BOOK I.

...the magnitude of diseases. For the extent to which each disease departs from the natural state determines its magnitude. Only someone who accurately understands the natural state can know how far a disease has departed from it. Since we are ignorant of this in individual patients, we turn to general principles original: "τὸ κοινὸν" (to koinon), referring to universal medical truths that apply to all people. so that we are not completely at a loss. Even in these generalities, the skilled practitioner possesses an advantage over the amateur. And what is that advantage?

Hippocrates The most famous physician of antiquity, often called the Father of Medicine. was the first of all known writers to record this. Those who followed him and understood his writings interpreted these ideas more extensively. Among them was Mnesitheus of Athens, a man highly capable in all aspects of the medical art. He was second to none in his mastery of the systematic method of medical practice.

This Mnesitheus, beginning from the highest and most primary categories genera: the most general classes of things, such as "diseases" or "animals", argued for dividing them into sub-categories species: specific types that fall under a broader genus and their distinguishing traits differences: the specific characteristics used to separate one species from another. He would then divide those resulting groups again in the same way, and those in turn likewise, until reaching a specific type that can no longer be divided. In this way, the process of division ends with a single, individual unit original: "ἄτομον" (atomon). In this logical context, it refers to a specific case or type that cannot be broken down into further sub-types.. It is sufficient for me to have explained these points to you briefly. And...

A 2