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Tomorrow sees the launch of the MUHC's inaugural public lecture series From Microscope to Stethoscope. "The series is a journey of discovery into the world of biomedical research," says Dr. Arthur T. Porter, Director General and CEO of the Ï㽶ÊÓƵ Health Centre. "It is an opportunity for MUHC scientists to demystify their research, and for the public to meet the researchers and gain an inside look at some of the most exciting discoveries and innovative breakthroughs taking place right now on the cutting edge of science."

Tomorrow evening (Wednesday, October 11), Dr. David Colman — Director of the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, Ï㽶ÊÓƵ and MUHC, and Wilder Penfield Professor in Neuroscience, Ï㽶ÊÓƵ — will present The Three Princes of Serendip — an introduction to breakthroughs in research. "Most breakthroughs in medicine are made by cleverly mixing apparently unrelated observations and technologies with a dusting of serendipity," says Dr. Colman, whose lecture will provide the big picture of scientific research, drawing on examples of revolutionary discoveries from across the scientific disciplines.

On Wednesday, November 1, Dr. Brian Ward — Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the MUHC, and Associate Director of the McGill Centre for Tropical Diseases — will present Vaccines — from concept to community. Finally, wrapping up this year's lecture series on Wednesday, December 6, Dr. Mark Ware — Director of Research at the MUHC Pain Clinic and Assistant Professor in Anesthesia and Family Medicine at Ï㽶ÊÓƵ — will present Medicinal cannabis — weeding fact from fiction.

All lectures begin at 7:30 p.m. in Livingston Hall (room L6-500) of the Montreal General Hospital (1650 Cedar Avenue). All are welcome and admission is free.

This initiative is sponsored by the MUHC Foundation and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR).

The Research Institute of the Ï㽶ÊÓƵ Health Centre (RI MUHC) is a world-renowned biomedical and health care hospital research centre. Located in Montreal, Quebec, the institute is the research arm of the MUHC, a university health centre affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine at Ï㽶ÊÓƵ. The institute supports over 500 researchers, nearly 1,000 graduate and post-doctoral students, and operates more than 300 laboratories devoted to a broad spectrum of fundamental and clinical research. The Research Institute operates at the forefront of knowledge, innovation and technology and is inextricably linked to the clinical programs of the MUHC, ensuring that patients benefit directly from the latest research-based knowledge. For further details visit: .

The Ï㽶ÊÓƵ Health Centre (MUHC) is a comprehensive academic health institution with an international reputation for excellence in clinical programs, research and teaching. The MUHC is a merger of five teaching hospitals affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University — the Montreal Children's, Montreal General, Royal Victoria, and Montreal Neurological Hospitals, as well as the Montreal Chest Institute. Building on the tradition of medical leadership of the founding hospitals, the goal of the MUHC is to provide patient care based on the most advanced knowledge in the health care field, and to contribute to the development of new knowledge.

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