A history quiz: Who was J. Marion Sims?
If the name is remotely familiar to you, give yourself a D. If you know that he’s considered the father of gynecology, give yourself a C. If you know that he performed his experiments on female slaves, give yourself a B. If you know that he didn’t believe that these female slaves were capable of feeling pain and, therefore, didn’t bother using anesthesia, give yourself an A.
If you’ve ever contemplated the meaning of the fact that, of all the possible medical specialties, Dr. Sims’ specialty was gynecology, give yourself an A+. If you know that there stands, today, a statue in New York’s Central Park dedicated to the memory of Dr. Sims and that this statue contains no reference to Dr. Sims’ use of slaves for his work and this fact completely pisses you off, then move to the head of the class.