James Parkinson (April 11, 1755 – December 21, 1824) was an English physician, geologist, paleontologist, and political activist. April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ... 1755 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... December 21 is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1824 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... The Doctor by Samuel Luke Fildes This article is about the term physician, one type of doctor; for other uses of the word doctor see Doctor. ... the are cool The Geologist by Carl Spitzweg A geologist is a contributor to the science of geology, studying the physical structure and processes of the Earth and planets of the solar system (see planetary geology). ... A paleontologist carefully chips rock from a column of dinosaur vertebrae. ... Activism, in a general sense, can be described as involvement in action to bring about change, be it social, political, environmental, or other change. ...

He is most famous for his 1817 work, An Essay on the Shaking Palsy, in which he was the first to describe paralysis agitans, a condition that would later be named Parkinson's Disease after him. 1817 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

James Parkinson was born in Shoreditch, London, England. He was the son of John Parkinson, an apothecary and surgeon practicing in Hoxton Square in London. In 1784 James Parkinson was approved by the Corporation of London as a surgeon. Shoreditch Town Hall Shoreditch is a place in the London Borough of Hackney. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... A cardiothoracic surgeon performs a mitral valve replacement at the Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. ... 1784 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

On May 21, 1783, he married Mary Dale, with whom he subsequently had six children. Soon after he was married, James Parkinson succeeded his father in his practice in Hoxton Square. He believed that any worthwhile physician should know shorthand, at which he was adept. May 21 is the 141st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (142nd in leap years). ... 1783 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Shorthand is an abbreviated, symbolic writing method that improves speed of writing or brevity as compared to a normal method of writing a language. ...

In addition to his flourishing medical practice, Parkinson had an avid interest in geology and paleontology, as well as the politics of the day. Politics is the process by which groups make decisions. ...

Frontespiece of Parkinson's classical essay on shaking palsy

Parkinson was a strong advocate for the under-privileged, and an outspoken critic of the Pitt-government. His early career was marred by his being involved in a variety of social and revolutionary causes, and some historians think it most likely that he was a strong proponent for the French Revolution. He published nearly twenty political pamphlets in the post-French Revolution period, whilst Britain was in political chaos. Writing under his own name and his pseudonym "Old Hubert", he called for radical social reforms. Image File history File links Shaking-palsy-essay. ... William Pitt could refer to: William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham; Prime Minister of Great Britain 1766-1768; often known as William Pitt the Elder William Pitt the Younger; his son; Prime Minister of Great Britain (1783-1801) and (1804-1806) William Pitt, Comptroller of the Household to King James... The French Revolution (1789–1815) was a period of political and social upheaval in the political history of France and Europe as a whole, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on...

James Parkinson called for representation of the people in the House of Commons, the institution of annual parliaments, and universal suffrage. He was a member of several secret political societies, including the London Corresponding Society for Reform of Parliamentary Representation. In 1794 his membership in the organization led to his being examined under oath before the Privy Council to give evidence about a plot to assassinate King George III. He refused to testify regarding his part in "The Pop-Gun Plot", until he was certain he would not be forced to incriminate himself. The plan was to use a poisoned dart fired from a "pop gun" to bring the king's reign to a premature conclusion. Fortunately for Parkinson, the whole affair was soon forgotten, and no charges were ever brought against him. The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ... 1794 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Her Majestys Most Honourable Privy Council is a body of advisors to the British Sovereign. ... George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 1738 – 29 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until 1 January 1801, and thereafter United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death. ...

Parkinson turned away from his tumultuous political career, and between 1799 and 1807 published a number of medical works, including a work on gout in 1805. He was also responsible for the earliest writings on the subject of peritonitis in English medical literature. 1799 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Year 1807 (MDCCCVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar). ... 1805 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Parkinson was also interested in improving the general health and well-being of the population. He wrote several medical doctrines that exposed a similar zeal for the health and welfare of the people that was expressed by his political activism. He was a crusader for legal protection for the mentally ill, as well as their doctors and families.

In 1812 Parkinson assisted his son with the first described case of appendicitis in English, and the first instance in which perforation was shown to be the cause of death. For the overture by Tchaikovsky, see 1812 Overture; For the wars, see War of 1812 (USA - United Kingdom) or Patriotic War of 1812 (France - Russia) For the Siberia Airlines plane crashed over the Black Sea on October 4, 2001, see Siberia Airlines Flight 1812 1812 was a leap year starting... Appendicitis (or epityphlitis) is a condition characterized by inflammation of the appendix[1]. While mild cases may resolve without treatment, most require removal of the inflamed appendix, either by laparotomy or laparoscopy. ...

