Memory Aids: Lock In the Key Facts
Part of Harvey and Circulation — GCSE History
This memory aid covers Memory Aids: Lock In the Key Facts within Harvey and Circulation for GCSE History. Revise Harvey and Circulation in Medicine Through Time for GCSE History with 8 exam-style questions and 5 flashcards. This topic appears less often, but it can still be a useful differentiator on mixed-topic papers. It is section 12 of 14 in this topic. Use it for quick recall, then test yourself straight afterwards so the memory aid becomes usable in an answer.
Topic position
Section 12 of 14
Practice
8 questions
Recall
5 flashcards
🧠 Memory Aids: Lock In the Key Facts
Harvey's four methods — "DCEP":
- Dissection — studied 40+ animal species; observed one-way valves in veins
- Calculation — 260 litres/hour pumped; liver couldn't produce that much
- Experiments — tied off veins; blood built up showing it flowed towards heart
- Publication — De Motu Cordis (1628) spread findings via printing press
Key dates for Harvey:
- 1578 — Harvey born
- 1628 — De Motu Cordis published — circulation proved
- 1657 — Harvey dies
- 1661 — Malpighi discovers capillaries (completes Harvey's theory)
- c.1700 — Harvey's theory finally widely accepted
The "260 litres" calculation — learn this number: Harvey calculated the heart pumped roughly 260 litres per hour. The body contains only ~5 litres of blood. 260 ÷ 5 = 52: the liver would need to produce 52 times the entire blood supply every hour. This single calculation made Galen's theory mathematically impossible. It is one of the most specific and impressive pieces of evidence in Medicine Through Time — examiners reward students who can cite it.
Harvey's place in the chain: Medieval ideas (Galen) → Vesalius challenges anatomy (1543) → Harvey challenges blood theory (1628) → Malpighi finds capillaries (1661) → eventually: blood transfusions possible. Each step depended on the previous one AND on new technology. Harvey needed Vesalius's culture of observation + printing press to spread his work + microscope advances for Malpighi to complete it.