Rene-Theophile-Hyacinthe Laennec (1781-1826), the French physician hailed as the father of thoracic medicine, forever transformed the diagnosis of chest disease through his invention of the stethoscope. His creative genius and tireless dedication to medicine have resulted in much of our modern day understanding of pathology.

Rene Laennec's contributions to the medical world were many. His commitment to keen listening (perhaps inspired by his training as a flutist) and careful observation of the patient allowed him to recognize diseases like pneumonia that had been previously overlooked or misdiagnosed, and were historically deadly. His most classic publication is a book entitled De l'Auscultation Mediate (On Mediate Auscultation, also referred to as the Treatise). Although he was most famous for his discovery of "mediate auscultation" (a term he coined, referring to the use of an instrument, or mediator that allowed one to hear sounds within the human body), Laennec also published...