primary discipline of the student of medicine. No longer will a thorough knowledge of the history, etiologic factors, pathologic changes, and clinical manifestations of an abnormal physical condition suffice in explaining a disease process to students, patients, or the