In the age before warning labels and liability waivers, scientific experimentation often looked like something between a séance and a rave. Case in point: this glorious 1807 illustration from a University of Pennsylvania dissertation titled "The Effects of Breathing Nitrous Oxide," unearthed by the ever-fascinating Public Domain Review.
From The PDR:
The summer of 1799 saw a new fad take hold in one remarkable circle of British society: the inhalation of "Laughing Gas". The overseer and pioneer of these experiments was a young Humphry Davy, future President of the Royal Society. Mike Jay explores how Davy's extreme and near-fatal regime of self-experimentation with the gas not only marked a new era in the history of science but a turn toward the philosophical and literary romanticism of the century to come."
The etching shows the two fancily dressed gentlemen partaking in some good old fashioned laughing gas experimentation. Nitrous oxide, known for its ability to make dental procedures slightly less horrifying, was still relatively new on the scene. With an airbag full of "laughing gas" clutched tightly in Davy's hand, the illustration looks more like a wild 19th-century party than a serious scientific inquiry.
Despite this, Davy's self-experiments with nitrous oxide helped lay the groundwork for anesthesiology. After seeing how much fun everyone is having in this illustration, I've realized my tooth hurts very badly. I might need to call my dentist today.
See also: Laughing gas for ladies in labor
