Bernard (1813-1878) is considered the father of experimental physiology in France. The thesis of the book fits well with the times and brought him great honours notably election to the French Academy. In essence, he argues that progress in medicine is only possible by the application of experimental physiology. His own work on vasoconstriction is a good example of his ideas. Without an hypothesis to be tested, and proper controls for the carrying out of experiments, investigators would only be groping in disorganized toil and the liklihood of clear and solid knowledge emerging from the effort was small.

The first chapter of the book is an excellent lesson on scientific research methodology and procedure, it's an essential read.