Parkinson's interest gradually turned from medicine to nature, specifically the relatively new field of geology, and paleontology. He began collecting specimens and drawings of fossils in the latter part of the eighteenth century. He took his children and friends on excursions to collect and observe fossil plants and animals. His attempts to learn more about fossil identification and interpretation were frustrated by a lack of available literature, and so he took the decision to improve matters by writing his own introduction to the study of fossils. This article includes a list of works cited but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Paleontology, palaeontology or palæontology is the study of prehistoric life forms on Earth through the examination of plant and animal fossils. ... A fossil Ammonite Fossils are the mineralized remains of animals or plants or other traces such as footprints. ...

In 1804 the first volume of his Organic Remains of the Former World was published. Gideon Mantell praised it as "the first attempt to give a familiar and scientific account of fossils". A second volume was published in 1808, and a third in 1811. Parkinson illustrated each volume, sometimes in color. The plates were later re-used by Gideon Mantell. In 1822 he published the shorter "Elements of Oryctology: an Introduction to the Study of Fossil Organic Remains, especially of those found in British Strata". 1804 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Gideon Algernon Mantell (February 3, 1790 – November 10, 1852) was an English obstetrician, geologist and palaeontologist. ... 1808 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... 1811 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... 1822 (MDCCCXXII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

Parkinson also contributed several papers to William Nicholson’s "A Journal of Natural Philosophy, Chemistry and the Arts", and in the first, second, and fifth volumes of the "Geological Society’s Transactions". William Nicholson, (1753-1815), English writer on natural philosophy. ...

On November 13, 1807, Parkinson and a number of other distinguished gentlemen met at the Freemasons' Tavern. The gathering included such great names as Sir Humphry Davy, Arthur Aikin, and George Bellas Greenough. This was to be the first meeting of the Geological Society of London. November 13 is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 48 days remaining. ... Year 1807 (MDCCCVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar). ... American Square & Compasses Freemasonry is a worldwide fraternal organization. ... Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet, FRS (17 December 1778 – 29 May 1829) was an esteemed British chemist and physicist. ... Arthur Aikin (May 19, 1773 - April 15, 1854), English chemist, mineralogist and scientific writer, was born at Warrington in Lancashire. ... George Bellas Greenough (January 18, 1778 - April 2, 1855), English geologist, was born in London. ... The Geological Society of London is a learned society based in England with the aim of investigating the mineral structure of the Earth. It is the oldest national geological society in the world and the largest in Europe with over 9000 Fellows entitled to the postnominal FGS - over 2000 of...

Parkinson belonged to a school of thought, Catastrophism, that concerned itself with the belief that the Earth's geology and biosphere were shaped by recent large-scale cataclysms. He cited the Noachian deluge of Genesis as an example, and he firmly believed that creation and extinction were processes guided by the hand of God. His view on Creation was that each 'day' was actually a much longer period, that lasted perhaps tens of thousands of years in length. Catastrophism is the theory that Earth has been affected by sudden, short-lived, violent events that were sometimes worldwide in scope. ... Adjectives: Terrestrial, Terran, Telluric, Tellurian, Earthly Atmosphere Surface pressure: 101. ... A flood (in Old English flod, a word common to Teutonic languages; compare German Flut, Dutch vloed from the same root as is seen in flow, float) is an overflow of water, an expanse of water submerging land, a deluge. ... Genesis (Hebrew: ‎, Greek: Γένεσις, meaning birth, creation, cause, beginning, source or origin) is the first book of the Torah, the Tanakh, and the Old Testament. ... This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... Creationism is the belief that humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe were created in their entirety by a supernatural deity (typically God), the existence of which is presupposed. ...

Essay on the shaking palsy

Parkinson was the first person to systematically describe 6 individuals with symptoms of the disease that bears his name. Unusually for such a description, he did not actually examine these patients himself but observed them on daily walks. [1] It was Jean Martin Charcot who coined the term "Parkinson's Disease" some 60 years later. Professor Charcot was well-known for showing, during his lessons at the Salpêtrière hospital, hysterical woman patients – here, his favorite patient, Blanche (Marie) Wittman, supported by Joseph Babinsky. ...

External links

• Information sheet about James Parkinson published by the Parkinson's Disease Society of the UK.
• Biography of James Parkinson from Who Named It?