“The philosophies of one age have become the absurdities of the next, and the foolishness of yesterday has become the wisdom of tomorrow.” 

Sir William Osler

“The altar cloth of one aeon is the doormat of the next.”
Mark Twain

“The most erroneous stories are those we think we know best—and therefore never scrutinize or question.”
Stephen Jay Gould

“In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual.” 
Galileo Galilei

“So many centuries after the Creation, it is unlikely that anyone could find hitherto unknown lands of any value.” 
Spanish Royal Commission, rejecting Christopher Columbus’ proposal to sail west.

“What is allegedly true and useful today may be shown to be worthless tomorrow … remember Socrates and remain skeptical!”(1)
J.S.A.

What was once true but have been disproven? To find out, read this article in its entirety on our website.

— Joseph S. Alpert

This article originally appeared in the February 2013 issue of The American Journal of Medicine.