Home Past IssuesAbout UsContact Us Twitter Icon Facebook Logo LinkedIn Logo
Dartmouth Medical School Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

Vital Signs

Then & Now

A reminder of the pace of change, and of timeless truths, from the 1980 DMS admissions brochure:

"A medical school's reputation is ultimately established by . . . [its graduates'] competence and compassion. . . . Dartmouth Medical School alumni are among the nation's most respected physicians and scientists, and their contributions to the . . . profession belie their small numbers. [DMS] now has 1,565 living alumni."

4,505
DMS alumni today, some of whom hold multiple degrees

75%
Percent who hold an M.D.

10%
Percent who hold a Ph.D. or M.S. in the sciences

16%
Percent who hold an M.P.H. or health-policy degree


A reminder of the pace of change, and of timeless truths, from the 1970 MHMH-DHMC annual review:

"In the spring of 1953, we moved into a shiny new, modern, gem-of-a-place with the latest equipment and the delight of air-conditioning. Imagine being gowned, rubber-gloved, masked, and having your hair covered throughout a six-hour operation on a hot, humid August day, and you can truly appreciate what a tremendous advance . . . came about with air-conditioned operating rooms!"

12
Operating rooms in 1970

1991
Year the Lebanon DHMC opened, with 16 ORs and an eco-friendly AC system

31
Operating rooms today


A reminder of the pace of change, and of timeless truths, from the Winter 1990 Dartmouth Medicine:

"The questions scientists ask," wrote the late Dr. Mahlon Hoagland, former chair of biochemistry at DMS, "generally take the form of predictions: If I do this, that should happen. If a hypothesis offers no way to prove itself true or false, it is not useful scientifically. It should be thrown away; it is a belief. Knowledge advances on the wings of testable ideas, not of beliefs."

1956
Year that Hoagland codiscovered transfer RNA

1934
Year that tRNA's other codiscoverer, Dr. Paul Zamecnik, graduated from Dartmouth Medical School

2009
Year that both died


If you'd like to offer feedback about this article, we'd welcome getting your comments at DartMed@Dartmouth.edu.

This article may not be reproduced or reposted without permission. To inquire about permission, contact DartMed@Dartmouth.edu.

Back to Table of Contents

Dartmouth Medical SchoolDartmouth-Hitchcock Medical CenterWhite River Junction VAMCNorris Cotton Cancer CenterDartmouth College